My IB An MYP unit plan is the single document that ties concept, context, assessment, and teaching activity together. Regardless of subject group, most schools follow a broadly similar structure, organized into three phases: Inquiry, Action, and Reflection.
Phase 1 — Inquiry
This phase establishes what the unit is really about. It typically includes:
- A key concept (e.g., Change, Systems, Connections).
- One or two related concepts specific to the subject (e.g., in Sciences: Evidence, Model; in Individuals and Societies: Causality, Perspective).
- A global context that gives the unit real-world relevance.
- A statement of inquiry combining the concepts and context into a single, meaningful sentence (see the dedicated article on this).
- Inquiry questions — factual, conceptual, and debatable — that will drive lessons.
Phase 2 — Action
This phase documents how the unit will actually be taught and assessed: the learning experiences and teaching strategies, the ATL (Approaches to Learning) skills being developed, formative and summative assessment tasks mapped to specific assessment criteria, and any differentiation or inclusive-access considerations.
Phase 3 — Reflection
MYP unit planners typically ask teachers to reflect at three points: prior to teaching (what worked in similar units before, what might need adjusting), during teaching (what's actually happening in the room), and after teaching (what to change next time). This reflective loop is what keeps a unit plan a living document rather than a one-time form.
Use the template
Rather than build this structure from scratch, download the Unit Planning Template from the Resource Library — it mirrors the structure above and is ready to fill in.