WELCOME

WHAT IS THE INTERNATIONAL MIDDLE SCHOOL YEARS CURRICULUM?

The International Middle Years Curriculum (IMYC), created by Fieldwork Education, is a challenging, internationally-minded, and concept-focused curriculum that helps develop engaged and active learners. It is designed for students aged 11 to 14, as they move from their final years of childhood into adolescence, and it prepares them for the next stage of their education.

THE CURRICULUM

The IMYC focuses on developing skills that students will need as they progress toward adulthood. The IMYC connects learning by tying all subjects together. It is organized around work units that are connected by the Big Idea. Each team has a theme that helps students engage with topics ranging from adaptability to identity, curiosity, tradition, and discovery. That Big Idea encourages students to think more broadly and to connect issues and themes in novel ways.

Each curriculum area has a subject-based focus within the unit; however, during the team, students are encouraged to make connections between them. Each curriculum area has a set of learning outcomes that are also assessed over the course of three years in Middle School.

English, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies (History/Geography) are taught.

Languages: Latvian, French, and Spanish

Music\sArt\sTechnology

Physical Education

The IMYC believes in inquiry-based learning, which allows students to discover things for themselves with clear guidance from the teacher. Students will be:

Researching\sInvestigating\sInquiring\sThinking\sReporting

The IMYC was chosen as the Middle School curriculum at ISR because it bridges the gap between Primary and High School. The one side of the bridge represents the needs of the adolescent brain, and the other represents the academic rigor required to ensure they are ready for the next stage of Secondary school. By the end of Grade 8, students have developed the critical thinking, research skills, and knowledge required to transition into the demanding and rigorous programs introduced in High School, the IGCSE and the IB Diploma Programme.

TRANSITION TO ADOLESCENCE

Adolescence is the period between childhood and adulthood. Children entering adolescence go through many changes, including physical, intellectual, personality, and social development. ISR Middle School students are empowered to be self-sufficient and have a strong support system.

The IMYC responds to the specific development needs of 11-14-year-olds by providing structures and systems that support the needs of the adolescent brain.

The five critical needs of the adolescent brain are as follows:

#1: They must make sense of their learning - (desire to find relevance in their own lives)

#2: They must make connections - (Associating new learning with previous learning or knowledge)

#3: They require active involvement in their lives - (Risk, seeking sensation in an organized, safe, and structured environment)

#4: They rely on their peers for so many things - (Tending to value peers' options over others)

#5: They require a bridge from primary to secondary - (They require assistance during this critical period to ensure they do not become disengaged from their learning)

THE IMYC UNITS

During the academic year at ISR, we study six units from each Middle School grade. Students connect their learning across subjects by using the Big Idea, a conceptual concept:

GRADE 6

  • BRAINWAVE - How our brains change as we get older, and the subsequent needs of the adolescent brain.
  • RISK - Progress entails exposing ourselves to and considering the impact or forms of danger, harm, uncertainty, or opportunity.
  • STRUCTURES - Formal arrangements and relationships underpin or organize complex issues.
  • BALANCE - Things are more stable when different elements are in the correct or best possible proportions.
  • CREATIVITY - Innovative ideas can emerge when existing or novel concepts are combined or expressed in novel ways.
  • ADAPTABILITY is demonstrated by the ability to cope, alter, or change in the face of unusual circumstances or environments.

GRADE 7

  • BRAINWAVE - Consider the impact of stress on the brain, some of the cognitive, emotional, and environmental contributors to learning, strategies for remembering information, and how the brain can rewire itself.
  • RESPECT - It is critical to honor proven behaviors and processes.
  • REFLECTION - Complex decision-making necessitates both space and time.
  • TRADITION - Beliefs and customs from the past have a powerful influence on our lives today.
  • CURIOSITY - The desire to learn more motivates exploration and aspiration.
  • COMMUNICATION - When information is shared correctly, the outcome is more effective.

GRADE 8

  • BRAINWAVE - Students will be introduced to various scenarios that they may face when making decisions about their futures. It provides an opportunity to discuss making the best decisions for them.
  • COMMUNITY - A shared sense of belonging occurs when people can negotiate and appreciate their complex and often messy differences.
  • INTERPRETATION - Only a few things are universally true.
  • IDENTITY - Our sense of self and that of others is constantly formed through our interactions and influences how we exist in the world.
  • RESPONSIBILITY - Each of us is responsible for the actions we choose.
  • CHALLENGE - Facing and overcoming problems and barriers expands our lives' possibilities.

THE ISR DIFFERENCE

ISR is one of Latvia's oldest international schools. ISR began as a playgroup in 1997 and grew into a school. We promote individual success in academic development and social-emotional well-being by closely monitoring each child's growth and learning. Teachers strive to differentiate and personalize learning as much as possible in order to help students reach their full potential.

Whether their stay is short or long, all ISR family members call Latvia "home." ISR is an International School with a Latvian Heart. Families in our community experience and celebrate Latvia as a unique country with a rich heritage. When families move on to the next stage of their lives, they take a little piece of Latvia with them.

ISR takes pride in having strong roots in the local community through charity work and sharing academic knowledge and resources with local schools.

Everything we do at ISR is centered on our students' social-emotional well-being. In Middle School, it takes the form of a strong Pastoral Care program. It is critical that all community members feel safe and secure in order for the ISR mission to be a living statement. The emotional and social well-being of staff and students is maintained through the relationships formed, allowing members to grow and develop.

Students in Middle School are taught by a variety of teachers; therefore, students need to know that there is one teacher who provides academic and emotional support. Each grade level in Secondary has at least two advisors. The advisor provides pastoral care to all students in their advisory group. Throughout the year, advisors build relationships with the students in their advisory group, allowing them to feel safe and supported at school.