Hello again, fellow inquiry teachers!

There's a moment in every unit when you can feel the shift. Your students stop reciting facts about the topic and start reaching for the concept underneath it. Know what I mean?  It's one of my favourite things to watch happen in a classroom, and it's not always obvious unless you know what you're looking for.

Making connections with concepts: form, causation, structure, change, impact all through the topic of rocks & minerals. 

Here are five signs I watch for and they all connect with classroom strategies: 

1. They Use the Word "Because" Without Being Asked

Topic learners tell you what happened. Concept seekers tell you why it happened, and connect it to something bigger, without you prompting them for the "because."😉

2. They Transfer the Idea to a Completely Different Context

A true sign of conceptual understanding is when a student takes an idea from your unit and applies it somewhere else, somewhere you never mentioned. That is tra...

In the IB PYP classroom, we don’t assess learning at the end; we assess as learning happens. That means we need simple, consistent tools that show what students understand, how they are thinking, and where misconceptions are starting to form.

Exit slips are one of the most simple & effective formative assessment tools for this.😉

Used well, they give you immediate insight into:

• conceptual understanding
• student thinking and reasoning
• learning gaps and misconceptions
• next steps for teaching

But not all exit slips are equal.

In this blog, I’m sharing how I use “This or That” Exit Slips to move beyond basic reflection and into meaningful conceptual assessment in IB PYP classrooms.

👉 If you want the practical classroom strategies, skip ahead to the sections below on Maths, Literacy, and Units of Inquiry.

You can also access the full ready-to-use resource here:
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/IB-PYP-Assessment-Concepts-This-or-That-Exit-Slips-12076610 

Why Exit Sl...

Developing Reflective Thinkers: Using SOLO Taxonomy in the IB PYP

Why SOLO matters in a concept-based classroom

In an inquiry-driven IB PYP classroom, assessment is not just about what students know. It is about how they think, how they connect concepts, and how they grow as reflective learners. SOLO Taxonomy (Structure of Observed Learning Outcomes), created by John Biggs and Kevin Collis, provides a simple yet powerful framework to track and support this growth. Let me share how I use it in my classroom to develop and support our culture of on-going reflection. 

SOLO describes levels of understanding:

• Prestructural – The student is missing the point

• Unistructural – One relevant idea is identified

• Multi-structural – Several relevant ideas are collected but remain unconnected

• Relational – Ideas are linked into a meaningful whole

• Extended Abstract – The learner transfers and applies understanding in new ways

In many ways, SOLO mirrors the learner’s journey through inquiry: f...

Making Sense of IB PYP Learning Progressions: A Teacher's Guide to Supporting Student Growth

Let’s be honest: when you first come across the term learning progressions in the IB PYP, it can feel a bit abstract. I know it did for me and, quite honestly, my first question was, "Well, aren't we already monitoring learning progression? What's the point of this new thing?". If you're anything like most of the amazing PYP teachers I work with, you're already balancing a lot: unit planning, inquiry scaffolding, ATL integration, and of course, the day-to-day magic of keeping your classroom buzzing with curiosity. Let me give you a simplified opinion, share how it can look in the classroom and hopefully clarify things. Read on. 😊

So where do learning progressions fit in? Are they another “thing” to do? And is this something "new" to have to learn? 

Here’s the good news: they’re not a burden. They are NOT mandated.

They are a tool to support you and your students.

 In fact, once you understand ...

Helping Every Inquirer Grow

If you've been teaching within the IB PYP framework for a while, you’ll know that differentiation is more than a concept—it’s a mindset. It's an approach to teaching.  It’s about meeting every learner where they are, guiding them forward with intention, and designing experiences that are as inclusive as they are rigorous.

In an inquiry-based classroom, differentiation doesn’t mean multiple lesson plans for 25 learners (phew!)—it means providing the right level of support and challenge so that each student can think deeply, inquire independently, and feel successful.

Let’s break it down into three essential aspects: form, function, and assessment. The video is a snippet from Essentials for Inquiry members' community. I share professional learning along with classroom ready tools to support your application of this learning within your planning and teaching.  Find out more about the membership here. 😎

1. Form of Differentiation: What Does It Look Like?

Form is...

10 Easy Strategies for Assessing Conceptual Understanding in the IB PYP.

 Helping students build conceptual understanding is at the core of how we approach knowledge in the IB PYP. But how do we ensure they’re truly grasping big ideas rather than just recalling facts? I've put together 10 simple, effective ways to check for conceptual understanding at different grade levels ( supporting differentiation and diverse learning styles)—whilst encouraging student agency. Plus, you’ll find links to several resources that I designed for my class to support their self-assessment and reflective thinking practice.

Look for the  IB PYP This or That Exit Slips and Reflection Task Cards for Concepts to support deeper thinking across all transdisciplinary themes. They were such a hit for students and teachers! 

For Your Lower Grades Learners 

1. Concept Sorting with Real Objects This is an example of internalisation & classification in action. 
    Provide a variety of real-world objects and have student...

You know that way when your students' reflections are just regurgitated and not really giving us insight as to their conceptual understanding? When it comes to reflection and assessment in the IB PYP, fostering student voice and agency is at the forefront of creating engaged and lifelong learners. At the heart of this endeavour we want our students to truly understand what it means to BE reflective. Not only an attribute of the Learner Profile but being reflective is also a key Thinking Skill. The importance of this skill comes into play when we are assessing the concepts around which we plan and implement our inquiries. Concepts serve as the backbone of the IB PYP curriculum. Concepts not only deepen understanding but also empower students to take ownership of their learning experiences. 

Easy Strategies to Develop Reflective Thinkers

I'm excited to introduce a powerful approach to enhance reflection and inclusive assessment in the IB PYP through the lens of conceptual awareness. ...

When it comes to reflection and assessment of our IB PYP transdisciplinary inquiries, we are fundamentally assessing the abstract; understanding of concepts, transfer of knowledge and development of skills. These are not things that can be monitored with multiple choice assessments. (If you'd like to explore more about assessment in the PYP, start with this article here. ) Part of our assessment strategies include on-going documentation of the learning process, which includes the children's thinking and this is where the valuable visible thinking routines assist. I am delighted to welcome my guest writer, Jahnavi Aswani, a homeroom teacher-facilitator with PYP 3 from Mount Litera School International, Mumbai. She is bringing her experience with visible thinking routines and practical ideas to share with our community. As you read through Jahnavi's article, consider the Approaches to Learning Skills that are put into practice within the different thinking routines. Read on for some gr...

Love them or hate them, report cards are a much-needed communication for all involved. The IB PYP report card gives you a road map of the standards your student is working on together with those abstract elements that are essential parts of the whole child. If you're new to the PYP report card, it can look a little overwhelming, bordering on an essay in some schools! (I am not kidding!)  However the format, the report card provides an opportunity to look closely at each child’s journey of their learning and, most importantly, from a whole child perspective. If you're looking for some guidance and a free set of report card comments, read on.

The Whole Child Approach

Every child meets or exceeds expectations on a different day at a different time, or quite possibly a different year. The expectation we have to emphasise with learning standards is that it's a journey, not a race.

The expectation we have to emphasise with learning standards is that it’s a journey, not a race.

Asse...