PLEASE READ THIS CAREFULLY
EXHIBITION GUIDELINES
Introduction
The Primary Years Programme (PYP) exhibition represents a significant event in the life of a PYP school and
student, synthesizing the essential elements of the PYP and sharing them with the whole school community.
As a culminating experience it is an opportunity for students to exhibit the attributes of the International
Baccalaureate (IB) learner profile that have been developing throughout their engagement with the PYP.
In the students’ final year of the PYP, which occurs in some schools at age 10–11 and in others at age 11–12, there are five units of inquiry and the exhibition*. The exhibition unit takes place under any transdisciplinary theme at the discretion of the school. Students are required to engage in a collaborative, transdisciplinary inquiry process that involves them in identifying, investigating and offering solutions to real-life issues or problems. The central idea selected must be of sufficient scope and significance to warrant a detailed investigation by all students.
*Only IB World Schools offering the PYP are required to participate in the exhibition although candidate
schools may choose to do so.
Purpose
The PYP exhibition has a number of key purposes:
for students to engage in an in- depth, collaborative inquiry
• to provide students with an opportunity to demonstrate independence and responsibility for their
own learning
• to provide students with an opportunity to explore multiple perspectives
• for students to synthesize and apply their learning of previous years and to reflect upon their journey
through the PYP
• to provide an authentic process for assessing student understanding
• to demonstrate how students can take action as a result of their learning
• to unite the students, teachers, parents and other members of the school community in a collaborative
experience that incorporates the essential elements of the PYP
• to celebrate the transition of learners from primary to middle/secondary education.
Essential features of the exhibition
As the culminating PYP experience, it is required that the exhibition reflects all the major features of the
programme. Therefore it must:
• provide an opportunity for students to exhibit the attributes of the IB learner profile that have been
developing throughout their engagement with the PYP
• incorporate all the key concepts; an understanding of the key concepts should be demonstrated by
the application of key questions throughout the inquiry process
• synthesize aspects of all six transdisciplinary themes
• require students to use skills from all five sets of transdisciplinary skills (see Making the PYP happen:
A curriculum framework for international primary education, 2007, figure 8); students should be given
the opportunity to develop and apply skills from all the transdisciplinary skill areas in their exhibition
inquiry
• offer the students the opportunity to explore knowledge that is significant and relevant
• offer opportunities for students to display attitudes (see Making the PYP happen: A curriculum framework
for international primary education, 2007, figure 9) that relate to people, the environment and their
learning; these attitudes should be evident throughout the process
• provide opportunities for students to engage in action; students should demonstrate an ability to
reflect on and apply their learning to choose appropriate courses of action and carry them out; this
action may take the form of personal involvement with the planning and implementation of the
exhibition and/or service-orientated action; action may not always be clearly or immediately visible
or measurable but evidence should be recorded whenever a particular behaviour results from the
learning involved
• represent a process where students are engaged in a collaborative and student-led, in-depth inquiry
facilitated by teachers; records should be kept that reflect the process of planning and student
engagement with the exhibition
• include ongoing and rigorous assessment of the exhibition process; this assessment should take two
forms: firstly, ongoing assessment of each individual student’s contribution to and understanding of
the exhibition; secondly, a summative assessment and reflection on the event itself.
Roles in the exhibition
All members of the school community have important roles to play in the exhibition.
Role of student
Students will:
• have an understanding of the purpose and requirements of the exhibition from the outset of the process (guidelines and planning instructions should be provided by the teacher or mentor)
• participate in selecting a real-life issue or problem for the exhibition
• develop the inquiry by helping to decide on a central idea, lines of inquiry and student questions
• collaboratively plan learning and assessment experiences; these should involve independent and collaborative work and students should be involved in all stages of the planning and staging of the
exhibition
• carry out an open-ended inquiry into a real-life issue or problem
• demonstrate an understanding of the components of the PYP, in particular the IB learner profile; the
students involved in the exhibition should be given an opportunity to demonstrate their learning and the development of the attributes of the IB learner profile
• demonstrate an understanding of the five essential elements—knowledge, concepts, skills, attitudes
and action
• select and utilize a variety of strategies and resources to meet the outcomes of the inquiry; wherever
possible, students should use a variety of source materials, such as first-hand experiences, interviews, surveys, field visits, artifacts, science investigations, working models, not just book and/or Internet
research be academically honest when referring to their sources of information
• communicate effectively with teachers, peers and parents
• reflect on the components of and processes involved in the exhibition; they should keep a journal or
portfolio of their planning, draft pieces of work, sketches and photographs of work in progress as well
as the final product
• carry out self-assessment and peer assessment
• celebrate their learning by presenting the exhibition to the school community.
Role of parent/guardian
Parents/guardians will:
• have an understanding of the purpose and requirements of the exhibition
• support and encourage students and teachers throughout the process of inquiry
• be informed by reading newsletters, attending meetings, checking school websites, talking with
students
• help students to access resources—people, places, media and information
• provide expert subject knowledge where applicable
• act as mentors as required or appropriate
• encourage independent inquiry and respect student ownership of the process
• have an opportunity to reflect on and give feedback on the exhibition
• celebrate with the students by attending the staging of the exhibition.
