Exploring the Magic of the IB Transdisciplinary Themes

Hi there! Welcome back! 

As we discovered in our previous post, the IB framework introduces six big Transdisciplinary Themes that are at the heart of the PYP (Primary Years Programme). 

What makes these themes so special? Easy answer... Their incredible flexibility: they can be adapted to different ages, cultures, languages, and learning contexts.

But what is the real magic behind them? ✨

These themes are not simply “topics” to cover. They are like windows that open our students’ minds to the world. They help children make connections between subjects, ask meaningful questions, explore real-life situations, and understand that learning is not divided into separate boxes.

The Transdisciplinary Themes encourage our young learners to become curious thinkers, compassionate citizens, and active participants in their communities.

Let's take a closer look at them!

1. Encapsulation of Shared Commonalities 🌎

They connect us through our shared human experiences

The Transdisciplinary Themes focus on ideas that are meaningful for all human beings, regardless of where they live or which culture they belong to.  The big idea here is that, despite our differences,  as human beings we share many experiences, needs, hopes, and challenges and especially values.

💡 Practical example for your lesson:

Theme: Who We Are

Students can explore identity, relationships, health, and personal development.

Possible subject connections:

• Language: writing a personal biography, creating “All About Me” books, interviewing family members.
• Science: exploring the human body, nutrition, and healthy habits.
• Social Studies: comparing family traditions and celebrations from different cultures.
• Art: creating self-portraits representing personality, emotions, and identity.

Through this theme, children understand that knowing themselves also helps them understand others.

2. Indication of Complexity and Connectedness 🌱

They show students that the world is beautifully interconnected

Real-world problems are rarely simple. The themes encourage students to look beyond one perspective and discover how different elements influence each other.

Children learn that a scientific discovery can have social consequences, that our choices affect the environment, and that every action creates connections.

💡 Practical example for your lesson:

Theme: How We Organize Ourselves

Students investigate systems, communities, organizations, and how people work together.

Possible subject connections:

• Mathematics: collecting data about classroom routines, creating graphs, analysing budgets.
• Science: exploring how systems work in nature (ecosystems, food chains).
• Social Studies: understanding governments, communities, and different types of organizations.
• Language: creating advertisements, persuasive texts, or presentations about improving a community system.

Students begin to see that everything is connected!

3. Engagement in Real-World Dialogues 🌍💬

They invite children to become problem-solvers

The Transdisciplinary Themes encourage students to discuss authentic issues that matter in the world around them. They are not just learning about problems; they are encouraged to think about possible solutions.

💡 Practical example for your lesson:

Theme: Sharing the Planet

Students explore relationships between humans, animals, and the environment.

Possible subject connections:

• Science: investigating ecosystems, biodiversity, climate change, and conservation.
• Mathematics: analysing environmental data, measuring waste production, creating charts.
• Language: writing campaigns, creating posters, preparing speeches to raise awareness.
• Art: designing eco-friendly projects or recycled artwork.
• Physical Education: exploring outdoor activities and the importance of caring for natural spaces.

Students discover that even small actions can create a positive impact.

4. Authentic Embeddedness of Subject Areas 📚✨

They break down the walls between subjects

One of the most exciting aspects of the PYP is that subjects do not live separately. Instead of learning mathematics, science, language, and art as isolated areas, students use different skills together to understand bigger concepts.

💡 Practical example for your lesson:

Theme: How We Express Ourselves

Students explore creativity, communication, culture, and personal expression.

Possible subject connections:

• Language: writing stories, poems, scripts, or exploring different forms of communication.
• Art: studying artists, creating original artwork, experimenting with different techniques.
• Music: exploring rhythm, instruments, and cultural traditions.
• Drama: expressing ideas through role-play and performances.
• Technology: creating digital stories, podcasts, or presentations.

Students learn that creativity has many different languages!

