Dear families, this week we experienced something we wanted to share with you straight away. In Year 4 of Primary School, we have completed a unit on discontinuous texts: texts that are not read in a linear way, but combine images, data, colour and structure to communicate something at a glance. So far, quite straightforward. What happened next was rather special. We asked pupils to create an infographic. The subject was themselves. “My family’s travels.” “Everything I know about octopuses.” “My five favourite things in the world.” “What it is like to live between two languages.” These were some of the topics they chose. That is when something remarkable began. When a 9-year-old has to decide what matters most in their story, how to organise it and how to help someone who does not know them understand it at a glance, they are doing something highly meaningful. They are learning to communicate with purpose. ◆ The IB connection: communicators with their own voice Within the International Baccalaureate framework, one of the attributes we work on closely is being Communicators: people who express ideas with clarity, confidence and creativity. This activity is not only a language task; it is an early preparation for life. How did they do it? We did not give them a template. We gave them a process. First, they looked at real infographics from newspapers, museums and science contexts, asking questions such as: Why is this one easy to read? What is missing from this one? What makes an image “say something” without needing words? From the very first day, they were not pupils simply receiving information. They were researchers looking for answers. Then came the decisions. What do I want to tell? How do I organise it? What do I include and what do I leave out? These questions do not have one correct answer, and that is precisely the point: learning to make decisions using their own judgement is a skill that reaches far beyond any single subject. Finally, they shared their work. Each pupil presented their infographic to their classmates, not so it could be corrected but to see whether it communicated effectively. Do you understand what I wanted to say? Can you see what matters to me? Hearing how others read something you have created is an experience that stays with you. What they taught us We want to be honest with you: every unit surprises us, but this one felt special. We discovered families who have lived in the same village for three generations and families who have lived in four different countries. Children passionate about origami, astronomy and their grandmother’s recipes. Stories we did not know were there. Most importantly, when a pupil sees that their personal experiences are valid material for learning, something changes. They stop seeing knowledge as something found only in books. They begin to understand that they themselves are a source. ◆ IB reflection: enquiring from within The IB encourages pupils to be Reflective: to know themselves, value their experiences and learn from them. When a child chooses what to share about their own life and why, they are practising exactly that. The infographic is the format; reflection on personal identity is the real learning.