EXHIBITION GUIDELINES
Introduction
The Primary Years Programme (PYP) exhibition represents a significant event in the life of a PYP school and
student, synthesizing the essential elements of the PYP and sharing them with the whole school community.
As a culminating experience it is an opportunity for students to exhibit the attributes of the International
Baccalaureate (IB) learner profile that have been developing throughout their engagement with the PYP.
In the students’ final year of the PYP, which occurs in some schools at age 10–11 and in others at age 11–12, there are five units of inquiry and the exhibition*. The exhibition unit takes place under any transdisciplinary theme at the discretion of the school. Students are required to engage in a collaborative, transdisciplinary inquiry process that involves them in identifying, investigating and offering solutions to real-life issues or problems. The central idea selected must be of sufficient scope and significance to warrant a detailed investigation by all students.
*Only IB World Schools offering the PYP are required to participate in the exhibition although candidate
schools may choose to do so.
Purpose
The PYP exhibition has a number of key purposes:
for students to engage in an in- depth, collaborative inquiry
• to provide students with an opportunity to demonstrate independence and responsibility for their
own learning
• to provide students with an opportunity to explore multiple perspectives
• for students to synthesize and apply their learning of previous years and to reflect upon their journey
through the PYP
• to provide an authentic process for assessing student understanding
• to demonstrate how students can take action as a result of their learning
• to unite the students, teachers, parents and other members of the school community in a collaborative
experience that incorporates the essential elements of the PYP
• to celebrate the transition of learners from primary to middle/secondary education.
Essential features of the exhibition
As the culminating PYP experience, it is required that the exhibition reflects all the major features of the
programme. Therefore it must:
• provide an opportunity for students to exhibit the attributes of the IB learner profile that have been
developing throughout their engagement with the PYP
• incorporate all the key concepts; an understanding of the key concepts should be demonstrated by
the application of key questions throughout the inquiry process
• synthesize aspects of all six transdisciplinary themes
• require students to use skills from all five sets of transdisciplinary skills (see Making the PYP happen:
A curriculum framework for international primary education, 2007, figure 8); students should be given
the opportunity to develop and apply skills from all the transdisciplinary skill areas in their exhibition
inquiry
• offer the students the opportunity to explore knowledge that is significant and relevant
• offer opportunities for students to display attitudes (see Making the PYP happen: A curriculum framework
for international primary education, 2007, figure 9) that relate to people, the environment and their
learning; these attitudes should be evident throughout the process
• provide opportunities for students to engage in action; students should demonstrate an ability to
reflect on and apply their learning to choose appropriate courses of action and carry them out; this
action may take the form of personal involvement with the planning and implementation of the
exhibition and/or service-orientated action; action may not always be clearly or immediately visible
or measurable but evidence should be recorded whenever a particular behaviour results from the
learning involved
• represent a process where students are engaged in a collaborative and student-led, in-depth inquiry
facilitated by teachers; records should be kept that reflect the process of planning and student
engagement with the exhibition
• include ongoing and rigorous assessment of the exhibition process; this assessment should take two
forms: firstly, ongoing assessment of each individual student’s contribution to and understanding of
the exhibition; secondly, a summative assessment and reflection on the event itself.
Roles in the exhibition
All members of the school community have important roles to play in the exhibition.
Role of student
Students will:
• have an understanding of the purpose and requirements of the exhibition from the outset of the process (guidelines and planning instructions should be provided by the teacher or mentor)
• participate in selecting a real-life issue or problem for the exhibition
• develop the inquiry by helping to decide on a central idea, lines of inquiry and student questions
• collaboratively plan learning and assessment experiences; these should involve independent and collaborative work and students should be involved in all stages of the planning and staging of the
exhibition
• carry out an open-ended inquiry into a real-life issue or problem
• demonstrate an understanding of the components of the PYP, in particular the IB learner profile; the
students involved in the exhibition should be given an opportunity to demonstrate their learning and the development of the attributes of the IB learner profile
• demonstrate an understanding of the five essential elements—knowledge, concepts, skills, attitudes
and action
• select and utilize a variety of strategies and resources to meet the outcomes of the inquiry; wherever
possible, students should use a variety of source materials, such as first-hand experiences, interviews, surveys, field visits, artifacts, science investigations, working models, not just book and/or Internet
research be academically honest when referring to their sources of information
• communicate effectively with teachers, peers and parents
• reflect on the components of and processes involved in the exhibition; they should keep a journal or
portfolio of their planning, draft pieces of work, sketches and photographs of work in progress as well
as the final product
• carry out self-assessment and peer assessment
• celebrate their learning by presenting the exhibition to the school community.
Role of parent/guardian
Parents/guardians will:
• have an understanding of the purpose and requirements of the exhibition
• support and encourage students and teachers throughout the process of inquiry
• be informed by reading newsletters, attending meetings, checking school websites, talking with
students
• help students to access resources—people, places, media and information
• provide expert subject knowledge where applicable
• act as mentors as required or appropriate
• encourage independent inquiry and respect student ownership of the process
• have an opportunity to reflect on and give feedback on the exhibition
• celebrate with the students by attending the staging of the exhibition.
