Sixth Grade Social Studies Essential Learning Goals
Sixth Grade Social Studies Essential Learning Goals Geography Skills: 1. Use geographic research sources to acquire and process information to answer questions and solve problems. 2. Construct maps to represent and explain the spatial patterns of cultural and environmental characteristics. 3. Locate major cities and nations of the world. 4. Locate world’s continents, oceans and major topographic features. 5. Describe physical characteristics, such as climate, topography, relationship to water and ecosystems. 6. Describe human characteristics, such as people’s education, language, diversity, economies, religions, settlement patterns, ethnic background and political system. 7. Describe trade patterns, explaining how supply and demand influence movement of goods and services, human, natural and capital resources. 8. Describe major patterns of population distribution, demographics and migrations in the world and the impact of these patterns on cultures and community life. 9. Use geography to interpret the past, explain the present and plan for the future. 10. Use maps, satellite images, photographs, and other representations to explain relationships between the locations of places and regions, and changes in their environmental characteristics. 11. Explain how cultural patterns and economic decisions influence environments and the daily lives of people in both nearby and distant places. 12. Analyze the combinations of cultural and environmental characteristics that make places both similar to and different from other places. 13. Explain how changes in transportation and communication technology influence the spatial connections among human settlements and affect the diffusion of ideas and cultural practices. 14. Analyze how relationships between humans and environments extend or contract spatial patterns of settlement and movement. 15. Analyze the ways in which cultural and environmental characteristics vary among various regions of the world. 16. Explain how the relationship between the environmental characteristics of places and production of goods influences the spatial patterns of world trade. Culture Skills: 1. Evaluate how the needs of individuals are met by families, friends, groups and organizations, such as governments, businesses, schools, religious institutions and charities in other cultures. 2. Describe how cultural traditions, human actions and institutions affect people’s behavior. 3. Identify how personal and group experiences influence people’s perceptions and judgments of event. 4. Examine changes in the relationship between peoples, places and environments.
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Sixth Grade Social Studies Essential Learning Goals Economics Skills: 1. Apply the following economic concepts: a. scarcity b. supply and demand c. specialization of regions, nations and individuals (trade) d. trade-offs (opportunity cost) e. income, wealth and sources of wealth 2. Explain how economic decisions affect the well-being of individuals, businesses, and society. 3. Explain the roles of buyers and sellers in product, labor, and financial markets. 4. Describe the role of competition in the determination of prices and wages in a market economy. 5. Explain how changes in supply and demand cause changes in prices and quantities of goods and services, labor, credit, and foreign currencies. 6. Analyze the role of innovation and entrepreneurship in a market economy. 7. Describe the roles of labor unions in a market economy.
Government Skills: 1. Identify responsibilities that governments and citizens need to accept to become effective in a republic. 2. Differentiate among procedures for making decisions in the class- room, school, civil society, and local, state, and national government in terms of how civic purposes are intended. 3. Explain specific roles played by citizens (such as voters, jurors, taxpayers, members of the armed forces, petitioners, protesters, and office-holders). 4. Examine the origins, purposes, and impact of constitutions, laws, treaties, and international agreements. 5. Explain the powers and limits of the three branches of government, public officials, and bureaucracies at different levels in the United States and in other countries. 6. Describe the roles of political, civil, and economic organizations in shaping people’s lives. 7. Apply civic virtues and democratic principles in school and community settings. 8. Explain the relevance of personal interests and perspectives, civic virtues, and democratic principles when people address issues and problems in government and civil society. 9. Assess specific rules and laws (both actual and proposed) as means of addressing public problems. 10. Analyze the purposes, implementation, and consequences of public policies in multiple settings. 11. Compare historical and contemporary means of changing societies, and promoting the common good.
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Sixth Grade Social Studies Essential Learning Goals History Skills: 1. Examine river civilizations including: a. Ancient Egypt in North Africa (pyramids and mathematics) b. India (religions and culture) c. Mesopotamia (beginnings of civilization) d. China (technological advances) 2. Distinguish between Greek civilization and the Roman Empire: a. origins of democracy b. rule of law c. governmental structures 3. Examine Europe in the Middle Ages, including: a. rise of kingdoms b. feudalism c. the Crusades 4. Investigate Feudal Japan, including:
a. rise of war lords b. art 5. African Empires, including: a. agriculture, arts, gold production and the trans-Saharan caravan trade b. spread of Islam into Africa 6. Analyze connections among events and developments in broader historical contexts. 7. Classify series of historical events and developments as examples of change and/or continuity. 8. Use questions generated about individuals and groups to analyze why they, and the developments they shaped, are seen as historically significant. 9. Analyze multiple factors that influenced the perspectives of people during different historical eras. 10. Explain how and why perspectives of people have changed over time. 11. Explain multiple causes and effects of events and developments in the past. 12. Evaluate the relative influence of various causes of events and developments in the past. 13. Organize applicable evidence into a coherent argument about the past. Global Connections Skills: 1. In the study of World History students confront questions such as: a. What are the different types of global connections? b. What global connections have existed in the past, exist currently, and are likely in the future? How did ideas spread between societies in the past? c. How does this result in change in those societies? d. What are the other consequences of global connections that occurred in the past? e. What influence has increasing global interdependence had on present day societies?
