← All Standards

Grade 6

• Language

  • 6.L.1
  • 6.L.1.a
  • 6.L.1.b
  • 6.L.1.c
  • 6.L.1.d
  • 6.L.1.e
  • 6.L.2
  • 6.L.3
  • 6.L.3.a
  • 6.L.4
  • 6.L.4.a
  • 6.L.4.b
  • 6.L.4.c
  • 6.L.5
  • 6.L.5.a
  • 6.L.5.b
  • 6.L.5.c
  • 6.L.6

• Reading: Informational

  • 6.RI.1
  • 6.RI.2
  • 6.RI.3
  • 6.RI.4
  • 6.RI.5
  • 6.RI.6
  • 6.RI.7
  • 6.RI.8
  • 6.RI.9

• Reading: Literature

  • 6.RL.1
  • 6.RL.2
  • 6.RL.3
  • 6.RL.4
  • 6.RL.5
  • 6.RL.6
  • 6.RL.7
  • 6.RL.9
  • 6.RL.10

• Speaking & Listening

  • 6.SL.1
  • 6.SL.1.a
  • 6.SL.1.b
  • 6.SL.1.c
  • 6.SL.1.d
  • 6.SL.2
  • 6.SL.3
  • 6.SL.4
  • 6.SL.5
  • 6.SL.6

• Writing

  • 6.W.1
  • 6.W.1.a
  • 6.W.1.b
  • 6.W.1.d
  • 6.W.1.e
  • 6.W.2
  • 6.W.2.a
  • 6.W.2.b
  • 6.W.2.c
  • 6.W.2.d
  • 6.W.2.e
  • 6.W.3
  • 6.W.3.a
  • 6.W.3.b
  • 6.W.3.c
  • 6.W.3.d
  • 6.W.3.e
  • 6.W.4
  • 6.W.5
  • 6.W.6
  • 6.W.7
  • 6.W.8
  • 6.W.9
  • 6.W.9.a
  • 6.W.9.b
  • 6.W.10

Arizona ELA Standard: 6.W.2

Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.

Depth and Complexity Frame Intro: Power

Where does your power come from? Students map the power in their own lives, the power they hold and the power others hold over them. Then they discover that power never sits still. It shifts over time, and much of what belongs to others now will move to them.

Order to Chaos: Dominoes or Dam?

Sometimes outside forces turn order into chaos. But sometimes chaos comes from within.

Earth’s Layers: Who Contributes The Most?

Earth’s layers will disagree about which one contributes the most to the planet’s success.

An Under-Appreciated Planet

Students write from the point of view of the most under-appreciated planet.

Order and Chaos Hide Inside Each Other

Chaos can contain order. Order can contain chaos! Is chaos ever truly random?

Chaos Can Be Positive or Negative

Sometimes we want order, but sometimes we need chaos!

Power Big Idea Worksheets

Your students will investigate statements like: Power leads to change, Power comes in many forms, Power can be used or abused.

Two Animals Switch Biomes

What if a capybara and a kangaroo rat switched homes? Would their adaptations be helpful at all?

New Uses For A Cardboard Tube

So, what can a cardboard tube be used for other than holding wrapping paper?

Order, Chaos, and the Holiday Season

Let’s write a holiday song about order and chaos!

What If… Unreliable Water?

What would the consequences be if a town’s tap water became… unreliable?

What If… No Sleep?

What would the consequences be if no one had to sleep anymore?

Famous Structures

The Eiffel Tower, the Colosseum, the Sydney Opera House — group them, pick the best from each group, then design your own.

Earthquakes – Mixed Up Paragraph

Can you use the context clues to get these sentences about earthquakes back into the correct order?

Not Like The Others: Types of Volcanoes

Which of these types of volcanoes is not like the others?

Create A Civilization: Currency

What type of currency will your civilization use? What symbols will be on it? Why are they significant?

Create A Civilization: Design A Flag

What makes for a good flag? What makes a bad flag?

Ultimate (or Inception) Tic Tac Toe

What if each square on a Tic-Tac-Toe board had another Tic-Tac-Toe board inside of it?

Analyze Paragraphs: Cucumbers

Three paragraphs about cucumbers. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.

Analyze Paragraphs: Wolverines

Three paragraphs about wolverines. They all cover the same topic — so what makes each one different? Now combine them into one super-paragraph.

