International Program
The purpose of the International Track at LIH is to provide a rigorous academic program that allows families the freedom of choice.
Our age-appropriate curriculum takes the best parts of the curriculum of the French Ministry of Education and the State of Texas, incorporating the standards needed to provide the best possible education in Houston.
Early Childhood Education
 Daily activities establish the foundation for lifelong learning, a key component of the International Baccalaureate, and provide children the opportunity to safely explore the world around them in a supportive environment. At LIH, the early childhood curriculum incorporates the renowned academic program of the French government with the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills standards.
Using Language in All of Its Dimensions:
Our young students learn in English, Spanish, and French. Language is an essential condition for the success of students. Learning priorities include the stimulation and structuring of oral language, the development of understanding of texts read by adults, and awareness of the sound and visual component of languages. As such, students will spend two days learning in English, two days learning in Spanish, and one day in French.
Acting, Expressing, and Understanding through Physical Activity and Art:
The practice of physical and artistic activities contributes to the motor, sensory, intellectual, relational, and emotional development of students.
Developing the First Tools to Structure Thoughts:
Students will gradually come to understand that numbers allow both quantities and a rank of positioning in a list to be expressed.
Exploring the World:
One of the goals of early childhood development is to gradually lead students to consider time and space as relatively independent dimensions of current activities, and to begin to treat them as such.
Grades 1-5
Elementary School
Elementary school includes grades 1 through 5. Students will spend three days learning in English with an additional day in Spanish and one day in French. At LIH the elementary school language program incorporates reading and writing with mathematics, science, social studies, the arts, STEAM, and physical education.
Grades 6-8
Middle School
All middle school academic classes are taught in English, and students will continue to learn in both Spanish and French as their additional languages. At LIH, the Middle School curriculum enables students to acquire a common base of knowledge, fundamental skills and culture, and is organized around five areas:
- Languages for thinking and communicating
- Methods and tools for learning
- Personal and civic development
- Natural and technical systems
- Representations of the world and human activity.
The middle school program will follow the curriculum guidelines of the French Ministry of Education as well as many of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills benchmarks. For example, the French educational system puts and equal emphasis on geometric and algebraic topics as compared to the TEKS which put more emphasis on algebraic topics and less on geometric topics.Â
Grades 9-12
High School
For those students who have chosen to follow the American track, the High School will consist of preparing for the International Baccalaureate in grades 9 and 10, the Diploma Programme of the International Baccalaureate in grades 11 and 12, college and career counseling, and preparation for the PSAT, SAT, and ACT. In addition to following the International Baccalaureate, students will complete the core Texas requirements of United States Government/Economics, Speech, Health, and World History.
At LIH, the American track feeds directly into the International Baccalaureate. Grades 11 and 12 are guided by the curriculum of the IBO and by the requirements of the State of Texas. Students have choices to make in most subjects as well as determining if they wish to take those programs at a Standard Level or Higher Level, with three of the choices take at HL. In addition, during the summer between 11th and 12th grade, students will write an Extended Essay on the topic of their choice, to be mentored by an LIH teacher. Theory of Knowledge is a philosophy like course which will be completed through internal and external assessments. In addition, IB Diploma students must complete 150 hours of Community, Action, and Service hours. These hours start to accumulate once the student has completed the 10th grade at LIH.
An Introduction to the IB required course of study and the IB Hexagon
IB students have not only completed their exams, they have completed a program of education which emphasizes high academic standards, international mindedness and develops learning skills that will last a lifetime.
The breadth and balance of learning is achieved by the course of study required. To earn an IB Diploma, students must take courses in six subjects from the following 6 subject areas. In addition, they are required to complete a course in the Theory of Knowledge, to write an Extended Essay of 4,000 words on a subject of their choice, and to complete a minimum of 150 hours of activities in the areas of Creativity, Action and Service. Central to all subjects are the Extended Essay, Theory of Knowledge (TOK) and Creativity Action & Service (CAS).
Group 1 – Language A
The study of literature, including selected works from World Literature. This is traditionally the student’s native language.
Group 2 – Language B
A second modern language, Spanish, French, or Chinese
Group 3 – Individuals and Societies
Economics, Psychology, History
The education of the “whole person” takes on a special significance in the twenty-first century when knowledge continues to expand dramatically; when advanced technologies and global economics have tied together vastly different cultures; when the world is bound too closely for provincial ideologies to guide political thought; when to exist in a world community requires appreciation and understanding of cultural diversity; and when cooperation alone will solve global problems. It is essential that academic training provide students with the values and opportunities that will enable them to succeed in the competitive, modern world.
Group 4 – Experimental Sciences
Biology, Chemistry, Physics
Group 5 – Mathematics
Mathematics HL, Mathematics SL, or Mathematical Studies
Group 6 – The Arts and Electives
Theater, Visual Arts, Music or a second subject from groups 2-4
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Theory of Knowledge (TOK)
The study in TOK is central to the educational philosophy of the International Baccalaureate. TOK explores the assumptions and values on which the various subject disciplines are based as well as their limitations. It encourages students (and teachers) to reflect critically on various ways of knowing (experience, reason etc) and areas of knowledge (subject disciplines), and to deliberate on the role that knowledge plays in a larger society. It encourages students to become conscious of themselves as thinkers, to become aware of the complexity and intricacy of knowledge, and to recognize and appreciate the need to act responsibly in an increasingly interconnected world.
As a thoughtful and resolute enquiry into dissimilar ways of knowing, and into diverse kinds of knowledge, the TOK course is compiled more or less entirely of questions. The most essential of these questions is: The teacher involves the application of this central and crucial question to many diverse, yet interrelated, subjects and matters of concern for all human beings.
Extended Essay
This is a substantial piece of independent research (4,000 words) on a topic of the student’s choice from a wide range of subject areas and supervised by a member of the school’s staff. The emphasis is on original research, careful analysis and academic rigor.
Creativity, Action, Service (CAS)
In order to provide a balance to their academic studies, and to provide for the well rounded development of imaginative, fit and compassionate young people who leave school ready and able to participate in the life of a wider community, students are required to complete a CAS program, including at least fifty hours each of activities classed as Creativity, Action and Service. Activities can often be a combination of Creativity and Service, or Action and Creativity or even of all three. The CAS coordinators can assist students in making choices for CAS activities, and some group CAS activities are planned annually.
