6th Grade
6th Grade
Embedded Files
Unit 1
(coming soon)
Unit 2
Unit 3
(coming soon)
Unit 4
(coming soon)
6th Grade Unit Order Rationale
6th Grade Unit Order Rationale
The Utah SEEd standards are organized into four strands that begin with the Solar System, but the OpenSciEd units follow a different sequence. This intentional reordering enables students to build on what they’ve learned and apply it in new contexts. The following explains this intentional ordering of the units:
Unit 1 – Energy Affects Matter
We begin with this unit because energy and matter are essential for understanding content throughout the year. Students explore how energy affects particles and state changes, preparing them to explain related phenomena in weather, ecosystems, and space.
Unit 2 – Earth’s Weather Patterns and Climate
This unit builds on students’ understanding of energy by applying it to the atmosphere and water cycle. They analyze temperature and weather data to make sense of atmospheric patterns and storm systems.
Unit 3 – Stability and Change in Ecosystems
Students investigate how environmental factors like weather and climate influence populations and ecosystems. This unit reinforces earlier ideas about energy transfer, particle behavior, and the influence of temperature on systems—concepts first explored in Units 1 and 2—while introducing relationships between organisms and their surroundings.
Unit 4 – Structure and Motion Within the Solar System
This unit is placed last because it brings together and applies many ideas developed across the year in a new context: space systems. While students have already analyzed data and used models in earlier units, this unit applies those skills to phenomena like planetary motion, seasons, and moon phases. It also introduces reasoning with larger scales, timeframes, and ratios—skills students are more prepared for after developing related thinking in science and math throughout the year.
Science Pacing Rationale
Science Pacing Rationale
120 total days, 45-minute days
120 total days, 45-minute days
The USBE recommends “daily science instruction” in grades K–6, though the exact structure looks different at each grade level. According to the Elementary and Secondary School General Core Rule (R277-700): “The Superintendent shall place a greater emphasis on a student’s mastery of course material rather than completion of predetermined time allotments for courses.”
To ensure students achieve mastery of the SEEd Standards at their described proficiency levels (outlined in the SEEd Core Guides), we have allotted the following time for 6th-grade science:
6th Grade: 120 Total Days - 45-minute days
Curriculum Days (108 days): Core OpenSciEd lessons.
Other Days/Flexible (12 days): Three per unit, reserved for assessment, enrichment, digital tools (Gizmos, Mission.io), and other district-supported resources
Unit Breakdown:
UNIT 1: 27 DAYS (+3 Other) = 30 days
UNIT 2: 31 DAYS (+3 Other) = 34 days
UNIT 3: 27 DAYS (+3 Other) = 30 days
UNIT 4: 23 DAYS (+3 Other) = 26 days
We intentionally paced for 120 instructional days instead of the full 180 to reflect the realities of elementary classrooms.
This structure:
Provides time at the beginning of the year for building classroom routines.
Accommodates end-of-year testing (most RISE testing windows begin in April).
Preserves space for holidays, school breaks, and traditional school events that are central to the elementary experience.
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