Sixth Grade

A family guide to the standards for sixth grade developed by Kentucky Department of Education can be found here.

In sixth grade your child's learning is divided into a progression of units or clusters that will lead to understanding of mathematics in five major areas:

1. Ratios and Proportional Relationships

• Students use reasoning about multiplication and division to solve ratio and rate problems about quantities.
• Students connect understanding of multiplication and division with ratios and rates by viewing equivalent ratios and rates as deriving from and extending, pairs of rows (or columns) in the multiplication table, and by analyzing simple drawings that indicate the relative size of quantities.
• Students expand the scope of problems for which they can use multiplication and division to solve problems.
• Students connect ratios and rates.

2. Number System

• Students use the meaning of fractions and the relationships between multiplication and division to understand and explain why the procedures for dividing fractions make sense.
• Students extend their previous understandings of number and the ordering of numbers to the full system of rational numbers, which includes negative rational numbers, particularly negative integers.
• Students reason about the order and absolute value of rational numbers and about the location of points on a coordinate plane.

3. Expressions, Equations and Inequalities

• Students write expressions and equations that correspond to given situations, using variables to represent an unknown and describe relationships between quantities.
• Students understand that expressions in different forms can be equivalent and use the properties of operations to rewrite and evaluate expressions in equivalent forms.
• Students use properties of operations and the idea of maintaining the equality of both sides of an equation to solve simple one-step equations.

4. Geometry

• Students reason about relationships among shapes to determine area, surface and volume. They find areas of right triangles, other triangles and special quadrilaterals by decomposing these shapes, rearranging or removing pieces and relating the shapes to rectangles.
• Students discuss, develop and justify formulas for areas of triangles and parallelograms. They find areas of polygons and surface areas of prisms and pyramids by decomposing them into pieces whose area they can determine.
• Students reason about right rectangular prisms with fractional side lengths to extend formulas for the volume of a right rectangular prism to fractional side lengths.

5. Statistics and Probability

• Students develop their ability to think statistically.
• Students recognize that a data distribution may not have a definite center and that different ways to measure the center yield different values. The median measures center in the sense that it is roughly the middle value. The mean measures center in the sense that it is the value that each data point would take on if the total of the data values were redistributed equally and also in the sense that it is the balance point (average).
• Students recognize that a measure of variability (interquartile range or mean absolute deviation) can also be useful for summarizing data because two very different sets of data can have the same mean and median yet be distinguished by their variability.
• Students learn to describe and summarize numerical data sets, identifying clusters, peaks, gaps, and symmetry, considering the context in which the data were collected.

To access math resources to support your child, use the drop menu from above or click here.

In the area of Reading/Writing, there are three critical components in which your child will focus his/her learning as a sixth grader. The instruction in your child's classroom through the reading units will help your child increase skill development in the following:

1. Reading Comprehension (Literature and Informational)

• Students cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
• Students analyze how the theme/central idea is reflected in a text by citing particular details and/or providing an objective summary.
• Students describe how a particular story's or drama's plot unfolds in a series of episodes and determine how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution.
• Students analyze in detail how an author develops a key individual, event or idea over the course of a text.
• Students determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative and technical meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone.
• Students analyze how a particular sentence, paragraph, chapter, scene or stanza fits into the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the theme, setting or plot.
• Students analyze how a particular sentence, paragraph, chapter or section fits into the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the ideas.
• Students explain how an author develops the perspective of the narrator or speaker in a text.
• Students determine an author's perspective and purpose in a text and explain how it is conveyed in a text.
• Students compare/contrast reading a print text and viewing its visual/oral presentation. They also compare/contrast how various forms or genres of texts approach a similar theme or topic.
• Students integrate information presented in print and non-print formats to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue.
• Students identify and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from unsupported claims.
• Students compare/contrast how two or more authors present similar events.
• By the end of the year, students flexibly use a variety of comprehension strategies (i.e., questioning, monitoring, visualizing, inferencing, summarizing, using prior knowledge, determining importance) to read, comprehend and analyze grade level appropriate, complex literary or informational texts independently and proficiently.

2. Composition Writing

• Students compose arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence by:

a. producing clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization and style are appropriate to task, purpose and audience.

b. introducing claim(s) and organize the reasons and evidence clearly.

c. supporting claim(s) with clear reasons and relevant evidence, using credible sources, acknowledging opposing claims and demonstrating an understanding of the topic or text.

d. using words, phrases and clauses to clarify the relationship among claim(s) and reasons.

e. establishing and maintaining a formal style.

f. providing a concluding statement or section that supports the argument presented.

g. developing and strengthening writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting or trying a new approach with some guidance.

• Students compose informative and/or explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts and information through the selection, organization and analysis of relevant content by:

a. producing clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization and style are appropriate to task, purpose and audience.

b. introducing a topic, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, concepts and information, using strategies such as definition, classification, comparison/contrast, and cause/effect; include formatting, graphics and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.

c. developing the topic with relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations or other information and examples.

d. using appropriate transitions to clarify the relationship among ideas and concepts.

e. using precise language and domain specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic.

f. establishing and maintaining a formal style.

g. providing a concluding statement or section that follows from the information or explanation presented.

h. developing and strengthening writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting or trying a new approach, focusing on how well purpose and audience have been addressed, with some guidance.

• Students compose narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or multiple events, memories or ideas, using effective technique, relevant descriptive details and well structured event sequences by:

a. producing clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization and style are appropriate to task, purpose and audience.

b. engaging the reader by establishing a context and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organizing an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.

c. using narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing and description to develop experiences, events and/or characters.

d. using a variety of transition words to convey sequence and signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another.

e. using precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details and sensory language to convey experiences and events.

f. providing a conclusion that follows the narrated experiences or events.

g. developing and strengthening writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting or trying a new approach with guidance.

• Students use digital resources to create and publish products as well as to interact and collaborate with others; cite sources using MLA or APA format.
• Students conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources.
• Students gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources; assess the credibility of each source; and, in order to reflect or interpret, quote or paraphrase data and conclusions of others, avoiding plagiarism by providing in-text and bibliographic MLA or APA citation.
• Students compose routinely over extended time frames and shorter time frames for a variety of tasks, purposes and audiences.

3. Language and Vocabulary

• Students recognize vague pronouns and correct pronoun errors, including but not limited to subjective, objective, possessive and intensive pronouns.
• Students recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in pronoun number and person.
• Students recognize variations from standard English and implement strategies to improve expression in conventional language.
• Students demonstrate appropriate use of punctuation (commas, parentheses, dashes) to set off nonrestrictive/parenthetical elements.
• Students demonstrate appropriate use of strategies to identify and correct spelling errors.
• Students vary sentence patterns for meaning, reader/listener interest and style.
• Students maintain consistency in style and tone.
• Students use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence or paragraph; a word's position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of an unknown word or phrase.
• Students use Greek and Latin affixes and roots as clues to the meaning of a word.
• Students consult print and digital reference materials to find the pronunciation and determine or clarify the precise meaning of key words or phrases.
• Students acquire and use accurately grade appropriate general academic and domain specific words and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.
• Students interpret figurative language, including but not limited to personification, in context.
• Students use the relationship between particular words to better understand each of the words.
• Students distinguish among the connotations of words with similar denotations.

To access reading and writing resources to support your child, use the drop menu from above or click here.