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Sixth Grade Social Studies Essential Learning Goals Tools of Social Science Inquiry Skills: 1. Select, investigate, and present a topic using primary and secondary resources, such as oral interviews, artifacts, journals, documents, photos and letters. 2. Use maps, graphs, statistical data, timelines, charts and diagrams to interpret, draw conclusions and make predictions. 3. Create maps, graphs, timelines, charts and diagrams to communicate information. 4. Distinguish between fact and opinion and recognize bias and points of view. 5. Use technological tools for research and presentation.
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Sixth Grade Social Studies Essential Learning Goals Economics Skills: 1. Apply the following economic concepts: a. scarcity b. supply and demand c. specialization of regions, nations and individuals (trade) d. trade-offs (opportunity cost) e. income, wealth and sources of wealth 2. Explain how economic decisions affect the well-being of individuals, businesses, and society. 3. Explain the roles of buyers and sellers in product, labor, and financial markets. 4. Describe the role of competition in the determination of prices and wages in a market economy. 5. Explain how changes in supply and demand cause changes in prices and quantities of goods and services, labor, credit, and foreign currencies. 6. Analyze the role of innovation and entrepreneurship in a market economy. 7. Describe the roles of labor unions in a market economy.
Government Skills: 1. Identify responsibilities that governments and citizens need to accept to become effective in a republic. 2. Differentiate among procedures for making decisions in the class- room, school, civil society, and local, state, and national government in terms of how civic purposes are intended. 3. Explain specific roles played by citizens (such as voters, jurors, taxpayers, members of the armed forces, petitioners, protesters, and office-holders). 4. Examine the origins, purposes, and impact of constitutions, laws, treaties, and international agreements. 5. Explain the powers and limits of the three branches of government, public officials, and bureaucracies at different levels in the United States and in other countries. 6. Describe the roles of political, civil, and economic organizations in shaping people’s lives. 7. Apply civic virtues and democratic principles in school and community settings. 8. Explain the relevance of personal interests and perspectives, civic virtues, and democratic principles when people address issues and problems in government and civil society. 9. Assess specific rules and laws (both actual and proposed) as means of addressing public problems. 10. Analyze the purposes, implementation, and consequences of public policies in multiple settings. 11. Compare historical and contemporary means of changing societies, and promoting the common good.
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Sixth Grade Social Studies Essential Learning Goals History Skills: 1. Examine river civilizations including: a. Ancient Egypt in North Africa (pyramids and mathematics) b. India (religions and culture) c. Mesopotamia (beginnings of civilization) d. China (technological advances) 2. Distinguish between Greek civilization and the Roman Empire: a. origins of democracy b. rule of law c. governmental structures 3. Examine Europe in the Middle Ages, including: a. rise of kingdoms b. feudalism c. the Crusades 4. Investigate Feudal Japan, including:
a. rise of war lords b. art 5. African Empires, including: a. agriculture, arts, gold production and the trans-Saharan caravan trade b. spread of Islam into Africa 6. Analyze connections among events and developments in broader historical contexts. 7. Classify series of historical events and developments as examples of change and/or continuity. 8. Use questions generated about individuals and groups to analyze why they, and the developments they shaped, are seen as historically significant. 9. Analyze multiple factors that influenced the perspectives of people during different historical eras. 10. Explain how and why perspectives of people have changed over time. 11. Explain multiple causes and effects of events and developments in the past. 12. Evaluate the relative influence of various causes of events and developments in the past. 13. Organize applicable evidence into a coherent argument about the past. Global Connections Skills: 1. In the study of World History students confront questions such as: a. What are the different types of global connections? b. What global connections have existed in the past, exist currently, and are likely in the future? How did ideas spread between societies in the past? c. How does this result in change in those societies? d. What are the other consequences of global connections that occurred in the past? e. What influence has increasing global interdependence had on present day societies?
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Sixth Grade Social Studies Essential Learning Goals Tools of Social Science Inquiry Skills: 1. Select, investigate, and present a topic using primary and secondary resources, such as oral interviews, artifacts, journals, documents, photos and letters. 2. Use maps, graphs, statistical data, timelines, charts and diagrams to interpret, draw conclusions and make predictions. 3. Create maps, graphs, timelines, charts and diagrams to communicate information. 4. Distinguish between fact and opinion and recognize bias and points of view. 5. Use technological tools for research and presentation.
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