Bilingual School in Thessaloniki
Greek - English Program
170 Students
Elementary years
Love for learning! Through a bilingual program, focusing on the student, the experiential education that governs the operation of our school, allows the full development of the potential of each individual student, both on an individual level and in the context of their actions as members of a group.
Through the Greek, as well as the International development of the program, suitable conditions are offered for the strengthening of the Greek identity of the students, while at the same time an international perception is cultivated - which allows them to develop into open to diversity, sensitized citizens of the world.
Overview of the Elementary ΙΒ curriculum
At Fox in the Pine elementary we offer bilingual education to students aged between 6-12. Students engage in 40 educational hours per week of which half are in Greek and the other half are in English. We follow the National Curriculum with the IB PYP as a framework and vehicle for learning. The National Curriculum outlines the skills and knowledge which will be acquired by the time our children leave elementary school; the PYP is a way of framing learning in order to help children develop academically as well as holistically.
Learning is organised into six ‘Transdisciplinary Themes’ which, alongside the learner profile, provide children opportunities to acquire the knowledge and develop the skills outlined in the National Curriculum with an overall view of creating conscientious global citizens.
Students embark on lines of inquiry stemming from a central idea. Within the context of the Central Ideas, learners acquire the ability to demonstrate and recognize the IB Learner Attributes. The attributes promote learners to be inquirers, knowledgeable, thinkers, communicators, principled, open-minded, caring, risk-takers, balanced and reflective. The ethos behind the programme is to create lifelong learners who ‘develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect’. The vast majority of the National Curriculum is covered through the framework of the IB PYP, however, where explicit skills teaching is necessary, for example, language and mathematics, this is done within isolated lessons to be then embedded through the lines of inquiry. All compulsory subjects outlined by the National curriculum are integrated and covered through the 6 Transdisciplinary units of inquiry.
The Learning Community of an IB World School
Our teachers work together with the families to support each child's learning. As a learning community, we organize multiple meetings and forums with our families. The objective of our parent forums is to give parents a voice, foster collaborative decision making, organize events, and discuss all aspects of the students’ development. As a community of IB learners, we strive to be good communicators, collaborate effectively, and listen carefully to the opinions of others. Our learning community models this through regular communication, newsletters, and reports. We also use ‘Seesaw’ which informs parents daily about the learning that is happening in school and provides suggestions on how they can connect this learning with life at home.
Interdisciplinary approach
The achievement of the learning objectives for each grade of the primary school, as defined by the Ministry of Education, is carried out through the interdisciplinary teaching of subjects, maintaining a child-centered character. Every theme that is "taught", takes the student on a journey through previous knowledge and experiences, allowing for a natural connection to new knowledge and thus making sense of it.
Exploratory learning
At the center of learning, the students themselves are placed, who, acting freely and democratically, are encouraged to participate actively and autonomously in the educational process. They investigate, question, experiment, observe, reflect, building and co-constructing knowledge.
Playful Learning- Experiential approach
The educational game, responding to the developmental stage and the needs of each student, is an integral part of the educational process, as well as a strong ally in the acquisition of knowledge, the cultivation of social skills, but also the development of thinking. After all, it is the experiential approach itself that ensures the active role of students in their learning process.
Traveling education
Our city, our "class"! Through the educational tour program and through actions organized according to the themes that are interspersed each time, we get to know our city, its attractions and its local history. Through the examination of monuments of the past, students are given the opportunity to appreciate the cultural heritage of our country. Inspiring them, therefore, to act as competent and responsible citizens, travel education contributes decisively not only locally, but also globally, to the recognition of the value of the cultural heritage and history of countries around the world.
Social dimension of knowledge
Through the establishment of working groups in the classroom, the exchange of opinions, ideas and experiences is encouraged, with the common goal of taking responsibility, facing challenges and solving problems in the context of the educational process. Through cooperative learning, students practice communication strategies, develop their interpersonal relationships, argue and collaborate, in a positive environment of interaction and initiative.
The growing child
Primary education covers the largest age range, compared to the other levels (6 years of study), a fact which highlights its importance. During these six years, the small child grows into a pre-adolescent, while many times completing their schooling in elementary school having already officially entered adolescence. Our school program, activities, "teaching" methods, the subject matter as well as the structure of the classes, are designed in such a way as to cover the requirements and needs of different developmental stages that our students go through.
The learning environment
The environment as a second teacher!
A flexible learning environment, which offers substantial opportunities to reshape the space, turns from a simple tool into a dynamic element of the educational process, as it favors both the interaction between students and the development of their imagination and creativity. The environment itself thus affects, and is affected by, the participants in the learning process, being the same source of stimuli and "canvas" of knowledge.
Assessment
The primary aim of assessment at Fox in the Pine is to support and promote student learning. Effective and varied assessment is essential for providing students with ongoing evaluation and feedback on their academic achievements within the subject areas to monitor and measure student progress. We believe that the written, taught and assessed curricula are interlinked. Assessment focuses on the essential elements of learning: the understanding of concepts, the acquisition of knowledge, the mastery of skills, the development of attitudes and the decision to take responsible action. Through receiving feedback in relation to set criteria or expectations, students of all abilities learn strategies for further improvement and develop intrinsic motivation. Assessment also enables parents and staff to monitor and support student progress.
Learning is informed through assessments, both formative and summative, and using a variety of strategies and tools.
Assessing student learning may take the form of observations or anecdotal records, reflections, process-focused assessments, quizzes and tests, and open-ended tasks, among others.
Assessments of student learning are reported to parents through the following:
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Report cards
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Seesaw
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Conferences
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Student self-assessment
Extracurricular activities
After school Clubs
After the end of the school program, our students have the opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities, with a frequency of once or twice a week. The program of extracurricular activities is created at the beginning of the school year following the expression of interest from our students.
A large part of the day and our daily life is spent in the school environment. They are the most productive hours of students' lives, during which they reflect, experiment, discover and create, taking part in a multitude of activities that require a clear mind and a strong body.
To ensure the energy and participation of our students, our school promotes and offers a healthy way of eating, rich in all the nutrients that an organism needs daily.
Nutrition
School Bus Service
The school bus service is offered to our students for their morning arrival, but also for their departure.
