Primary
Ages 3 to 6 years
The unique Montessori/IB integrated approach at Whitby is implemented over a three-year cycle. There are a total of 12 Units of Inquiry - with 4 units completed each year of the cycle.To view the complete Program of Inquiry for this level, view the tab "PYP Units of Inquiry" for the current school year as well as the previous school years.
In Whitby's Primary program, our classrooms provides a balance of structure and flexibility that allows for the natural development of each child's physical, emotional, and cognitive skills. The values of the International Baccalaurate program are consistent with the values of a Montessori education, while strengthening and reinforcing connections between the children's personal world and the global community in which they live. Whitby's classrooms are beautiful, to entice the child to explore, and orderly, to reinforce the child's innate sense of order. This is essential to written language, numbers systems, to perceiving patterns, and to the conceptual understanding in the IB units of inquiry. Perhaps in no other educational setting is the physical environment so intimately tied to the learning at hand.
Over the course of the day, children are free to explore the classroom and complete work in each of the main areas: Mathematics, Practical Life, Language Arts, Sensorial, and Culture. As the child's guide, the teacher will introduce inquiry-based learning activities that illuminate the IB units of inquiry by teaching lessons one-on-one or to small groups of children. Teachers know that each child will learn at his or her own pace and so the child in encouraged to explore all areas of the classroom and units of inquiry.
Children ages three to six years are together in one classroom. This age span enables older children to model behavior and work for younger children, thus providing a calm and peaceful environment that reflects the IB learner profile from the very beginning of each school year. Since children's verbal, reasoning and social skills develop at an individual pace, a multi-aged grouping provides opportunities for all the children to have positive interactions with other students and enables teachers to create flexible learning groups that are tailored to each child's readiness.
One of the hallmarks of Whitby's education is a fundamental respect for others which is shown by students and faculty alike with the tone in the classroom always purposeful and disciplined. Children learn to respect the work of others, to quietly indicate their need for attention from a teacher, and to appreciate the value of others' contributions in the classroom. When children are absorbed in their work, disruptions are rare. The teacher is always there to help with problem solving, to listen, model appropriate behavior, and respond.
During each of the three Primary years, students explore four units of inquiry within the PYP Transdiciplinary Themes. The third year of the primary program is the culmination of a curriculum that meets the growth and developmental needs of the child. During the third year, a child exhibits an emerging ability to think abstractly, to articulate thoughts and feelings, to challenge and confirm an understanding of ideas and concepts, and a desire to reach out and cultivate a more complex and satisfying relationship with the world. It is a time of newly awakening social consciousness, of deepening friendships, of learning how to communicate effectively, and of resolving differences amicably. It is also the stage of belonging and accepting responsibility for the welfare of the community and a time of giving and sharing.
Students leave Primary with a great deal of confidence, having had ample leadership opportunities, public speaking projects and genuine ownership over their learning for three very formative years.
Related Pages:
PR Curriculum Connections Newsletter
Phase-In Information & Program Hours
About Montessori
About the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program
The Whitby PYP Transdisciplinary Programme of Inquiry
