Grade 6

List of 8 items.

• Design

  This course introduces students to the Design Cycle which is, at its core, an iterative model designed to promote empathy-centered problem solving. The cycle has four criteria: Inquiring and Analyzing, Developing Ideas, Thinking Creatively, and Evaluating, and while working their way through each stage of the cycle, students often find they need to rethink their process and revisit stages of the cycle. Design is an experience-focused course that champions the process of design to stimulate productivity. Students track their progress and engage in reflection, an integral component of the process, using individualized design process journals in Adobe Express.

  
  

  Students are exposed to a variety of individual and collaborative projects that use tools and equipment to execute ideas in prototype form. Exposure to these foundational methods of craftsmanship provides students a variety of tangible sources for creative solutions. Over the course of the year, students will work to create physical products that support unit goals.

• Individuals & Societies

  Individuals and Societies emphasizes the development of strong collaboration, research and study skills, exploring the world through the Key Concepts of Change, Global Interactions, Systems, and Time, Space and Place. Courses encourage students to draw connections to their own experiences, think critically about problems and solutions, and to seek out and analyze diverse sources and voices in order to help them become engaged and responsible global citizens.

  
  

  This course is designed to enrich a student’s understanding of how history and geography have influenced contemporary society for the purpose of expanding their worldview and recognizing humanity’s interconnectedness. Grade 6 students begin with an investigation of how maps provide us with a sense of time, place, and space. Next they explore what we can learn through a study of global and local civilizations. Throughout the course students develop reading comprehension and perspective-taking, as well as geography, communication and research skills.

• Language & Literature

  Our Language and Literature courses help students grow as confident and capable readers, writers, speakers, thinkers, discussion leaders, and collaborators. Language and Literature courses equip students with linguistic, analytical and communicative skills that can also be used to develop interdisciplinary understanding across subject groups. Students’ interactions with chosen texts can generate insight into moral, social, economic, political, cultural and environmental factors, contributing to the development of opinion-forming, decision-making and ethical-reasoning skills.

  
  

  This course provides opportunities for students to explore language through a range of texts and literature including advertisements, multicultural origin stories, poetry, and novels. Students practice the mechanics of creative and expository writing with a focus on

  organizational structures and clear communication for intended audiences and purposes. Class novels connect to Grade 6 Social Emotional Learning and Individuals and Societies content.

• Language Acquisition (Spanish)

  Based on the four key skills: listening, reading, speaking, and writing, this course develops from foundational awareness, to deepening understanding, and finally to developing confidence in each of these areas. Our commitment to developing these skills ensures that students are engaged in a classroom environment that utilizes the target language at least 90% of the time. These are mixed ability classes, and differentiation occurs through homework assignments and other class activities.

  
  

  Students engage in units focusing on preliminary vocabulary related to greetings, introductions, common expressions of courtesy, numbers, days, weeks, dates, times, seasons, and weather, describing oneself and others, house and family, and in-school and after-school activities. In addition, our students engage in a variety of cultural activities that are aligned with the units of study in order to develop an understanding of the language, people, and customs in a variety of Spanish speaking countries. By the end of the year, students will have completed the first one-third of the high school Spanish 1 textbook, ¡Así se dice!

• Mathematics

  All mathematics courses are taught through the MYP lens, working to promote inquiry and application and helpinG students become better communicators and problem solvers. In Grade 6, all students take Math 6. In Grades 7 and 8, students take grade-level, 1-year advanced or 2-year advanced courses. Course placement in Grades 7 and 8 is determined by the Mathematics Department after considering available grades, Math Growth Measure (formerly MI), teacher recommendation, and student interest.

  
  

  The course reviews number operations involving whole numbers, fractions and mixed numbers, and decimals. Students also become more sophisticated in their study of number theory (factors and multiples), geometry (area, perimeter, surface area, and volume),

  proportional relationships (ratios and rates), and data analysis (measures of center and variation). Students will be introduced to integers and begin to see concrete problems as abstract algebraic ideas (expressions, equations and inequalities).

• Physical & Health Education

  The aim of Physical and Health Education (PHE) is to engage our students in developing a healthy lifestyle through physical activity, focusing on communication, social responsibility and reflection. 75% of this course is focused on physical education activities, with the remaining 25% focused on the health and the social-emotional development of each student.

  
  

  This class will focus on the development and understanding of growth in our fitness and of the health-related fitness components. Students will participate in teambuilding and team sports activities with an emphasis on learning to be a well-rounded teammate. Students will be tasked with creating journals and healthy habits as well as creating an aesthetic movement.

• Science

  In each grade level, Middle School Science includes units of study in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Earth Science. Science at AWS is inquiry-based and emphasizes the application of knowledge to novel situations. At least two times per grade level, students apply the scientific method to design their own laboratory investigations, collect data, process and evaluate their results, and draw conclusions. Students also conduct independent research evaluating how scientists solve real world problems. Hands-on and virtual laboratory experiences actively engage students in scientific inquiry.

  
  

  Units of study in Grade 6 include The Physics of Flight, Space Science, Plate Tectonics, States of Matter and the Periodic Table, and Marine Ecology. Highlights for Grade 6 include the Expedition Mars simulation at the Museum of Flight and the Journey to California, where students carry out planned field experiments investigating the biodiversity of the tidal pools of San Francisco Bay.

• Arts

  All students carousel through the arts by experiencing Visual Arts, Digital Arts, and Theatre, with our artists gaining  exposure to foundational art practices and performance. 

  
  

  Digital Art: Students embark on a distinct creative journey, learning skills in photo editing and digital painting as they explore the Adobe Creative Suite. This course nurtures artistic expression while imparting valuable digital skills. Additionally, students will delve into the rich history of art movements, expanding their artistic perspective and creativity.
  
  

  Theatre Arts: Rooted in techniques of improvisational performance, explores the way actors communicate with each other and the audience. Students examine the relationship between rules and play and develop understandings of how the rules of improv facilitate fairness and improve communication. Through games and reflection, students identify and expand their own boundaries as they work toward an end-of-semester performance showcase. Extensive focus is also given to how students evaluate and critique classmates’ performances.

  
  

  Visual Art: Instruction concentrates on the seven elements of art: Color, Line, Shape, Form, Value, Space and Texture. With a strong focus on individual expression, students investigate art works in a variety of mediums and endeavor to develop introductory public presentation skills and basic to intermediate visual art skills.