Primary Years Programme (PYP)
Primary Years Programme: Inquiry learning
The transdisciplinary nature of the programme
The PYP acknowledges the importance of subject areas; language, mathematics, social studies, science, the arts (visual art, music, dance, drama), and personal, social and physical education. However, the PYP also recognises that educating students in a set of isolated subject areas, while necessary, is not sufficient. Of equal importance is the need to acquire skills in context, and to explore content that is relevant to students and transcends the boundaries of the traditional subjects.
"To be truly educated, a student must also make connections across the disciplines, discover ways to integrate the separate subjects, and ultimately relate what they learn to life" (Boyer 1995: 82).
The programme defines transdisciplinary themes that identify areas of shared human experience and have meaning for individuals from different cultures and ethnicities. These themes are part of the common ground that unifies the learning in all IB World Schools offering the PYP. They provide the opportunity to incorporate both local and global issues in the knowledge component of the PYP written curriculum - what we want students to know about.
There are six transdisciplinary themes:
Who we are
Where we are in place and time
How we express ourselves
How the world works
How we organize ourselves
Sharing the planet
Mr Warwick Norman
Junior School Dean of Teaching & Learning
