Primary Years Program (PYP)

 

  

The Primary Years Program (PYP) is offered at Meridian School in kindergarten through grade 5.

 

The Primary Years Program (PYP) is the most recent of the IB programs and was adopted by the IB organization in 1997 to serve students ages 3 to 12.  DP and MYP programs had at that time been in existence for several years.   The PYP may be done in a school as a stand-alone program, but works well in laying the foundation for students to enter the MYP and DP Programs (creating an IB continuum.) 

 

The PYP represents a combination of wide-ranging research and experience – best practices derived from a variety of national and independent schools from around the world. The philosophy is that student learning is best done when it is authentic – relevant to the “real” world; and transdisciplinary, which means that the learning is not confined within the boundaries of traditional subject areas but is supported and enriched by them.

 

The PYP includes several components that are consistent across all PYP schools around the world. The following is an extremely brief overview of the main program elements.  Meridian holds regular IB information sessions and we urge all parents to attend and become more familiar with the intracacies of the program - all in an effort to give your child a high quality education. The main components of the program are:

 

The Learner Profile: These are a series of attributes that we aim to exemplify, which include development of the whole person – physically, intellectually, emotionally and ethically. You can learn more about these attributes and find links to additional information by clicking "The Learner Profile" on the menu to the right.

 

International-mindedness: Being internationally-minded, in the view of the IB, is to model the attributes of the learner profile and to have the knowledge that if we all do so, the world will be a better and more peaceful place. With this knowledge it is hoped that the kind of student who will graduate from a PYP school will, in the struggle to establish a personal set of values, be laying the foundation upon which international-mindedness will develop and flourish. At Meridian, we will strive to create opportunities for students to understand their world better by learning about the geography of our world, and by comparing our own cultures and beliefs with those of others, which in turn will teach us more about ourselves and our own personal histories. 

 

Concepts:  As opposed to memorization of isolated facts and mastery of skills out of context, the PYP philosophy is that “purposeful, structured inquiry is a powerful vehicle for learning that promotes meaning and understanding, and challenges students to engage with significant ideas.” Focusing our instruction on significant ideas helps the learner to construct true meaning through critical thinking and transfer of knowledge across all areas. You can learn more about the concepts we explore by clicking "Concepts" on the menu to the right.

 

Knowledge: In addition to teaching foundational reading and math skills, students at Meridian learn through a transdisciplinary approach to teaching as described below.

 

At Meridian, reading is taught through the use of real literature as opposed to a traditional textbook and worksheet approach. Students are independently assessed through various methods, including the Fountas & Pinnell system, to identify their independent and instructional reading levels. Using this information, students use literature based on these levels to gain word identification, fluency, and comprehension skills. Meridian uses the Math in Focus program as our standard math curriculum. The program is designed to ensure every student's ability to master concepts and apply mathematics. It follows a concrete-pictorial-abstract teaching model to help students understand why the math works rather than just memorizing algorithms.

 

Also at Meridian, we structure our learning through the PYP transdisciplinary themes: Who We Are; Where We Are in Place and Time; How We Express Ourselves; How the World Works; How We Organize Ourselves, and Sharing the Planet. Students in Kindergarten explore four of these themes and students in 1st through 5th grade explore all six. Teachers design units of inquiry focused on a conceptual central idea and work to bring in TEKS (standards) from the core subject areas. Our specials teachers also work to make authentic, conceptual connections to these units where possible.

 

Approaches to Learning:  Within our learning, Meridian teachers are asked to ensure that students gain and apply a set of skills that are critical for life-long learning – within the classroom and in life outside the school. These include thinking skills, communication skills, research skills, social skills, and self-management skills. These are not taught in isolation, but are woven throughout our curriculum.  

 

Action: In the PYP, the philosophy is that education must extend beyond knowledge and into the whole-child through the learning of socially responsible attitudes that translate into appropriate action. Students are taught that learning often leads to making a choice and acting a certain way. This action extends student learning and can have a wider social impact. Teachers also work to be models of action, whether it be running a race to raise awareness of a social issue, helping a person with taking notes when their arm is injured, or watering planters in front to keep plants alive. Action can be taken by individuals or groups and is celebrated by our school community.