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Are You an IB PYP School? The Ultimate Inquiry Toolkit To Support You

Are You a PYP School?

If you are opening a new PYP programme, welcoming a wave of new-to-PYP teachers this year, or simply looking for a complete resource to anchor your whole staff around concept-based inquiry, this one is for you.

Getting a school off to a strong start with the IB PYP takes more than good intentions. It takes a shared language for the concepts, a shared understanding of the Approaches to Learning skills, and practical, classroom-ready tools that every teacher, from Kindergarten through Grade 5, can pick up and use with confidence.

That is exactly why I built the Ultimate PYP Inquiry Toolkit Bundle.

Toolkit Bundles , Whole School Support for Every Level

The bundles come in two complete sets, so every teacher across your school is supported at their own grade band:

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Planning in the IB PYP How the World Works: What Concepts Live Here?

Every Unit of Inquiry starts somewhere. For most of us, it starts with content — forces, motion, machines, energy, structures, technology. We picture the activities first, then go hunting for resources, then try to squeeze it all into the planner.

Somewhere in that process, the inquiry itself can get lost.

I want to suggest a different starting point: start with the concepts. If inquiry is the journey, concepts are what propel it forward and that brings us to the single most useful question you can ask when planning a Unit of Inquiry:

What concepts live here?

Not just the specified concepts already sitting in the planner. What concepts actually live in this theme? That one question can change the way you plan every unit you teach  and it's the starting point for a simple, repeatable 7-step pathway I use for concept-based planning, which I'll walk through below using a How the World Works unit on forces, motion and innovation as the example.

Planning the Inquiry, Not Perfecting the...

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Planning Your First Unit of Inquiry: Where to Start in the IB PYP

Back to school in your IB PYP class is well and truly over. The settling-in weeks are behind you. Routines are running, names are sticking, the classroom finally feels like yours. And now the real planning pressure lands: your first proper unit of inquiry of the year.

It's a strange kind of hard. You've done this before, plenty of times. But not with this group, not yet knowing what makes them curious, what derails them, what they'll push back on. There's no "last year's version" of this unit to lean on, because last year's version was built for different children and the reflections came from those children. 

That's why the first unit of the year is so often the one that eats the most planning time, for the least confidence in the result.

Why the First Unit Is the Hardest One to Plan

A few reasons this one is different from every unit that follows it:

  • You're choosing concepts for a class you're still getting to know; there's no muscle memory with this group yet.
  • There's real p
  • ...
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Using Exit Slips for Assessment with Conceptual Understanding in the IB PYP

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...

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Reading Skills in the IB PYP with Daily Quotes Provocations

In our IB PYP classroom, literacy should do more than teach children to read words, it should help them read the world. One of the most powerful shifts I made in my classroom was introducing daily quote provocations that connected directly to our Programme of Inquiry. Daily quote provocations transformed our literacy from a subject into a thinking practice. These short but powerful texts became a bridge between reading skills, thinking skills, and concept-based learning across all six IB PYP transdisciplinary themes.

Using carefully selected quotes from artists, scientists, leaders, writers, historical figures, and even fictional characters, students engaged in a daily routine of Read – Reflect – Respond. What began as a warm-up quickly became one of the most meaningful literacy practices in our classroom.

Why Quotes Are Powerful for Reading Development

Short texts like quotes are deceptively rich. Because they are brief, students can focus their cognitive energy on deep thinking ra...

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3 Powerful Ways to Teach the UN Sustainable Development Goals in the IB PYP

If you're struggling to bring the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) authentically into your IB PYP classroom, know that you’re not alone. Many teachers wonder how to make these 17 global goals relevant and age-appropriate for younger learners.

In this post, my guest blogger is Amber Reynolds from @scribble_satisfaction_ is  an experienced IB PYP teacher, currently working in Albania. She creatively walks us through how to unpack what the Sustainable Development Goals are, how they connect naturally to the IB Primary Years Programme and shares three practical, classroom-ready strategies for bringing them to life through inquiry and authentic action. By the end, you’ll see that teaching the SDGs isn’t “extra” work but rather it’s a meaningful, integrated part of developing international-minded, caring global citizens.

