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Thank you very much for volunteering to mentor our G5 students as they embark on their collaborative inquiry journey.Inside you will find helpful information, templates and questions to guide you as you meet with your groups.If you need help or advice at any stage, please contact the PYP coordinator or G5 homeroom teachers who will assist you.The 2014-15 cohort thanks you for your time the Exhibitionn

Mentoring

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Contents

What is the Exhibition? Page 3

What are the Essential Elements of the PYP?Concepts, Knowledge and skillsPage 4Action, Attitudes and the IB Learner ProfilePage 5Whats my role as a mentor?Mentor rolePage 6Community Roles in the ExhibitionPage 7Questions to ask at each stage of the inquiryPage 8/9Key Concept cardsPage 10TemplatesMentor meeting samplePage 11Mentor feedback 1Page 12Mentor feedback 2Page 13Student assessment rubricPage 14

AppendixGlossary of termsPage 15Exhibition online Its learningPage 16

What is the Exhibition?

In the final year of the IB program, students participate in a culminating project known as the Exhibition. 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 must be of sufficient scope and significance to warrant a detailed investigation by all students.

The PYP exhibition has a number of key purposes:

For students to engage in an in-depth, collaborative inquiry To provide students 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 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 in the primary to middle/secondary education

ConceptsEssential Elements of the PYP

The 8 key concepts drive the inquiry and are shown through the use of key questions that stem from each line of inquiry. Form What is it like? Function How does it work? Causation Why is it like it is? Change How is it changing? Connection How is it connected to other things? Perspective What are the points of view? Responsibility What is our responsibility? Reflection How do we know?

KnowledgeStudents have identified particular transdisciplinary themes that may be explored through their inquiry and are expected to share responsibility for finding, evaluating and using significant, relevant and meaningful evidence in their search for understanding.

Transdiciplinary SkillsWithin the search for conceptual understanding of a students topic, it is important that the student develop appropriate skills as they construct meaning. These skills include: Social Skills: Accepting responsibility, respecting others, cooperation, resolving conflict, group decision making and adopting a variety of group roles Communication Skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing and non-verbal communicationThinking Skills: Acquisition of knowledge, comprehension, application, synthesis, evaluation, dialectical thought and metacognition Research Skills: formulating questions, observing, planning, collecting data, recording data, organizing data, interpreting data, presenting research findings Self-Management Skills: gross motor skills, fine motor skills, spatial awareness, organization, time management, safety, healthy lifestyle, codes of behavior and informed choices

Action All students are expected to engage in sustained, authentic and appropriate action as a result of their learning.This may take place at school or away from school with supervision and parent permission. Students are encouraged to think of a variety of ways to take action from the beginning of their journey.

AttitudesThroughout the Exhibition, students are expected to practice and demonstrate the following attitudes: Appreciation, commitment, confidence, cooperation, creativity, curiosity, empathy, enthusiasm, independence, integrity, respect and tolerance.In doing so, it is our intention that they will become internationally minded citizens of the world, possessing the attributes of the IB Learner Profile.

The IB Learner ProfileWe strive to be: Inquirers, risk-takers, thinkers, knowledgeable, communicators, caring, open-minded, Reflective, balanced and principledWhats my role as a mentor?

Ask questionsEncourage and support the efforts of the studentsSuggest/Provide resourcesHelp organize tripsHelp interpret difficult information Facilitate interviews/telephone calls Offer suggestions for action Assist with where they are on the inquiry cycle Help with organization of filesHelp them with collaborative behaviourORGANISING TRIPSOne advantage of having a small group is that it gives the students an opportunity to visit places that might not always welcome a whole class. Such events can take place after school/at the weekend if the parent mentor or group members parents are willing to organize the event.If a trip needs to take place during school hours because it is not possible to do any other time, the teacher mentor needs to properly organize permission and notification of teachers and administrators and get parent permissions, organize transport and consider costs. School buses are only available between 8.30am and 2pm and must be organized at least one week in advance. (Joint trips are a good idea too so keep each other informed)

Questions to ask at each stage of the inquiry

Connect: What were some of your reasons for choosing this particular challenge/inquiry? Do you have a connection to this issue personally or through someone you know? What burning questions are going to be answered for you in this inquiry?