5. Contribution to the Uniqueness of the PYP 🌟

They create globally minded learners

The Transdisciplinary Themes are what make the PYP approach truly unique. They move beyond traditional content-based learning and encourage children to become internationally minded, reflective, and responsible citizens.

💡 Practical example for your lesson:

Theme: Where We Are in Place and Time

Students investigate history, journeys, cultures, and the relationship between people and places.

Possible subject connections:

• Social Studies: exploring historical events, migrations, and civilizations.
• Geography: studying maps, countries, landscapes, and human environments.
• Language: creating timelines, research projects, interviews, and historical narratives.
• Mathematics: working with timelines, distances, scales, and population data.
• Art: exploring cultural symbols, architecture, and traditional crafts.

Students understand that every place has a story, and every person is part of a bigger global story.

The six themes: one big invitation to explore 🚀

The beauty of the PYP Transdisciplinary Themes is that they transform learning into an adventure. They encourage children to wonder, question, investigate, create, collaborate, and take action.

As teachers, our role is not only to provide answers but to create opportunities for students to discover connections and build their own understanding of the world. Because the best learning happens when children look around and think:

“I wonder why…”
“How could we improve this?”
“What can I do to make a difference?” 🌍💛

Quiero leerlo en español

📍Do you struggle with a challenging class, where many of your students get distracted and their academic performance doesn’t reflect all the effort you put into preparing and teaching your lessons? 

📍Does this situation frustrate you, and would you like your students to learn more while enjoying the process? 

👉Something similar happened to me during my elementary teaching internship, and in my latest book, Pygmalion in the Classroom: A Real Experience—based on my senior thesis and my internship at a primary school in Madrid—I’ll tell you how we managed to turn things around and achieve resounding success! 

Don’t miss it! 

Available in digital and print formats on Amazon in every country, and on the major e-book platforms.

Wait… did Maths just become English?" 🤯

One of the terms that parents often hear when their children join the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) is transdisciplinary learning. It sounds like one of those complicated educational buzzwords... but in reality, it's surprisingly simple.

It means that learning goes beyond individual subjects.

Children don't learn Maths from 9 to 10, English from 10 to 11 and then completely forget about Maths. Instead, they explore big ideas through different lenses, using each subject as a tool to better understand the world around them.

And this is where the magic happens.

I'll never forget a moment during my years as a Grade 3 homeroom teacher in an international school in Madrid.

That week's Unit of Inquiry belonged to the transdisciplinary theme Who We Are, and in English we were talking about healthy eating.

Rather than using the outdated food pyramid, we were introducing students to the Healthy Plate model: half the plate filled with vegetables, one quarter with protein and one quarter with carbohydrates.

I had already introduced the concept during our English lessons.

Later that day, I walked back into the classroom after the Spanish Maths lesson.

The Maths teacher had been explaining fractions, and the whiteboard was still full of circles divided into halves.

One of the beautiful things about transdisciplinary teaching is that you don't erase the board just because another subject is coming next. You start from what is already there.

So that's exactly what I did.

I pointed to the circle already divided into two equal parts and said:

"Remember our Healthy Plate?"

Then I drew one more line, dividing one of the halves into two equal pieces.

Suddenly, the diagram became our healthy plate.

Half vegetables.

One quarter protein.

One quarter carbohydrates.

And then... it happened.

You know that moment when you can almost hear twenty-five little brains making the same connection at exactly the same time?

Click.

Fractions were no longer just something from Spanish Maths.

Healthy eating was no longer just vocabulary from English.

The two ideas became one.

That was the exact moment I truly understood the power of transdisciplinary learning.

This doesn't mean that subjects disappear. Quite the opposite.

The PYP still includes six subject areas:

• Language
• Mathematics
• Science
• Social Studies
• Arts
• Personal, Social and Physical Education (PSPE)

The difference is that these subjects are not taught as isolated boxes. Instead, teachers work collaboratively to connect them through six Transdisciplinary Themes, giving learning purpose and making it meaningful.

