English
In Sixth Grade Language Arts, students engage in skill lessons that focus on writing conventions and vocabulary building. They are responsible for obtaining copies of Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli, Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis, and From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsbury. All three books are Newberry Award Books. Students are required to read these books and use the writing process to write several papers including a research paper. Students also develop and present a variety of speeches. Emphasis is placed on recognizing and using literary elements and techniques. (back)

Math
Sixth graders analyze the steps in standard and non-standard algorithms for computing with fractions and decimals. Students use a variety of strategies, including proportional reasoning, to estimate, compute, solve and explain solutions to problem solving. They work with two-dimensional shapes and explain what happens when the measurements of a shape are changed. They predict and describe results of transformations of two-dimensional figures and draw similar figures that model proportional relationships. They address algebraic expressions, linear equations and use technology to analyze change. They predict, using data in tables, graphs and experiments to test probability.
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Social Studies
The sixth-grade year focuses on the study of world regions. The concentration is geographic rather than historic. Students study some of the earliest people who lived in each region in order to understand how humans interacted with the environmental conditions at that time. Connections are made to present-day world regions including characteristics of governments and economic interactions. (back)

Science
Students in grade six continue to conduct investigations and begin to apply mathematical skills in evaluating and analyzing variables of data. They identify basic skills of the scientific inquiry process, such as how thinking scientifically is helpful in daily life and how technological advances affect the quality of life. Students research how men and women of other countries and cultures contribute to science. Sixth-grade students identify rocks, their distinct properties and formation and characteristic properties of the minerals that form them. They learn to recognize that a cell continually divides to create new cells, reproduction of cells occur, similar cells have special functions, and characteristics of an organism are a result of inherited traits. Students acquire knowledge of the uses, properties and chemical processes of the small particles that compose matter. They learn the renewable and nonrenewable sources of energy as part of the grade six indicators. (back)

Rev. 06-09-09