Celebrating Grade 5 Learning Through the PYP Exhibition

by The Grade 5 Teaching Team

“I didn’t know child labour still exists today.” 

“Whoa! We have solar panels on top of the YIS school building? I didn’t know that!”

“We’re going to do a beach clean up to take action.”

“I want to take videos in the cafeteria to track how much food is wasted over a couple of days during lunch time.”

"OH NO....my first layer got deleted in my animation..."
"You will have to persevere! Gambatte!"

"I can't wait to share about my wind turbine. I'm so proud of this!"

What do all of these statements have in common? They’re all expressed by our fifth graders who have been digging deep into their learning and connecting it to the world around them. 

Students learn how to approach mentors and specialists to access research in information.

Students work one-on-one with teachers and in groups to research and create their presentations.

The PYP Exhibition is a celebration of the Primary Years Program for students in Grade 5. Students carry out an extended, collaborative inquiry with the guidance of their teachers and mentors. It is an opportunity for them to apply critical thinking and inquiry skills they have acquired over the course of their PYP learning journey from ELC to Grade 5.

Celebrate good times, come on!

With music and fanfare that would make Kool & the Gang proud, the PYP Exhibition - “PYPx” - was launched during the first week of February. Students connected with educators, including members of our SLT, to explore issues and opportunities within their school, local, and global community. They reflected on their own skills and talents, values and curiosities, and tuned into who they are as human beings and their role in the world around them.

Eventually, they identified a real-life issue or opportunity that they were passionate or curious about, and related it to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Over the course of several weeks, they worked together with their teachers, specialists, and mentors to focus their inquiry, apply their knowledge and skills, investigate perspectives, and make connections to themselves, the community and the world. 

A Grade 5 student assemblies a wind turbine made from cardboard to show the action he wants to take to address the issue he researched.

A page from a student's planning journal documents their research and learning for their project.

Send emails to mentors! Book appointments with teachers! Head to expression element specialists! Meet with SDG groups! Collect props, materials and equipment! This daily activity reflected the beehive hum of self-directed and group learning. Students were conscripted to employ the AtLs (Approaches to Learning) such as research skills, time management skills, communication and social skills, to prioritize and organize their day so that they could learn more about their issue, make connections, and consider different perspectives. Teachers were no less busy - like the Daniels who directed the Academy Award winning movie, we employed the same AtLs to be “everything, everywhere, all at once” to our students.

The Exhibition was planned under the PYP transdisciplinary theme How We Express Ourselves. Addressing the central idea art forms can communicate important messages and inspire people to act and think, students planned and designed ways to share their key message through creative artistic expressions to an audience and committed themselves to take a form of action that would make a positive difference in the world. 

The days are counting down to March 14 and March 15. The inquiry process culminates in a celebration of learning as an exhibition, which includes showcasing the learning of Grade 5 students and demonstrating attributes of the IB Learner Profile and international mindedness. 

Two Gr. 5 female students present their project on sign language to their class.

A Gr. 5 teacher helps a female student to develop her ideas on the content of a presentation.

We are excited to welcome you, the YIS community, and the wider community to their presentations. Please come and join us in the celebration at the Family Showcase on Wednesday, March 15, 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm!