The Grade 6 History curriculum begins the year by focusing on the early civilizations of Mesoamerica and South America. Students will understand how geography and cultural change influenced the rise and fall of the Maya, Aztec, and Inca civilizations. We then move into the European Age of Exploration by analyzing the economic, political and religious motives for this movement, as well as the positive and negatives outcomes of European encounters with native populations. This topic dovetails into a close study of the colonization of the New World, particularly the thirteen English Colonies. We end the year by looking at the causes and outcomes of the American Revolutionary War. This particular sequence of study will prepare students for continued success in Grade 7 U.S. History.Â