PRIMARY YEARS PROGRAMME (PYP) 2021-2022 at St. Andrews International School, Green Valley
Finding ourselves halfway through the school academic year, it makes perfect sense to pause and reflect on our learners’ progress and successes. The Student Led Conferences, which will happen very soon on Thursday 17th March, will be an excellent opportunity for our learners to lead this reflection! For more information about how you can get involved to support your child, please read the PYP Spotlight section below. Term 2 has provided a much appreciated sense of normality at GV, where we have picked up where we left off together as a learning community, continuing to enjoy our love of learning whilst at school. Learning onsite has brought more opportunities for inquiry, where our teachers are enjoying planning fun and engaging learning opportunities for the children.
It has been a joy to watch our curious learners in action, asking questions, exploring problems and exploring with their environment. It also has been a pleasure to welcome back the activities programme in the Primary phase, allowing our children to pursue their interests and passions by giving them choice and ownership. This, together with the buzz of excitement towards learning; both inside and outside classrooms, is very much alive here at GV as we are all lifelong learners! Our learning doesn’t stop there! Rather, it makes us more determined to have creative learning opportunities throughout the year, where I hope there will be increasing opportunities for parents to share learning experiences with us, such as learning journeys and productions.
Mrs Faye Wood PYP Co-ordinator
PYP SPOTLIGHT It’s that exciting time of year again, where our learners will be in the driving seat to lead their Student Led Conferences! Building on last year’s successes, our learners are eager and ready to share their learning with their parents. Take a look at the feedback we received from the event last year:
'This was a really great concept - Parent teacher conferences that are student led.' - Year 6 parent 'I liked seeing my child being confident when showing their work. I could see their strengths and see the improvements they have made.' -Year 2 parent Student Led Conferences are a wonderful learning tool for our students and form an essential part of the PYP curriculum. The children will demonstrate what they have been learning about and share interactive activities with their parents, allowing them to reflect on their progress so far as a PYP learner, and how this has contributed to their overall growth as a lifelong learner. When children have the opportunity to explain and demonstrate their learning, they are not only communicating their accomplishments and understanding, but also developing a variety of other skills such as self-assessment, leadership, independence and confidence. It is also an excellent opportunity for parents, learners and teachers to reflect and discuss learning in the PYP by using a common language. To truly live and breathe our PYP values, it is really important that all members of our learning community, including you as parents, share this common language. Our goal is to have 100% of our learners go through this learning experience with a parent or a guardian and we hope you will join us Thursday 17th March.
PYP UNITS IN ACTION NURSERY
Central idea:
Through play we express feelings and ideas
In Nursery, our unit of inquiry has been ‘Through play we express feelings and ideas’. Play is so important to learn! Play provides building blocks for communication, social skills, curiosity, problem solving and critical thinking. It is through play that children at a very early age engage and interact in the world around them. In particular, we have been focusing on the development of the children's Personal, Social and Emotional Development and their Communication Skills. The children have been learning how to play, share and work collaboratively in a group. They can follow our routines happily and enjoy a variety of indoor and outdoor activities. We are incredibly proud of the fantastic progress they have made already during their first year at Green Valley.
PYP UNITS IN ACTION KINDERGARTEN
Central idea:
People have a responsibility to care for living things.
Kindergarten students have been busy learning about living things during this unit of inquiry, which started by discovering a mysterious egg in the classroom and a collection of dinosaur footprints! We used our thinking skills and decided that we must have been visited by a dinosaur who left a gigantic dinosaur egg, but we weren’t sure how to take care of a baby dinosaur! This then led to discussions about other animals who lay eggs. We inquired about how we could take care of an egg by keeping it safe and healthy. We have also enjoyed learning the story ‘Dear Zoo’, where the children considered which animals make good pets and animals that would not! We reflected upon the pets we have and how we care for them, using our communication skills and during play in the role play areas. We have also cared for a plant nursery during this unit of inquiry, by watering and potting seedlings. These will be planted in our forest school area to provide homes for the animals in our environment.
PYP UNITS IN ACTION RECEPTION
Central idea:
Within a community there are different roles and responsibilities.
