Early & Primary Years Programme

Welcome to Primary

We would like to take the opportunity to welcome you all to ISD Primary.

Primary ranges from the ages of 2 years, in our Playgroup, all the way up to our Grade 5’s at 11 years of age. Primary really is an unforgettable phase in a student's time at ISD where young learners make bonds with caring teachers, build friendships and create happy memories that will last a lifetime.

We often see that our community of learners start their learning journey with us in Playgroup and grow and grow developing as balanced students ready to take a risk and help out a friend when needed. These students are proud to be ISD Hawks and they represent our wonderful school wherever they go in life.

Go Hawks!

Mr. David Longworth
Primary Principal

The Learning Community

In Primary, we always endeavor to build a sense of community amongst our staff, learners and parents. We have small class sizes and are a close knit community which allows us to know each student and truly embrace who they are as individuals. Our team of teachers are warm, caring and inspiring professionals who follow the ISD and IB philosophies and guiding statements that look to promote student centered environments that empower students giving a platform where voice and choice is valued. Inquiry weaves its way throughout all of our learning and the questions a child raises coupled with the skill of our educators combine and authentic learning experiences are formed.

International mindedness is at the heart of what we do with learning that makes us consider how we can take action not only in our community, but in our host country of Bangladesh and the wider world. You will also see in many areas of the school, the UN Sustainable Development Goals (2015) connected to our learning as we demonstrate a wider understanding of the world around us.

Please take a moment to look through our Student / Parent Handbook for this academic year.

Parent Teacher Handbook

The PYP

The IB PYP (International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme) is a journey that all of our students embark on. Throughout a school year, students progress through Units of Inquiry so that our learners engage in purposeful and meaningful learning that puts the student’s interest at the center of everything, therefore giving purpose and meaning to their education. During a student's time in Primary, they will work on and develop ATL Skills in Communication, Research, Thinking, Self-management and Social skills to slowly but surely become more accomplished learners. The IB Learner Profile is also at the heart of everything where we look to support students growing.

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RULES FOR IB WORLD SCHOOLS

The Early Years

In these key formative years in our Early Years, learning is expressed through art, drama, music, language, and by making things. Hands-on experiences give children the opportunity to explore, experiment, and question the world around them. They learn to share, communicate, take turns, and cooperate with their classmates while developing their individuality.

The IB PYP framework guides our planning, learning, and assessment of each child's learning journey. We additionally supplement this framework by using the 'Birth to 5 Matters' guidance in better understanding where our learners are at and what their next steps are.

The PYP Exhibition

The PYP culminates in the Exhibition. Students draw on their skills and knowledge developed in the Programme and collaborate to create presentations on global issues with local relevance. Presentations take many forms and are shared with the ISD community. The PYP Exhibition also marks students' transition from the Elementary to the Secondary School and leads to the MYP (Middle Years Programme) and DP (Diploma Programme).

Thank you for taking the time to find out a little bit more about us here in Primary and we look forward to welcoming you into our wonderful school.

Events in Primary

Every week we host either a Primary Assembly or a House Event. Assemblies are a great opportunity to see what is going on in other classes, share who our Learner Profile Superstars are, hear from our School Counselor and Librarian in the Wild Readers section, sing happy birthday to our friends and of course know who won the House Event the previous week. House Events bring out the best in our students and whether you are in Amazon, Evert, Pacific or Shara, you are competing in our house events, sports days and swim gala (amongst many other events) to bring the House Cup home!

Additionally, every term, each class will host an End of Unit Celebration sharing their wonderful learning and we have Primary Assemblies every other week where one class will take on a ‘Class Share’ showing casing something they would like to talk to students and parents about.

Each month in Primary we host parents for one of our Coffee Mornings where we talk about a variety of topics from mental health to the importance of the mother tongue and more.