Explore Connections:At this stage the students will need to be exposed to and exploring a range of ideas and resources; possibly guiding them towards more manageable issues. We want to be solution/action oriented and realistic. You have created your group central idea and begun to search for more information. Using your concept questions and lines of inquiry, what have you already found out? What questions have been difficult to answer so far? Have you been surprised or shocked? Have any of your questions changed? What might be some possible alternative ways to find out? What might some possible actions look like?

Inquire/find out: This stage will involve lengthy and thorough research using all conceptual lenses coming back often to the CI and highlighting misconceptions. This stage might help identify suitable action possibilities. Before going on to inquire further, go back to the central idea, lines of inquiry and key questions. Which question will we start with and how might we find out what we need to do? Thinking about your central idea & key questions, is there a responsibility question that prompts you to think about some kind of local action?

Think and Sort: This stage involves sifting through research found and addressing misconceptions and missing information. The students will be going back through the inquiry cycle to explore new connections and inquire again. Action planning should be addressed more fully to make sure it is sustainable. Lets bring together what we have each found out about a particular question. Have you collected a range of data and/or perspectives? How have you collected them? What new ways might you try to find out more? Is there a way of checking or seeking an alternative viewpoint? Does your evidence match with and answer the initial question? Have you made a plan of action? Lets review it.Present/conclude: Groups should be ready at this stage to start drawing conclusions and engaging in planned action. They should also be thinking about how they will share all their information and action with the community. Now that you have all the evidence that answers your questions, what conclusions and generalizations can you make? Is there an argument youd like to make or a stance youd like to take? What justifications can you make to defend your argument? What predictions could you make? What might be some powerful ways to share this with a multi-age audience? What will you do to share the process of your journey? What stage are you at with your plan of action? What steps have you taken and how effective have they been? What will you do next?

Staging the Exhibition Draw out your plan and sequence map to show what your presentation will look like, who will do what and what space you need. What materials &/or equipment do you need to assemble? How long do you need for setting up? How long will your presentation take? Do you have evidence of your journey to share? How will your audience know what your project is about? Have you included a range of multi-age/multi-lingual/multi-intelligence/multimedia engagements? Is there evidence of your stage in the action process?

The students will be expected to plan and prepare their presentation, carefully considering the planet when they estimate their use of paper, card & laminate.You should ask to see their plan and help them to think of creative and resource friendly ways to demonstrate their understanding and share their messages.

FORMWhat is it like?

Everything has a form with recognizable features that can be observed, identified, described and categorized

Related concepts: properties, structure, pattern, comparisonFUNCTIONHow does it work?

Everything has a purpose, a role or a way of behaving that can be investigated

Related concepts: behavior, role, system, pattern

CHANGEHow is it changing?

Change is universal and inevitable. It is the process of movement from one state to another.

Related concepts: transformation, cycles, sequences, adaptation, growth

CAUSATIONWhy is it like this?

Actions have consequences. Things dont just happen; there are causal relationships at work

Related concepts: impact, consequences, pattern, sequence

CONNECTIONHow is connected to other things?

Nothing exists in a vacuum. We live in a world of interacting systems. The actions of any individual element affect others

Related concepts: interdependence, relationships, systems, networks

REFLECTIONHow do we know?

There are different ways of knowing. We are challenged to examine and reflect upon evidence, methods and conclusions

Related concepts: interpretation, evidence, behavior

PERSPECTIVEWhat are the points of view?

Knowledge is moderated by perspectives; perspectives lead to different interpretations, understandings and findings.

Related concepts: truth, beliefs, opinion, prejudice, subjectivity

RESPONSIBILITYWhat is our responsibility?

People make choices based on their understanding, and the actions they take as a result make a difference

Related concepts: citizenship, initiative, values, rights, responsibility

In bold are the key concepts with a sample generic question and an explanation of meaning. Below each explanation are possible related concepts that can deepen an investigationMentor meeting sample checklist

Date: Venue:Time: Participants:

Decide who is scribe this week (others will copy out during the week) Review purpose/CI/ Lines of Inquiry/conceptual focus/inquiry cycle stage Research? Field trips? Arts? Math? Write any action items Agree on completion date and who is responsible for each item

Items to discussAction to takePerson to actionCompletion date YesNoLate

Mentors Comments:

Other information:

Additional notes

MENTOR MEETING REFLECTION (1st 3 weeks)

Mentor Names: _____________________________________________

Group Members: ___________________________________________

Date: ______________________________________________________ Please take a minute to respond to the following questions:

What went well in your mentor meeting today?