The children have enjoyed learning about people who help them in their community in their Unit of Inquiry. The children enjoyed researching about doctors, nurses, firefighters, police, teachers and many more! They reflected on what they would like to be when they grow up and what their dream job would be. Many children said that they wanted to be a ‘candy taster!’ - very inventive and imaginative! To demonstrate our newfound knowledge at the end of the unit, the children collaborated to draw a large map to design their own community. It had all the amenities that we would need and want like a hospital, houses, a mechanic and hairdressers. The map also included lots of ways to entertain ourselves, such as a beach and a water park. It was a fantastic unit that the children thoroughly enjoyed and demonstrated their thirst for learning!
PYP UNITS IN ACTION YEAR ONE
Central idea:
Jobs within a community involve different roles and responsibilities.
During this unit of inquiry, Year One have explored different roles and responsibilities of jobs. In our role play area, the children have enjoyed and have demonstrated great social skills, by role playing different job roles. The children have gone one step further and have applied their skills to be responsible for different jobs in our classroom, including lunch monitors, iPad monitors and feeding the fish to gain extra Dojo points! In addition, they have worked collaboratively to create and ask interview questions to inquire about different jobs in our local community. This included people in our school and learning community, such as Nurse May and their parents too. Year One is in the process of taking action by planning their own restaurant called the ‘Rainbow Restaurant’. The children are showing excellent self management and social skills to create their own menus and making decorations for their customers in Year 2. Great job, Year 1!
PYP UNITS IN ACTION YEAR TWO
Central idea:
Celebrations reflect the significance of cultures and beliefs
During this unit of inquiry, the learners have been learning about Celebrations: the features of them, shared beliefs and why people celebrate. We tuned into the unit by hosting a birthday party, where the children made food and planned for some fun party activities. We researched different celebrations around the world and in different cultures, reflecting on the features they have in common. The children used their agency to design a Chinese New Year celebration. Collaboratively, the children planned and made food, music activities and decorations. They were very open minded when making links between different celebrations, especially when trying to write in Mandarin! By the end of the unit, the Year 2 learners were very knowledgeable about Chinese New Year and the connections and similarities between different celebrations.
PYP UNITS IN ACTION YEAR THREE
Central idea:
The Earth's Physical Geography has an Impact on Human Settlements. In Year 3 our unit has been 'The Earth's Physical Geography has an Impact on Human Settlements'. We started by exploring the form of geographical features and what we mean by physical and human features by hunting for examples around the school. We inquired how these features can affect where people live, exploring how and where people live in different parts of the world and how areas have changed over time. For example, we used our critical thinking skills when considering how Pattaya has changed over the past 50 years, using photos and maps. We applied our newfound knowledge and skills to design our own island nation, thinking carefully and making connections about where places such as capital cities, farms, tourist towns and transport links should go.
PYP UNITS IN ACTION YEAR FOUR
Central idea:
The way people use and understand energy has developed in response to the changing Earth.
To tune in and find out about our electrifying unit, Year 4 explored different electrical items and how they work. From this, the children investigated how to make a circuit using batteries, wires and light bulbs. Applying their knowledge, we used thinking and communication skills in teamwork challenges to create switches, conductive dough and insulators for their circuits. The children were curious about where electricity comes from. This led us to an inquiry about renewable energy. Mr. Ben brought all sorts of interesting items for us to investigate; solar panels, wind turbines, electric motors and a bicycle generator. The learners have used solar panels to water the garden, charged a battery using a wind turbine and even charged a phone using the bicycle generator! The Year 4s took action by carrying out a survey to determine which areas at school need to get better at turning off devices to save energy. It turns out the whole of TB1 need to! We advocated our findings and energy saving tips using excellent risk taking and inquiring skills. To show how switched on they really are, the children created their own solar oven which they cooked S’mores in!
PYP UNITS IN ACTION YEAR FIVE
Central idea:
Humans have a responsibility to ensure equal rights and responsibilities for all.
Year 5 have explored the reasons why we all have a responsibility to ensure that everyone has equal rights globally. The learners have developed their research skills by finding out about the UN Declaration of Human Rights, and why some people may not have them. Going further, we organised an online interview with Hand2Hand to discover more about the difficulties faced by our local community to make connections about poverty, homelessness and COVID-19. From this, the children wanted to give a voice to the homeless, who face difficulties that are so often ignored, and decided to design t-shirts to spread awareness. The learners experienced some of the challenges that homeless people may face when scavenging for suitable materials to make a shelter. Using the knowledge gained from science investigations, the children evaluated the properties of different materials to construct a shelter as a group, putting their social skills to the test! We are very proud of the caring and principled people the Year 5s are developing into.
