At the heart of the PYP is a commitment to transdisciplinary learning: exploring real life topics or questions and using subjects as tools to explore conceptual ideas across contexts. As the IB outlines, this means shifting away from isolated skills and siloed subjects and instead embracing learning that is:
- Conceptual
- Connected
- Authentic
But here’s one of the challenges:
- Six transdisciplinary units per year.
- Standalone units
- Enough time for reflection, feedback, and action.
Fortunately, the IB encourages flexible time frames for units of inquiry. Principles into practice make this clear: schools have the discretion to design unit timeframes that are developmentally appropriate, fit for purpose, and responsive to context.
Here are practical structures and examples of how schools can do that, meeting the requirement of six transdisciplinary units without sacrificing what makes inquiry rich.
Specialist Teachers Lead, Homeroom Teachers Integrate
For example, an arts-led unit on how artists communicate emotion and perspective (How We Express Ourselves). Homeroom teachers integrate by exploring figurative language in writing.
𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬: They lead the unit through the core concepts and techniques of their discipline, maintaining both authenticity and rigor.
𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦𝐬: With specialists taking the lead, it creates space to teach language arts intentionally and continue developing other units of inquiry, without stretching time too thin.
𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬: They see how expression transcends subject boundaries, deepening conceptual understanding and strengthening transfer.
𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫-L𝐨𝐧𝐠 U𝐧𝐢𝐭
For example, a Who We Are unit is woven into classroom culture, personal growth, and SEL throughout the year.
✅ It allows continuous, authentic exploration of important concepts without needing a separate time block.
✅ It frees up space in the timetable for other units, while still meeting the requirement for six transdisciplinary units.
✅ It supports 𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐡 over coverage, with ongoing opportunities for reflection and transfer.
𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐥 U𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐬
For example, Sharing the Planet explores how human actions impact ecosystems, while How We Organize Ourselves looks at how communities change the environment through systems like agriculture, urban planning, or transport. Both run side by side, connected by the concepts of systems and responsibility, students investigate environmental issues in science and examine community decisions in social studies.
✅ It allows schools to cover two transdisciplinary themes within the same time frame, helping meet the requirement without overwhelming the schedule.
✅ Conceptual connections across subjects create rich learning opportunities without needing fully separate units.
Open Inquiry Unit
For example, a How We Express Ourselves unit framed around the question: What inspires me to create?
Students pursue personal inquiries into forms of expression that matter to them (poetry, digital art, short films, comics, music, etc.) supported by teacher-led skill workshops and regular check-ins. The unit is structured around phases of planning, creating, sharing, and reflecting.
✅ It builds student ownership, reducing the need for constant front-loaded teaching.
✅ It’s time-efficient, teachers work with individuals or small groups while others are independently engaged.
Focused Inquiries
A shorter unit (4 weeks) with a clear conceptual focus and tightly aligned provocations and assessments.
Example: A Where We Are in Place and Time unit in Grade 1 focused solely on timelines and personal history. It integrates language, math, and social studies, using read-alouds, family interviews, and a class timeline project.
✅ It narrows the scope, allowing for depth without extending the timeline.
✅ Makes it possible to fit all 6 TD units without compressing others or compromising standalone subject time.
A final word for PYP Coordinators …
If you’re looking to rethink your POI structure, try starting with the Pains and Gains strategy.
Gather your team and explore:
PAINS
• What’s limiting depth, balance, or flexibility in our current POI?
• What challenges do we want to avoid or reduce in our future POI?
GAINS
• What are the strengths of our current POI we want to preserve or build on?
• Where is there untapped potential to support deeper thinking or better integration?
This strategy helps surface misalignments, time bottlenecks, and missed opportunities. But more importantly, it invites collective ownership of the POI, not as a fixed requirement to endure, but as a living, flexible framework to refine.
By naming what’s not working and amplifying what is, you’ll be better positioned to redesign your POI in ways that are sustainable, strategic, and grounded in student learning.
Looking to go deeper with this in your school? I offer coaching and workshops for teams and curriculum leaders. [Learn more here.]
The Organized Chaos In The PYP Classroom 
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