Those six themes are:

🌍 Who We Are

🗺️ Where We Are in Place and Time

🎨 How We Express Ourselves

⚙️ How the World Works

🏛️ How We Organise Ourselves

🌱 Sharing the Planet

Rather than asking, "What page are we on in the textbook?", the PYP asks a much more powerful question:

"How can today's learning help children make sense of the world?"

And honestly... once you've seen twenty-five children make those connections in real time, it's very hard to go back to teaching subjects as completely separate worlds.

📍Do you struggle with a challenging class, where many of your students get distracted and their academic performance doesn’t reflect all the effort you put into preparing and teaching your lessons? 

📍Does this situation frustrate you, and would you like your students to learn more while enjoying the process? 

👉Something similar happened to me during my elementary teaching internship, and in my latest book, Pygmalion in the Classroom: A Real Experience—based on my senior thesis and my internship at a primary school in Madrid—I’ll tell you how we managed to turn things around and achieve resounding success! 

Don’t miss it! 

Available in digital and print formats on Amazon in every country, and on the major e-book platforms.

 

From remembering to creating: guiding our students through Bloom’s Taxonomy

Bloom's Taxonomy

Hi there! 👋

Today I’m going to introduce something that school teachers are already familiar with, for sure, but… as the old Latin saying goes, repetita iuvant! 😉

Sometimes, revisiting well-known concepts and looking at them through practical examples is exactly what we need to make ideas clearer, more meaningful and easier to apply in our everyday teaching practice.

So today, let’s talk about a powerful tool that can help us design learning experiences that truly support our students’ thinking journey: Bloom’s Taxonomy. 🌱

In our previous post about cooperative learning, we talked about Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) — those powerful thinking skills that allow our students to analyse, evaluate and create — often compared with Lower Order Thinking Skills (LOTS), which are connected to remembering and understanding information.

But here’s the important thing: both are essential! 💡

They are all part of one of the most famous tools in education: Bloom’s Taxonomy.

📚The six levels of the pyramid represent the different steps our learners go through as they build knowledge:

🔹 Remembering
Recalling facts, information and previously learned skills.

🔹 Understanding
Explaining, describing, comparing and making sense of information.

🔹 Applying
Using knowledge in new situations and real-life contexts.

🔹 Analyzing
Exploring information, identifying patterns and making connections.

🔹 Evaluating
Expressing opinions, making judgements and supporting ideas with evidence.

🔹 Creating
Designing, inventing and producing something new.

✨ Why is Bloom’s Taxonomy such a valuable tool when planning learning experiences?

Because learning is not just about collecting information. In fact, meaningful learning happens when students are gradually supported in moving from “I know this” to “I can use this, I can question it, I can create something with it.”

This is closely connected to Bruner’s scaffolding theory: as teachers, we build the right supports at the right time, accompanying our students step by step until they can become more independent learners.

For example, imagine introducing the topic of historical sources to a Grade 3 class. A possible learning journey could look like this:

📌 REMEMBERING activities

• Sharing what students already know about the past.

• Learning the definition of “historical source”.

• Identifying different types of sources and examples.

📌 UNDERSTANDING activities

• Classifying sources according to their type.

• Creating diagrams or organisers to describe their characteristics.

📌 APPLYING activities

• Bringing historical objects from home.

• Interviewing parents, grandparents or members of the school community to discover how objects were used in the past.

📌 ANALYZING activities

• Describing a source in detail: what it was used for, where it came from, why it was important, how it compares to modern versions.

• Looking for similarities and differences between objects brought by classmates.

• Creating mind maps about historical sources.

📌 EVALUATING activities

• Discussing which sources are the most valuable for historians and explaining why.

• Interpreting the meaning of a source within its historical context.

📌 CREATING activities

• Designing a presentation about the sources investigated.

• Creating a timeline showing how objects have changed over time.

• Building a classroom museum. 🏛️

The beautiful thing about Bloom’s Taxonomy is that it can be applied to any subject and any topic. Whether we are exploring science, history, languages or mathematics, this framework helps us design learning experiences that go beyond memorisation.

And there is another important connection: the development of these thinking skills is deeply linked to the development of competences. If we think of competence as the combination of knowledge, skills, attitudes, values and emotions that learners use in real situations, we immediately see why the top of the pyramid — analysing, evaluating and creating — is so important.

🌟 For this reason, understanding and applying Bloom’s Taxonomy is a powerful skill for every teacher. It is not only useful in IB contexts; it is a universal tool to help our students become curious, independent and lifelong learners.

Because the goal is not simply for children to remember more…

…it is for them to think more. 💭✨

Quiero leer este post en español

📍Do you struggle with a challenging class, where many of your students get distracted and their academic performance doesn’t reflect all the effort you put into preparing and teaching your lessons? 

📍Does this situation frustrate you, and would you like your students to learn more while enjoying the process? 

👉Something similar happened to me during my elementary teaching internship, and in my latest book, Pygmalion in the Classroom: A Real Experience—based on my senior thesis and my internship at a primary school in Madrid—I’ll tell you how we managed to turn things around and achieve resounding success! 

Don’t miss it! 

Available in digital and print formats on Amazon in every country, and on the major e-book platforms.

Cooperative Learning... but make it simple!

How can we implement cooperative learning in the classroom without adding even more to our workload?

The good news is... we absolutely can! 💛

With the right structures and routines, cooperative learning doesn't have to mean extra planning or complicated group activities. In fact, it can become one of the most effective—and manageable—parts of your teaching practice.

Research has consistently shown that cooperative learning helps children develop higher-order thinking skills, leading to deeper, more meaningful learning.

This idea is rooted in Vygotsky's theory, which tells us that children learn best through interaction. Whether they're learning from their teacher or from a more knowledgeable peer, meaningful conversations help them construct understanding together.

That's why cooperative learning has become such an important part of today's competency-based classrooms.

Buuut...

✨ What does effective cooperative learning actually look like?

I'm sure we're all aware that it's so much more than simply putting children into groups! Here's the list of the key ingredients for successful cooperative learning:

🤝 Mixed-ability groups where every child brings different strengths, ideas, and knowledge to the table. Together, they create something that's richer than what they could have achieved alone.

💬 Meaningful communication as children discuss, question, explain, and support one another. These conversations are where real learning happens.

⭐ Individual accountability because every child has an important role to play and is responsible for contributing to the group's success.

⚖️ Equal participation so every voice is heard and every learner has the opportunity to be actively involved.

🧩 Shared decision-making as children work together, solve problems, and make choices as a team.

👥 Face-to-face interaction, building not only knowledge but also confidence, empathy, and collaboration skills.

When all of these elements come together, cooperative learning becomes so much more than group work—it becomes a powerful learning experience for every child. 💛

The 5 basic structures and the skills 

✨ So... how can we actually bring cooperative learning into our classrooms?

By now, we know that this approach can develop so many important skills—but the big question is: where do we start? 💭

Take note of this name: Dr Spencer Kagan. ⭐

This psychologist and pioneer in the cooperative learning movement dedicated his work to helping teachers create more interactive and collaborative lessons, where children become not only more knowledgeable learners, but also more caring and cooperative ones.

His solution? Cooperative structures.

Dr Kagan designed more than 200 structures that can be easily integrated into our lessons without having to completely change our planning or rewrite our activities from scratch. 🙌

I personally use some of them depending on my teaching goals, and I can truly say that they are incredibly powerful tools. They encourage reflection, dialogue, active participation—and, most importantly, they motivate children to get involved in any subject we are exploring.

Some Kagan's stuctures

to Kagan, there are 5 essential structures that every teacher should learn first:

🤝 Rally Robin / Rally Table
Students work in pairs and take turns sharing answers, ideas, or solutions to a question or problem.

⏰ Timed Pair Share
One student shares their ideas for a set amount of time while their partner listens. Then they swap roles and, if desired, share their thoughts with the class.

🔄 Round Robin / Round Table
Students take turns contributing ideas or answers within their team, making sure everyone has a voice.

🧩 Rally Coach
Partners solve problems together: one student works while the other observes, supports, checks, and encourages.

🙋 Stand Up, Hand Up, Pair Up
Students move around the classroom, find a partner, and share or discuss a task using one of the previous structures.

My students use these structures very often, and I can honestly say that they lead to 100% participation. Even the quieter children feel more confident sharing their ideas, attention increases, and learning becomes much more meaningful. 💛

So don't be afraid to try them!

Once you see the impact they can have in your classroom, you won't want to go back. ✨

--> Quiero leer este post en castellano

📍Do you struggle with a challenging class, where many of your students get distracted and their academic performance doesn’t reflect all the effort you put into preparing and teaching your lessons? 

📍Does this situation frustrate you, and would you like your students to learn more while enjoying the process? 

👉Something similar happened to me during my elementary teaching internship, and in my latest book, Pygmalion in the Classroom: A Real Experience—based on my senior thesis and my internship at a primary school in Madrid—I’ll tell you how we managed to turn things around and achieve resounding success! 

Don’t miss it! 

Available in digital and print formats on Amazon in every country, and on the major e-book platforms.

Summer homework? Graded readers, brain teasers, crosswords, and more

Hi there! 

I'd like to share with you in a quick post the summer 'homework' I suggested for my students this year. Besides the classic graded readers to practice reading comprehension, I thought that some puzzle/quizz/riddle book might be, not only entertaining, but also a good way for connecting the different areas of knowledge (English, Natural and Social Sciences, Maths, etc.) in order to enhance significative learning and the 4 language skills (reading, writing, listening, speaking).

So... here's some of the books I selected for primary school students starting from National Geographic, which has some good ones:

     

      

Then, I thought about brain teasers, which are useful for learning how to think outside the box. They usually come with the age of the children they are designed for. However, since they are for native speakers, I would pick a level below your child's age if yours is not. Also I would choose the paperback version which usually comes with pictures and illustrations.

       

         

From Usborne, as suggested by my friend Marine, who is an independent book seller you can get in touch with from her FB Page Kidibook:

 

   

HAVE FUN!

📍Do you struggle with a challenging class, where many of your students get distracted and their academic performance doesn’t reflect all the effort you put into preparing and teaching your lessons? 

📍Does this situation frustrate you, and would you like your students to learn more while enjoying the process? 

👉Something similar happened to me during my elementary teaching internship, and in my latest book, Pygmalion in the Classroom: A Real Experience—based on my senior thesis and my internship at a primary school in Madrid—I’ll tell you how we managed to turn things around and achieve resounding success! 

Don’t miss it! 

Available in digital and print formats on Amazon in every country, and on the major e-book platforms.

Time flies when... you are busy

Hello y'all!  😁

I'm alive and well, as Katniss would say (from the Hunger Games, of course). Last year, COVID entered our 'normal' lifes and revolutionized them, showing no mercy. In March 2020 I was teaching phonics to my preschoolers, helping kids being more fluent, writing posts about it, enjoying the center of Madrid day and night, literally. At the same time, I was studying this Master degree about bilingualism and international curiculum that was being pretty intense but absolutely woth it. Life was busy, but pleasant, until COVID bursted in and all my routine and future plans changed. 

The studies could 'easily' go on because of the online mode, but my extracurricular classes had to be abruptly interrupted. Moreover, September didn't look bright and, because of this uncertainty, I had to opt for teaching English as a school teacher in order to assure myself and my elder dog (she is 15!!!) a decent lifestyle. After sending CVs to all the International schools in the area, I finally got a call which turned into a job as a homeroom teacher in the immersion line of a private school in Boadilla, where I had the opportunity to teach English almost as a first language. It was pretty cool! 