PYP UNITS IN ACTION YEAR SIX
Central idea:
Humanity’s decisions may impact the economic status of humankind.
Year 6 have adopted a principled nature, using their communication skills to share their thoughts about how humanity’s decisions may affect the economic stability of humankind. Each week, we have explored how the past has influenced economic growth and economic systems such as capitalism and their effects on economies to meet humanity’s needs. We went further, deepening our learning and lines of inquiry by researching the British Empire, slave trade, colonisation and the industrial revolution. The learners were shocked to discover the economic disparity and inequality between white and black people as a consequence of slavery. Using the game Monopoly, the children explored first-hand the economic opportunities available after slavery had been abolished between white and black people. Through student agency, the children chose a charity they would like to raise money and awareness for, by coordinating and leading a fun charity event. The Year 6s impressed us with their leadership skills, managing a budget and creativity of fund raising activities, which were enjoyed by our school community. We hope the money raised will make a positive economic impact on those less fortunate than ourselves.
PYP UNITS IN ACTION SPECIALIST SUBJECTS
PE Year 1 have been applying their learning in their unit of inquiry, ‘Jobs within a community’, to their PE lessons with great enthusiasm! During football training, the children discussed the range of jobs and responsibilities needed for football matches and how these help the game we love to play. In their final lesson before half-term, each child took on a different role within the game working collaboratively as players, referees and coaches. The children demonstrated fantastic communication skills and were reflective of their performances.
MANDARIN To deepen their understanding of celebrations, Year 2 welcomed Miss Han (GV Mandarin teacher) into their PYP lessons to find out more about Chinese New Year. As in international school, we are open-minded and celebrate the traditions and cultures of different countries and nationalities. The children enjoyed inquiring about the traditions of Chinese New Year, how it is celebrated and why. This experience helped the Year 2 learners to plan and lead a successful Chinese New Year celebration.
PYP UNITS IN ACTION SPECIALIST SUBJECTS
FOREST SCHOOL KG had a mysterious visitor in the Forest School area…and it wasn’t Mr Ben! The children used their careful observation skills to hunt for dinosaur footprints and fossils. When the children found all of them, they were greeted by a friendly T-Rex, who had left her eggs in the KG classroom earlier that week. After taking great care of the eggs, the children gave the eggs back as they realised that having a family of TRexes in the classroom wouldn’t be a good idea!
#PYPrisktaker
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OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM
#PYPcaring #PYPbalanced
#PYPopenminded
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UPCOMING UNITS OF INQUIRY Below are the units of inquiry that the learners are currently learning about: Central idea
Approach To Learning
IB learner attributes
Nursery
We share the planet with many different animals
Self management
Caring Principled
Kindergarten
People have a responsibility to care for living things.
Research
Principled Knowledgeable
Plants sustain life and play a role in our lives.
Research
Balanced Caring
Year 1
Stories can be told in a variety of ways to engage their audience and communicate meaning.
Communication
Communicator Balanced
Year 2
The performing arts are used as a form of expression to communicate and entertain.
Communication
Year 3
People apply their understanding of forces and energy to invent and create.
Research
Knowledgeable Inquirer
Year 4
Patterns in nature determine the Earth’s physical features.
Communication
Principled Caring
Year 5
Connections between past civilisations and present day societies influence the future.
Research
Knowledgeable Reflective
Year 6
Many elements combine to create a theatrical performance.
Social
Reception
Open-minded Communicator
Communicator Risk taker
UPCOMING EVENTS
MAR 11
TERM 2 REPORTS EMAILED HOME
MAR 11
EARLY YEARS WHEELS DAY
MAR 17
STUDENT LED CONFERENCE
MAR 24
EARLY YEARS TRIP TO THE BEACH
MAR 25
PRIMARY MINI MUSIC CONCERT
MAR 30
YEAR 2 & 3 PRODUCTION
APR 1
OPEN DAY
APR 5
YEAR 6 LEARNING JOURNEY AND PRODUCTION
APR 6
YEAR 4 LANDFORMS TRIP
APR 8
END OF TERM 2
APR 20
TERM 3 BEGINS
APR 29
EARLY YEARS OPEN DAY
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