Sativa ErtolaTeaching the Learner Profile Traits
Updated: Jan 22
A guide for IB PYP teachers; whether you a new or veteran teacher to the International Baccalaureate, teaching the learner profile traits can turn out to be a brain strain when thinking of all of the ATLs and how to get it all to blend perfectly in six weeks.
So teachers, here is your guide to understanding, teaching and modelling the IB Learner Profile Traits with a few text suggestions, of course. After all, mentor texts are a powerful teaching tool for learners of all ages.
Scroll through all ten of the IB Learner Profile Traits or select one here:
Caring
Communicator
Inquirer
Knowledgeable
Open-Minded
Principled
Reflective
Risk-Taker
Thinker
In the spirit of inquiry and in support of fellow PYP and MYP teachers, I've created these free bookmarks. You can download your own copy right here in my resource library.
Balanced
This trait can be a real challenge, especially with younger learners.
You can apply this trait in class by:
practicing mindfulness yourself and making time for it during the day. I always find that afternoons are excellent for this - brains and bodies both need a break.
planning calm down transitions after break time and movement activities between lessons
making "check ins" for you and your students part of the daily schedule. This can be a body scan or using something along the lines of the Zones of Regulation or Time-In Toolkit.
discussing emotions regaluarly and stating why we feel this way (ie. This morning I feel really nervous because I need to speak during assembly).
Teach being balanced through these amazing mentor texts:
Here and Now by Julia Denos
Tidy by Emily Gravett
More by I.C. Springman
The Good Egg by Jory John and Pete Oswald
Eyes That Kiss in The Corners by Johanna Ho
Sometimes You Get What You Want by Meredith Gary
The Breathing Book by Christopher Willard and Olivia Weisser
Caring
Sometimes, I feel like this is just the easiest trait to teach since everyone has been told to be caring and kind since they were born. But when digging a little deeper, children's understandings of 'caring' can be quite superficial - help someone who fell down, say please and thank you. I see the trait of Caring being taught more as active and intentional than reactive.
A few ways you can emphasize Caring in your classroom:
practicing gentleness yourself. Our actions, words, voices and body language demonstrate kindness.
having a conflict resolution system in your classroom for talking out problems.
smiling.
reframing students disagreements to assume good intentions and doing the same with our classroom management.
being a good listener and teaching our students to be a good listener.
caring about ourselves just as much as we care about others.
having a classroom pet or garden.
Mentor texts for caring
A Mouse Called Julian by Joe Todd Stanton
I Love Saturday y Domingos by Aima Flor Ada
Boxes for Katje
Jin Woo by Eve Bunting
The Summer My Father Was Ten by
Word Are Your Heart by Kate Jane Neil
Communicator
Spoiler alert: so many kids think this is just about speaking. Being a communicator is so much more, from speaking, listening, literacy and body language to understanding ideas, emotions and how to debate.
You can model this trait as a teacher by:
emphasizing listening as a communication skill - so often it is viewed as just speaking skills but communication goes so much further. I like to use the acronym SLANT (sit up, look at the speaker, ask questions, nod your head, track what was said - be able to paraphrase).
planning cooperative learning tasks where students are required to work together toward a shared goal as a team
using learning partners in the classroom but also changing them regularly (weekly or biweekly) so that students improve on their skills and are adaptable when working with others
incorporating hand signals or sign language.
playing charades or similar games to teach the importance of body language.
include Conscience Alley when reading texts where a character has a dilemma.
Mentor texts for communicator
Rocket Says, Look Up! by Nathan Bryon
Nico Draws a Feeling by Bob Raczka
Speak Up by Miranda Paul
I Can't Believe You Said That by Julia Cook
I Hate English by Ellen Levine
Swimmy by Leo Lionni
The Girl Who Thought in Pictures by Julia Finley Mosca
Inquirer
I think this is the most puzzling trait for children. But when they get, they really get it.
You can model this trait as a teacher by:
using the word "inquiry" on your timetable rather than UoI, Unit, etc. From the first week of school, kids will be asking, "What is inquiry?" The teaching of an inquirer starts here.
regularly demonstrating thinking aloud, particularly with questions that you don’t have the answers to.
providing activities that are open ended and have no “correct” answer.
setting up spaces for open exploration. I've seen some teachers use inquiry boxes that serve as a perfect soft start in the mornings (rather than morning work 😉 ).
creating a habit of not answering students' questions, but guiding them to continue thinking, coming up with theories and finding answers on their own.
facilitating more than "teaching" - be the guide and the support, not the keeper of knowledge and expertise.
spend time outdoors in nature.
switching from "Who has a question?" to "Ask me all your questions, I challenge you to ask me a tricky question?"
Mentor texts for inquirer
The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires
I Have an Idea by Hervé Tullet
I Wonder by Annaka Harris
Zoom by Istvan Banyai
Ada's Ideas by Fiona Robinson
Ask Me by Bernard Weber
Knowledgeable
This trait is so easy to apply yourself and notice with your learners! Everyone is knowledgeable about something and this trait gives a perfect reason to acknowledge and celebrate knowledge in our classrooms.
Some ideas for creating and embracing a knowledgeable classroom community:
referencing topics learned across the curriculum within and from your units of inquiry
explaining your thinking with phrases such as, "I know this because..."
letting the children be the teacher sometimes. It can be quite powerful for them to feel knowledgeable by sharing their understandings with you and others.
teaching students to gather information from multiple sources.
including Show & Tell in your timetable.
Mentor texts for knowledgeable
The Emperor's Egg by
Iggy Peck, Architect and Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty
I Can't Do That, Yet by Esther P Cordova
Just Read by Lori Degman
Pluto Gets the Call by Adam Rex
