Sharing the Planet: Our Grade 5 PYP Exhibition

Our annual Grade 5 PYP Exhibition is the final Primary project before students graduate to Secondary School, and encourages them to take action as global citizens. This year's presentations took place virtually for the first time, and our students did an amazing job showcasing their tremendous effort and learning!

The transdisciplinary theme for this year’s PYP Exhibition was Sharing the Planet, and the United Nation's Global Goals for Sustainable Development served as a springboard for inquiry and action. Students worked collaboratively in teams, with mentors and teachers guiding them along the way. The groups devoted several weeks to this undertaking, which allowed them to take a deep dive in the topic of their choosing. Our community was very excited to gather together – virtually – on 17 June to hear all of their presentations!

Traditionally, the exhibition takes place at school. In previous years, students have put on plays, displayed artwork, sang songs and more. Despite working remotely this year, our students showed us that they are amazing risk-takers and enthusiastically tackled their projects head-on. For example, a group researching the harmful effects of smoking sent a survey out to members of our school community and compiled the information into graphs. Another group undertook different experiments to see how changes in ecosystems affect wildlife.

Groups interviewed employees at Carrefour, Repsol and the Spanish NGO Manos Unidas. Other teams spoke to a forest engineer and a water resource expert to further understand their topics. One intrepid group even took to the streets to ask passers-by about their use of plastics!

For their projects, students mastered new online tools, such as CoSpaces, in order to present their findings via Virtual Reality. Many groups also created Padlets so that their research could be shared with students in other grades, as well.

This week, our resident experts in Grade 5 gave amazing presentations on everything from global warming to equality. Students used a variety of different mediums to share their findings, including plays, videos, artwork, interactive maps, games, books and music.

From raising awareness of ocean pollution through art to debates about renewable energy, our students used their skills to share their newfound knowledge. Other topics included deforestation, gender equality and the impact that humans have on marine life. With the PYP Exhibition, students answered questions such as “Why is it important to protect the environment?” and provided suggestions on what each of us can do to make a difference.

Each project culminates in an action. This year, our students’ actions ranged from adopting animals to raising awareness of inequalities to fundraising for different causes. One team even created their own website, where they shared information about plastic pollution and links to eco-friendly shops around Madrid.

After presenting their projects to their parents and peers, Grade 5 students’ work will also be shared with other Primary students. They will share the work with Grade 4 students, and links to their content will be shared with other grades, as well.

Here are some words of wisdom for future Grade 5 students about the Exhibition experience:

Not only did they share their research, our students also provided suggestions for how we can all make a difference. Even though they presented on a wide variety of topics, they reminded us of the interconnectedness of our global world. Congratulations, Grade 5, on an amazing job!

In addition, we would like to thank all of the Grade 5 Teachers and parents, the Exhibition mentors, our ICT Integration Coach and our PYP Coordinator for all of your help. Despite challenging circumstances your support and encouragement helped to make this year's PYP Exhibition unforgettable. Congratulations, everyone!