Why It’s Important to Teach the SDGs from a Young Age

PYP Concepts: Connection, Responsibility
ATL Skills: Social, Thinking, and Self-Management Skills

In...

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Developing Inquiry and Research Skills in the IB PYP: Project Based Learning for Grades 1 -3

With hands on and meaningful investigations through project based inquiry, we can engage our young inquirers and IB PYP learners in research focusing on concepts through implicit research skills. Take a look at the examples below, including the chart that demonstrates the flow through the inquiry and see how project based learning ties in beautifully with concept-based inquiry. The examples I'm sharing were designed as age-appropriate tools to support our youngest learners whilst diving into transdisciplinary projects that help to build thinking skills, research skills and all leading to deeper conceptual understanding. 

 A Fantastic Entry Point to Inquiry for Young Learners

Project based learning instantly grabs children’s attention because there is an exciting purpose. But behind the fascination lies a rich opportunity to deeply explore disciplinary concepts and develop all important thinking & research skills. The example Im sharing for the purpose of illustrating

...
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5 Ways to Bring Inquiry Into Your IB PYP Math

Maths is so much more than “finding the answer.” When we connect it to everyday experiences, it becomes about seeing patterns, asking questions, and making sense of the world.

One simple but powerful guiding question is:

Where’s the maths here?

This question opens the door to authentic inquiry, giving students the chance to explore mathematics through curiosity, context, and connection. Below are five strategies you can use with any age group to nurture student agency and highlight maths through a conceptual lens.

I'm bringing you 5 ideas that can be applied with ANY age and really support student agency, identifying those threads for inquiry and all through a conceptual lens. 

 When we connect maths to everyday experiences, it becomes less about “finding the answer” and more about seeing patterns, asking questions, and making sense of the world.

Find the threads for inquiry.

Consider the big question: Where's the maths here?

Here are 5 simple, hands-on ways to bring that spiri...

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Developing ATL Skills in the IB PYP Early Years Slow Looking See Think Wonder

 

Slow Looking to Spark Inquiry: Using Look & Wonder Story Mats to Build ATL Skills in the PYP

One of my favourite parts of an inquiry is that moment when my students’ eyes widen and they lean forward, eager to share a question or idea that just popped into their minds. That’s when I know I’ve sparked genuine curiosity. Over the years, I’ve experimented with different provocations to tune into new units of inquiry, but one tool has really transformed the way my learners engage in those early stages: Look & Wonder Discussion Mats. What I didn’t anticipate at first was how powerfully they would support the IB PYP Approaches to Learning (ATL) skills - not just in the early years, but all the way through to upper primary.

Observations were superficial and questions were shallow. 

How to Use Look & Wonder Story Mats to Develop Observation, Thinking, and Communication Skills

I created these mats to help my students slow down, notice details, and wonder out loud. At first, their observati...

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How to Develop Conceptual Thinkers in the IB PYP with Inquiry-based Investigations

Fall into Conceptual Learning with the PYP

The leaves are turning already in Scotland and the air becoming crisp. It's actually my favourite time of year. Autumn provides a rich backdrop for inquiry in the IB PYP classroom. Seasonal changes are not just fun and exciting for children; they are also filled with opportunities to develop conceptual awareness. By connecting those additional concepts of harvest, change, natural cycles and patterns together with  autumn traditions to the PYP specified concepts and the Learner Profile, teachers can design learning experiences that are hands-on, inquiry-driven, and deeply meaningful. 

To help bring these ideas to life, I'm delighted to introduce our guest writer and fellow PYP educator,  Amber Reynolds, originally from the United States, now living and teaching in Albania. Amber has created a brand-new Fall Collection of resources that align with the IB PYP specified concepts. These activities combine the excitement of the season with the dep...

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