Just a couple of kilometres from Siena city centre, perched on a hillside and looking out over the rolling Tuscan hills, lies the campus of the International School of Siena, a beautiful purpose-built school offering an education that prepares all its students for the needs of an increasingly global and complex society. One of the first international schools in Tuscany and fully certified for the International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum continuum, for several years now the International School of Siena has been providing a world-class education for new generations growing up in the region.
The IB is an international course of study that leads eventually to the International Baccalaureate Diploma, equivalent to the baccalaureate diploma, recognised in Italy and abroad, and which allows access to the best Italian and international universities.
The IB Diploma is the culminating qualification that comes at the end of a long learning journey, which begins as early as pre-school. As an important building block for the IB programme, the school offers an accompanying programme designed for pre-school children, aged 2.5 to 5 years, called Early Years. The approach taken to learning is a transdisciplinary one and is inspired by the IB philosophy and the practice of the world-famous Reggio Emilia Method.
Children are given time to explore concepts and build their own learning together with teachers in small groups: they process their understanding through all expressive, creative, verbal and mathematical languages, creating natural connections between mathematics, science, digital technology and expressive arts. All of this is undertaken through complete “immersion” in an English language context. Children are exposed to the English language in its written form throughout their early years in imaginative and symbolic play contexts and in teacher-led activities. Children who are not English first language speakers are given appropriate support and soon find fluency developing alongside their home language.
The learning environment is carefully planned and created to feel homely and well organised. It is planned in a way that provokes children to inquire through play. The teacher’s role is to listen in on the playing, to question children about their growing understanding and to plan further learning engagement to further learning.
On the one hand, the children are able to explore their surroundings, choosing activities independently. On the other hand, they are involved in more structured activities aimed at developing specific skills (linguistic and phonetic, motor, musical and logical-mathematical). Both situations are essential for the development of autonomy and creative thinking, as children experience new ideas and learn to handle social situations in a natural way, to relate to their peers, share experiences, collaborate and communicate effectively.
“Children learn by building relationships with their surroundings,” Jennifer Tickle, Head of School, explains. “The carefully planned and stimulating physical environment of our early childhood school reflects this both inside and out. The spaces are in fact organised to support and enrich the learning experience of the children, who are given time and space to explore natural materials and objects without a predefined function, carefully chosen together with the teachers to support their aptitude for exploration. Our open spaces also stimulate the children’s curiosity about the natural world.”
“Through structured activities,” Jennifer continues, “the children are introduced to the basics of phonics, learning to recognise sounds, letters and words. This is a fundamental first step in the development of reading and writing skills. Of equal importance are exercises that promote fine and gross motor development, such as physical games, coordination activities and manipulation of objects aimed at promoting physical growth and motor control. Music and dance—important means of expression and social communication—are taught as discrete subjects by specialist teachers as well as forming an integral of everyday experiences in the classroom.”
The Early Years rests on three pillars: children, parents and teachers. The former and most important are collaborative protagonists of their learning experience and receive all the support they need from the teaching staff to realise their potential and be ready to face the challenges of an international primary education. The home-school relationship is highly valued and teachers work closely with parents to ensure a consistent approach to care for their young charges.
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