Grade 6 Math is an advanced sequence of learning that supports a scope and sequence that prepares students for high school level Algebra I in eighth grade. Students are immersed in a learning environment that encourages students to meet mathematical challenges head on and where errors are viewed as learning opportunities. Through small and whole-group differentiated instruction, students apply mathematical concepts to a variety of real-world experiences. Students also learn mathematics through games and engaging real-life activities. We use Big Ideas math materials to guide students as they explore, learn, and apply skills while honing the mathematical practices/habits of mind. In Grade 6 Math, with a focus on numerical expressions and factors, students continue to develop understanding of fractions, decimals, percent, and the concept of ratios. Students also develop algebraic thinking skills and concepts and delve into concepts relating to data, statistics, and geometry.

Grade 6 Science focuses on Earth and environmental sciences where students develop observation and modeling skills through phenomena-based learning. Areas of focus include Earth as a system, Earth’s changing surface, and climate. The year culminates with a STEAM project where students create a campaign to address an environmental issue to change behaviors and have impact.

The Grade 6 Drama and Public Speaking program is designed to help students expand their comfort zones as performers and public speakers. The drama curriculum uses theater games, improvisation, an introduction to Shakespeare, and beginning scene work as an entry into different performing mediums. Students explore public speaking through informative speaking and learn best practices for presenting with a slideshow.

Outside of class, sixth graders have the opportunity to participate in the Winter One-Acts, an extracurricular drama production that serves as an introduction to the Redwood Day mainstage theater productions, including the Spring Musical, which is open to all students in grades 6-8. A final performance unit of study guides students through the entire rehearsal process, from table reads and memorization, to character development and how to be a supportive member of an ensemble.

Grade 6 Physical Education provides opportunities for students to improve their physical fitness levels and to grasp more advanced concepts transitioning from the Lower School. The Middle School Physical Education program focuses on developing movement and motor skills and social skills across a variety of movement activities. Students also learn to maintain a healthy lifestyle through individual and collaborative fitness components throughout the program, and they develop skills of communication, empathy, resiliency, problem solving, and conflict resolution in a variety of physical activity settings. Class content and social emotional development are
geared towards preparing students for their next challenge and promoting lifelong fitness.

In Grade 6 English, students are actively engaged in reading, discussing, and analyzing a variety of literature and informational texts, including realistic fiction short stories and novels, memoir, historical fiction, and informational texts via whole class and book club experiences. Sustaining an independent reading life is also a feature of sixth grade English. Learning in writing focuses on developing the three types of writing: narrative, argument, and informational. Students hone their narrative writing skills by crafting two personal narratives alongside a study of mentor narratives, and they write literary essays focused on character and theme. After learning nonfiction reading skills, students research and create an informational book on a topic of their choice. Throughout the year, students review and develop foundational grammar concepts and build their vocabulary.

Grade 6 Spanish is designed for students who have little or no experience with the language or who would benefit by reviewing concepts learned in the Lower School to strengthen their basic Spanish language skills. This foundational language course emphasizes basic interpersonal communication skills. Reading, writing, and learning about Spanish speaking-cultures are also reflected in Grade 6 Spanish.

• Comprehensible input
• Total Physical Response (TPR) techniques
• Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling (TPRS)
• Plays and role-playing
• Authentic materials
• Leveled readers
• Cultural explorations
• Thematic vocabulary study
• Communicative, functional tasks
• Explicit grammar instruction
• Project learning
• Singing and games
• Technology tools
• Guided writing
• Assessment through illustration
• Choral response
• Movietalk
• Optimal Learning Zone Practices

Grade 6 Mandarin supports students new to Mandarin as well as students continuing their Mandarin learning journey from Lower School. Students focus on acquiring the tones and pronunciation (pinyin) of the Mandarin language and develop understanding of the foundational concepts of Chinese characters. At this level, students build language skills to communicate and express themselves in Mandarin. Students learn greetings and engage in conversations about their family members, pets, the weather, their preferences for food and drinks, and some common Chinese foods. At this stage, students start to read and write simple sentences in Mandarin, and they use learned expressions to describe things or people in some detail, using the appropriate pronouns, grammar, and basic sentence patterns. Various cultural topics are intertwined into language learning as students deepen their understanding of Chinese characters, reading, and writing.

In Grade 6 Visual Arts, students build on their foundational arts skills developed in the Lower School and begin their journeys honing their artistic expression and identities. Units at this level involve students applying skills and concepts they learn through collaborative projects including in ‘Things Come Apart’, a DBI collaboration, where students pick an item to take apart completely and make art out of all of the pieces before putting it back together as something else entirely. In another unit, students use photography and photo editing before moving onto a concept-based collage focusing on self-representation. From there, students transition to a “Fantasy Landscape” creating their own world and setting (foreground, middle ground, background) before finishing off the year with a mixed media project that they design themselves based on two random words pulled from a hat. At this level in Visual Arts, students are asked to think about the impact of art on society as they become more aware of their own impacts on their communities.

In Grade 6 Wellness and Life Skills, students explore topics relating to transitioning to middle school including maintaining media balance and well-being and the nuances of friendship. Students learn to identify personal stressors and how to manage stress in a positive and proactive way, and they review the importance of healthy decision-making. In ‘Media Literacy and Digital Citizenship,’ students are oriented to technology use in the Middle School, and they review practices surrounding digital safety and privacy. They also learn how to access and use the Redwood Day library resources and books as middle schoolers. The ‘Learning to Learn’ portion of this course focuses on an introduction to executive function and its connection to the brain and applying this knowledge to organization, study skills, and transitioning to middle school.

Grade 6 History focuses on ancient civilizations. After an introductory unit on early human migration, students study Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indus Valley, China, and Greece. Their learning is guided by the essential question, “What makes a civilization successful?” and supported by key skills including thinking critically, making inferences based on observations, determining the importance of information, understanding the impact of geography on societies, connecting the past and present, and recognizing structures of power and the inequities they create. At the end of the year, students apply their knowledge by creating their own ancient societies during the cross-disciplinary Civ Project.

In Grade 6 DBI the emphasis is on problem solving and storytelling through digital design. Students begin the year deconstructing a mechanical object in a collaborative unit with their art class called, ‘Things Come Apart.’ Later, they use these mechanical parts to build a mutant toy inspired by Sid from Toy Story. Students build digital portfolios and learn beginning graphic design skills. The year concludes with a ‘Design For Change’ project where students work in teams and apply their design thinking skills to tackle a social justice design challenge.

In Grade 6 Music, at the start of the school year, students are introduced to the ukulele or they build on skills previously learned in the Lower School. They play songs using the chords learned in class, learn a variety of strumming patterns, and learn how to play in concert with each other. In the fall, students choose a song democratically, rehearse it as a class, and then perform it at Generations Day and the Winter Concert. In the spring, students compose, rehearse, and perform short songs to represent original cultures they conceive in the cross-curricular “Civ” project. Students participate in critical-listening activities in which they are introduced to different instrument families. They learn how instruments produce sound and function in musical contexts through video and musical examples.