IB PYP Approaches to Learning: Five Skills
IB PYP develops five skill categories built on "learning how to learn". We look at thinking, research, communication, social and self-management skills.
IB education is an international program that stands out for the approaches it brings to teaching and learning. Built at their core on the student "learning how to learn", the IB PYP approaches to learning aim to develop skills across five categories. These skills turn the student into an individual who asks the right question, sets effective goals and moves towards those goals with determination.
The Five Skill Categories
Approaches to Learning
Thinking
Critical, creative, ethical and reflective thinking; transfer skills.
Research
Information and media literacy; the ethical use of information.
Communication
Exchanging information, literacy and ICT skills.
Social
Positive relationships, collaboration and socio-emotional intelligence.
Self-management
Organisation and states of mind (self-motivation, resilience).
A Closer Look at the Skills
Thinking skills cover critical thinking that analyses topics and ideas, creative thinking that produces original ideas, ethical thinking that takes a principled approach, transfer skills that carry knowledge into different contexts, and reflective thinking that re-evaluates learning.
Research skills include information literacy, which covers building, planning and recording knowledge, media literacy, which covers interaction with media, and the ethical use of technology. Communication skills, in turn, bring together listening, interpreting, reading and writing.
Social skills develop the building of positive relationships and socio-emotional intelligence. Self-management skills cover time and task management (organisation) as well as managing emotions, self-motivation and resilience (states of mind).
The aim of IB PYP is not to teach a piece of knowledge, but to teach the student "how to learn".
In brief
- The IB PYP approaches to learning are built on "learning how to learn".
- Five categories: thinking, research, communication, social and self-management.
- These skills aim to make the student a lifelong learner.
You can explore the PYP attitudes in our PYP Attitudes article, how they are brought to life in the classroom in this article, and the program as a whole on our IB Primary Years Program page.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does "learning how to learn" mean?
It means that the student not only acquires knowledge, but also learns how to reach it, how to evaluate it and how to use it.
Are these skills unique to PYP?
The five skill categories appear across IB programs in general; in PYP they begin to be developed at an early age, in a way suited to the child.
Gökkuşağı Koleji · Learning how to learn.