A Lunar Survival Mission

A favorite of mine! This task is delightfully complex and ambiguous, forcing students to make choices without enough information and with no right answer. How will they survive on the moon for three days?

The Pros and Cons of Producers and Consumers

Sure, students might know the difference between a producer and a consumer… but have they considered how they feel about each other? What, in a producer’s opinion, are the pros and cons of a consumer?

Holiday vs Holiday (from a Mascot’s Perspective)

Want something to do during the holiday season that is both fun and involves thinking? Get students writing about what a snowman would think about Halloween or what a ghost would think about Thanksgiving.

Create A Civilization: A Change In Government

It’s a great moment for your civilization! Power is moving from the hands of a few to a more democratic government.

Writing Sample: The Wind in the Willows

A passage from The Wind in the Willows to use as a mentor text, discussion starter, or writing prompt.

Writing Sample: Moby Dick

A passage from Moby Dick to use as a mentor text, discussion starter, or writing prompt.

Writing Sample: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

A passage from “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” to use as a mentor text, discussion starter, or writing prompt.

Writing Sample: The Fall of the House of Usher

A passage from “The Fall of the House of Usher” to use as a mentor text, discussion starter, or writing prompt.

Investigating Christmas Trees

Start with facts about Christmas trees. Group them. Label them. Can you boil it all down to one big idea?

Game: Notakto

What if you only played Tic-Tac-Toe with Xs and you could play on multiple boards?

Upgrading Compare and Contrast Writing

Upgrade compare and contrast writing with just a couple of key words.

The Thinking Hats

So… do your students moan when forced to work in a group? Part of the problem is that lack the structure to work well with peers. Edward de Bono’s Thinking Hats are a perfect tool to help with this problem.

Create A Civilization: Calendars

Why 12 months? Why 30ish days? Why 7 days in a week? Your civilization could organize a year in any way you want!

Create A Civilization: From Hunter Gatherers to Farmers

What happens when your civilization suddenly has a surplus of food? Think of the possibilities!

Create A Civilization: The River

The Nile, the Tigris, the Euphrates, the Seine, the Thames, and now… your river!

Content Imperatives: Parallel

Get students thinking broadly by exploring similarities across multiple topics. Combine with Depth and Complexity for bonus points!

Content Imperatives: Contribuition

Pull on one thread and watch the whole topic move. Contribution asks: what single factor is quietly shaping everything else?

Depth and Complexity: 🚦 Rules

Is there a consequence for not doing something? You may have found a rule!

Depth and Complexity: 🏛️ Big Idea

Let’s get students thinking big and focusing on more abstract ideas.

Depth and Complexity: ⏳ Change Over Time

Want to get students thinking about how a topic has changed or might change in the future? The ⏳ Change Over Time thinking tool is just what you need!

Create A Civilization Introduction

Your students build a civilization from scratch — rivers, flags, calendars, currency, government. Social studies, science, and writing woven into one year-long project.

Creating A Realistic Flower and Pollinator

Your students will create a new flower, designed to attract a specific pollinator.

Educational Valentines

Let’s make valentines with an educational twist!

Create A Creature

Create a new creature based on the adaptations of existing creatures from the same biome.

An App For A Historical Figure

What kind of an app could have helped Abe Lincoln accomplish his goals?

Reduce Anxiety: Brain Plate (Tool 3)

When a student’s brain is full of worries, everything feels urgent. Brain Plate helps them sort what’s real from what’s noise — and actually do something about it.

Reduce Anxiety: Change The Channel (Tool 2)

Reduce anxiety by learning to “change the channel.”

Reduce Anxiety: Square Breathing (Tool 1)

Reduce anxiety by breathing in a square pattern.

Teach Non-Fiction Writing Structure With Fractals

Did you ever notice that the structure of an essay is very similar to the structure of a paragraph? Hmm…

Teaching Criticism

For Teachers

Ask students to go beyond “I don’t like it” and form critical opinions based on a set of criteria. Students can produce written arguments or turn their opinion into oral presentations.

Intellectual Intensity

Do you know someone who becomes a bit overexcited by ideas?

Engineering: Build A Bridge

Using real bridges as their starting point, students will construct bridges out of straws and paperclips.