VINCI School’s elementary grades have a strong focus in STEAM – Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math. We are proud to be a STEAM magnet school, attracting students who are bright in logic reasoning and artistic creativity.
Continuing the tradition of hands-on learning, elementary students follow the same 4-step pedagogy that’s unique to VINCI School.
Elementary Curriculum Overview:
We are proud to be the only school in town that follows the much more rigorous American Common Core Standards. The standards are designed to build upon the most advanced current thinking about preparing all students for success in college, career, and life.
International Competency
In the design process of the Common Core, benchmarks from top-performing countries played a significant role in the development of the math and English language arts/literacy standards. In fact, the college- and career-ready standards provide an appendix listing the evidence that was consulted in drafting the standards, including the international standards that were consulted in the development process.
The Common Core and The IB
The International Baccalaureate stated in their document on the relationship between IB and CCSS that, “The CCSS are a shift in the direction of mathematics education. They move beyond traditional “standards”
to a focus on applying mathematics to real-life situations. Students are no longer learning content
as isolated facts, but rather as tools to solve a wide range of problems.”
The IB organization also commented that “Both the PYP overall expectations for language and the CCSS strive for independent communicators.”
VINCI School Position regarding Common Core and IB
Both standards are highly regarded as rigorous and demanding academic requirements. The Common Core is more skill-driven while the IB focuses more on content in a traditional way.
As a school with major emphasis on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math, we strongly believe the Common Core requirement allows us to drive skills in a more clear and effective way while assisting students to become independent learners and to have the strong foundation to study content effectively.
VINCI School students are expected to follow AP programs by the College Board in high school. In 2013, over 17,000 Canadian students as well as over 102,000 American students took AP Exams.
85 percent of selective institutions report that a student’s AP experience favorably impacts admission decisions.
For more detailed comparison between the Common Core and the IB, please visit http://www.ibo.org/iba/commoncore/