However, waking up at 6 in the morning every day since the 31st of August until last Thursday, dealing with all the pandemic school issues in addition to the current school duties, and arriving home at 6:15 pm every afternoon has been exhausting and that's why you haven't heard from me for so long. Besides, I had to finish my Master degree and take care of my own life during the pandemic, which also has been a bit stressful. 

Anyway, here we are! Thanks to the vaccination campaign we all feel a bit safer even though this feeling of uncertainty never leaves us really and I wanted to make the most of this summer break for saying hello again, and for letting you know that the many things I've learnt about bilingualism are now published in the 'Mi hijo habla inglés' book. Yes! I used the Easter break to update it. So, even if I haven' had the time for applying the 'Second edition' label to the cover of the book, I can assure you that there's new interesting content that is worth reading both in the digital and the paper version of it.

I wish you a safe and relaxing summer!

Bye for now 

Best Activity Book for the Summer

Summer means holiday and a lot of free time that we know perfectly how to enjoy and make the most of, but...what about our kids?

Many parents and teachers think that this time of the year should be employed by our little ones for reviewing, reinforcing, or at least maintaining a minimum level of fluency and knowledge of everything they've been studying during the school year. Furthermore, this 2020 has seen half of the school population at home dealing with online classes for the lockdown, and, perhaps many of you have this feeling that not enough effort has been put into studying and learning. It is then possible that your first reaction is to look for, apparently, simple grammar tasks and download them from the internet just to realize that our sons and daughters, especially those attending the first grades of primary school, are incapable of doing any of that. 

And the first feeling is... Panic. You think that your kids don't know any English and you don’t know how to help them or at least it looks like that what you’re trying is not working at all (?!?!?!?).

High Five 3! - MacMillan - Sample pages.

Well, first of all, the grammar approach to learning languages, especially at young ages, is an old method no longer in use. 

Secondly, open any of the the Stuedent’s books that your children are using at school and observe it. What can you see? Pictures, songs, sometimes links to online resources, speaking exercises to refresh what they already know from previous years, and then… more pictures, dialogues, a bit of new grammar in context and more speaking exercises. 

Finally, take a look at the Activity book: you’ll notice that it is full of written tasks and projects where children can practice their writing skills, always, always, always after having previously used and developed their listening, speaking and reading skills with the Student’s book. 

Why so much preparation for writing? Because we know that any brain, for learning anything, needs to relate the new knowledge to the previous one and, all those listening, speaking and reading activities are needed in order to add the new information to the learner’s mental schemes in a significant and persistent way. Moreover, translation is not an aspect they work at school either, (as I mention in my book) so even if the exercise looks amazingly simple to you, they might not be able to make connections between their first language and English yet. 

At this point, you have already understood that your children do know English, it’s just the way they learn it that is different from what you were taught when you were their age, so, to them your grammar exercise doesn’t make any sense because it hasn’t any context from which a primary school child can deduct and create connections.

Does this mean that you must change into a schoolteacher? Well, not really. Just try to look for the right material or activity books so that your child can work out the meaning of what they’re doing by themselves, using all the resources that are already planned together with the activity.

I hope this post was useful, and of course if you have any question, sen me an email at misslucysteachingfun@gmail.com

Also, more information about how children learn English, but any second language really, is available in my book Mi hijo habla inglés, on Amazon and other ebook platforms. 

>> Quiero leer este post en español

📍Do you struggle with a challenging class, where many of your students get distracted and their academic performance doesn’t reflect all the effort you put into preparing and teaching your lessons? 

📍Does this situation frustrate you, and would you like your students to learn more while enjoying the process? 

👉Something similar happened to me during my elementary teaching internship, and in my latest book, Pygmalion in the Classroom: A Real Experience—based on my senior thesis and my internship at a primary school in Madrid—I’ll tell you how we managed to turn things around and achieve resounding success! 

Don’t miss it! 

Available in digital and print formats on Amazon in every country, and on the major e-book platforms.