Any concerns about your group/individual students?

What do you need your homeroom teacher to know about your group/individual students?

What plan do you have for your mentor meeting next week? (Group needs)

Thank you for taking the time to meet with our students! They are enriched because of the time you have given!

MENTOR MEETING REFLECTION (4th week onwards)

Mentor Names: ________________________________________Group Members: _______________________________________Date: _______________________________________________

Now that the students are half way through their exhibition process, please be sure to comment on the following areas in your mentor reflections

Where do the students place themselves on the inquiry cycle? (Can they justify this and identify goals for the next stage?)

Are the students using their key concept questions to guide their inquiries? What questions are they focusing on?

Looking again at the Central idea and lines of inquiry, what possible courses of action are the students anticipating? Are they thinking about sustainable action?

What messages do you have for the homeroom teacher?

Gathering data about individual students during the process is important. Please comment for each student according to this rubric at the end of the ExhibitionGlossaryPrimary Years Programme (PYP) terminologyEssential Elements that must be part of the written, taught and assessed curriculum. Knowledge: significant, relevant content that we wish the students to explore and know about, taking into consideration their prior experience and understanding. Concepts: Powerful ideas that have relevance within the subject areas but also transcend them and that students must explore and re-explore in order to develop a coherent, in depth understanding. Skills: Those capabilities that the students need to demonstrate to succeed in a changing, challenging world, which may be disciplinary or transdisciplinary in nature. Attitudes: Dispositions that are expressions of fundamental values, beliefs and feelings about learning, the environment and people. Action: Demonstrations of deeper learning in responsible behaviour through responsible action; a manifestation in practice of other essential elements.

Transdisciplinary theme: How knowledge and learning is organized in the PYP: themes that have global significance, offer opportunities to explore the commonalities of human experience that are support by knowledge concepts and skills from the traditional subject areas but that transcends the boundaries of these subject areas.Central idea: One sentence that expresses concisely an enduring understanding. It should be substantial enough to generate in-depth inquiry, be conceptually driven and promote critical thinking. It should challenge and extend prior knowledge and should extend understanding of particular aspects of transdisciplinary themes.Line of inquiry: These statements (inquiries into) clarify the central idea and define the scope of the inquiry. They provide a focus for research and give rise to key concept questions. Key concept question: Student and teacher initiated, open-ended key concept questions drive the inquiry and frame research possibilities.

RolesTeacher Mentor: Any faculty member who leads the weekly group meetings and is available during school time for further guidance.Parent Mentor: Any parent from the school community who wishes to assist a group of students during the exhibition, working alongside the homeroom teachers, teacher mentors and PYP coordinator to provide support in a variety of ways as highlighted on page 6 of this handbook.Super Mentor: Any faculty member or parent who is not attached to any specific group who provides ongoing support with particular aspects of the exhibition in a supervisory or as-needed role.Guest speaker: Any faculty member or parent who can provide knowledge, guidance, information or community contact with a third party organization according to the interests and/or needs of particular groups. THE ISB OFFICE & GUARDS MUST BE NOTIFIED

ITS LEARNING terminologyCourse: ISB teachers have their own course page where the collaborative planning is structured according to the 12 stages of the Exhibition.Project: Each exhibition group has their own project page which documents the learning, organization and evidence of content knowledge. It is the hub for group members to contain their inquiry and connect with others.E-portfolio: a collection of portfolios that can be published as an entity on the internet, much like a homepage. Students can publish different types of portfolios, such as assessment portfolios and private portfolios. The E-portfolio also contains a personal blog and an information section to create a virtual identity

Exhibition Online Platform: Its learning

Sign in to:https://ibo.itslearning.com/index.aspx

Your username is BEL + first initial + family nameE.g. BELstomlinson

If you have not received an email, click forgotten password and enter your school email address to receive a new password. Change to a memorable password once you are logged in.

The students will be able to guide you towards their project pages where mentor meeting notes will be kept.

There is a project just for the adults called grown up groups where we can keep up to date, share ideas, ask questions and learn how the project pages works. Teachers and mentors will be taught how to access and use this project.