NOTRE DAME MARIST ACADEMYLOWER DIVISION

Inquirers

Communicators

ThinkersKnowledgeablePrincipled

Open-Minded

Balanced

Reflective

Risk-Takers

Caring

What is the Primary Years Programme?

Notre Dame is an authorized International Baccalaureate World School, offering the Primary Years Programme to students in Junior Kindergarten through 5th grade. The PYP focuses on the development of the whole child as an inquirer, both in the classroom and in the

world outside.

The most significant and distinctive feature of the PYP is the six transdisciplinary themes. These themes are about issues that have meaning for, and are important to, all of us. The programme offers a balance between learning about or through the subject areas, and learning beyond them. The six themes of global significance create a transdisciplinary framework that allows students to “step up” beyond the confines of learning within subject areas. •Whoweare •Whereweareinplaceandtime •Howweexpressourselves •Howtheworldworks •Howweorganizeourselves •Sharingtheplanet The Five Essential Elements

The five essential elements—concepts, knowledge, skills, attitudes, action—are incorporated into the PYP framework so that students are given the opportunity to: •gainknowledgethatisrelevantandofglobalsignificance. •developanunderstandingofconcepts,whichallowsthemto make connections throughout their learning. •acquiretransdisciplinaryanddisciplinaryskills. •developattitudesthatwillleadtointernational-mindedness. •demonstratedeeperlearningandresponsiblebehavior through responsible action; a manifestation in practice of the other essential elements. The Learner Profile

The learner profile describes a list of attributes that promote academic rigor and the establishing of a personal value system leading to international-mindedness.Theprogrammeencouragesstudentstobecome:

IB in ActionWhat’s different about Notre Dame? Students learn with purpose. Consider some of these major lessons and how they fit into the IB framework.

Kindergarten

Kindergartners benefit from experiential learning, with field trips to places such as the Detroit Zoo and Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland in Frankenmuth. Aspartoftheirunit“HowtheWorldWorks,”students investigate the significance of motion in theirlivesthroughavisittotheAnnArborHands-OnMuseum.Heretheyareabletoinquire,explore,observe, learn, and apply their knowledge through hands-onactivities.Attheendoftheunit,studentsuse several apps on their iPads to demonstrate motion in their lives, while also engaging in a one-on-oneinterviewwiththeirclassroomteacher.Through the interview, students explain why they chose their pictures and how those images represent motion in their world.

1st Grade

When presented with the transdisciplinary theme “WhereWeAreInPlaceAndTime,”1st-gradestudents explore how people and events of the past affect our lives today. Students take a field trip to theELJohnsonNatureCenterinBloomfieldHillsto experience what it is like to live like a child in the pioneer days, spending the morning in a real log cabin furnished with all the comforts of a home from the late 1800s. As a summative assessment at theendofthesix-weekunit,studentsutilizetheirtechnology skills to create a digital story with Web 2.0 tools, such as Prezi or Animoto. These stories reflect students’ understandings of the similarities and differences connecting generations.

4th Grade

When considering the transdisciplinary theme “HowWeOrganizeOurselves,”4th-gradestudentsinvestigate how a country’s industries and resources contribute to its economic success. To demonstrate their understanding, students participate in a classroom“Mini-Economy”project,forwhichthey are asked to conceptualize a unique product, do market research to see who would be interested in purchasing the product, then create, advertise and sell the product to the student body. Through thisunitofstudy,4th-gradersgainknowledgeofconcepts impacting our global economy, such as supply and demand, profit, loss and cost.

5th Grade

Eachspringevery5th-gradestudentparticipatesin the Exhibition, the culminating project for the Primary Years Programme. Students are placed into small groups based upon their interest in a topic meaningful to them, then work collaboratively over asix-weekperiodtoresearchthetopic,conductinterviews with experts, and synthesize their findings for an oral and visual presentation. Students also must present an action plan to explain how they will help solve the problem they have discovered in our global community.

SpecialNotre Dame is

BEYOND THE Rs

All students at Notre Dame take traditional classroom subjects, as well as Religion, every day. They also take additional classes—referred to as “specials”—in Spanish, Music, Art, Technology, Library and Physical Education. The frequency of those classes on a weekly basis is detailed below.

Notre Dame Marist Academy—Lower Division(Grades JK-5)1425 Giddings RoadPontiac, MI 48340www.ndpma.orgAdmissions: 248-373-1061

Students at Notre Dame Marist Academy—Lower Division have many opportunities to explore beyond the traditional “three Rs.”

FROm THE sTaRT

Guilford (Gil) Guthrie joined the Notre Dame family as a 2nd grader in 2003, the year the Lower Division opened its doors. From then on he took full advantage of everything the school had to offer, including a 10-day

JK K 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th

spanish 5x 5x 5x 5x 5x 5x 5x

music 3x 3x 3x 3x 3x 3x 3x

art 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x

Technology 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x

Library 1x 1x 1x 1x 1x 1x 1x

Phys Ed 1x 1x 1x 1x 1x 1x 1x

cultural tour of France and Spain in summer 2013. Now a NDP graduate and a freshman at Xavier University, Gil has come to epitomize a Notre Dame student. Prior to graduating in May 2014, Gil established himself as a dynamic member of the school community.

NDP graduate Gil Guthrie, left, started his Notre Dame career in the school’s lower division.

He served on the Campus Ministry Retreat Commission, earned and maintained membership in both the National Honor Society and Spanish National Honor Society, volunteered as a Student Ambassador, and com-peted for the cross country and track and field teams. Gil’s top priority, however, was to his schoolwork, and ultimately earn-ing the International Baccalaureate Diploma following a two-year course of study. “I chose to pursue the IB Diploma in order to gain a global and interdis-ciplinary perspective in my studies,” Gil says. “While the IB program is challenging, I certainly felt prepared for it.” As a senior, Gil took a full course load of eight classes: IB English, IB Biology, IB/AP Psychology, IB History, Christian History, Honors Spanish 9,

Honors Calculus, and IB/AP Macro-economics. During his 11 years at Notre Dame, Gil heard inspiring messages from a number of influential speak-ers, went on countless educational field trips to a variety of locations, participated in multiple leadership initiatives, and learned new skills, such as 3D design in Notre Dame’s one-of-a-kind CATIA class through Dassault Systemes. “Notre Dame has given me nu-merous opportunities and experiences that are completely unique,” Gil says. “More than that, though, the best thing about Notre Dame is the loving and accepting family of friends and teachers I have found here.”