CMS 6 th GRADE CURRICULUM GUIDES

CMS 6 th GRADE CURRICULUM GUIDES

Curriculum Guide Overview Assessments: Assessment Practice can be found at the end of each unit in the textbook and covers many of the skills and concepts in this unit. Curriculum Guide and Textbook Connection: Writing (Orange) Media (Purple) Vocabulary (Green) Reading Skills (Blue) Text Analysis (Red) Vocabulary Instructions: Grammar: Required Tasks:

Humanities Department CMS Unit 1 Grade 6 (Textbook Units 1 and 2) Building Stories Big Idea (Content/Thematic): Patterns Unit Essential Questions: How is life affected and ordered/structured through patterns? Content: How do authors use patterns to build texts? How do elements of a story/text and elements of author s craft work together to create effective texts? Culminating Task: Part I: Write a narrative to develop real or imagined experience/events using narrative techniques (i.e. dialogue, descriptive details, event sequencing, and patterns). Possible formats include: narrative nonfiction, memoir, narrative poem, or short story. For reference see: Writing Workshop: Short Story pp 414-420 (scoring rubric page 422). Part II: Evaluate the published copy of your narrative and answer the following question: Which story element and grammatical element contributed most to the effectiveness of my short story? Support your opinion/claim. For reference see: Writing Workshop: Supporting an Opinion (scoring rubric on page 178). (W.6.1; W.6.3) Unit Essential Vocabulary: affect, analyze, evidence, impact, claims, convey, distinguish, infer, influence, attitude, perspective, context, illustrate, implicit, explicit, dialogue, dialect, external, internal, imagery, sensory, omniscient, influence, critique

LEQ 1: What makes a good story? CONCEPT: Elements of a Text Complete Text Analysis Workshop: What Makes a Good Story? pp 28-33) Boar Out There pp 32-33 RL.6.3; RL.6.5 LEQ 2: How do characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution? RL.6.1; RL.6.3 LEQ 3: How do readers distinguish between internal and external conflict? RL.6.1; RL.6.3 LEQ 4: What impact does dialogue and Create a character journal/facebook page inferring the character s feelings and attitudes at the different stages in the plot. Develop emotion cards. Place the cards in sequential order depicting the advancement of the plot. Justify/explain the use and placement of the chosen cards Mini Task Option: Create an illustration of conflict on a body outline put symbols or words inside the body outline to represent internal conflict and put symbols or words outside the body outline to represent external conflict (much like #5 on page 63) Using one of the suggested texts, role-play with a partner an internal or external conflict. Observers identify the type of conflict. Transformation of a text change story into script format to emphasize impact of dialogue/dialect. Life Doesn t Frighten Me and On Turning Ten pp 288-295 Words Like Freedom and Dreams pp 400-405 The Good Deed pp 46-65 Life Doesn t Frighten Me and On Turning Ten pp 288-295 Words Like Freedom and Dreams pp 400-405 The Jacket pp 498-507

dialect have on characters, internal and external conflict, plot, and theme? Explain the impact of the dialectic changes on the conflict, plot, and theme (message) The Good Deed pp 46-65 Lob s Girl pp 86-103 Jeremiah s Song pp 220-227 Bamboo Beads in LOL text RL.6.1; RL.6.2; RL.6.3; L.6.3; L.6.5 LEQ 5: How do writers use language, including imagery and sensory details, to create and help readers learn about characters and setting? RL.6.1; RL.6.4; L.6.5 LEQ 6: How does setting enhance a reader s understanding of characters and conflict? Draw the setting of the story using textual evidence. Partner activity draw a picture and write a description for the drawing using sensory details and imagery. Give ONLY the description to a partner; have them draw what is described compare the two pictures for the same description. Post all the drawings from the previous activity and read a description (also from the above activity). Students match the drawing with the description. Based on the suggested texts, collect pictures from calendars or Internet and set them up as a Gallery Walk. Students match the pictures to the story and write an explanation justifying their choice Compose an essay on What if Your Whole World Changed? Page 71. Take pictures from previous the LEQ activity, and have students infer what kinds of characters and conflicts would fit that setting. Using suggested texts, students switch components of Life Doesn t Frighten Me and On Turning Ten pp 288-295 Words Like Freedom and Dreams pp 400-405 Aaron s Gift pp 248-257

RL.6.1; RL.6.3; RI.6.1; RI.6.3 LEQ 7: How do patterns within a text reveal the theme (message) of a story? RL.6.1; RL.6.2; RL.6.3; RL.6.5; RI.6.1; RI.6.5; L.6.3; L.6.5 LEQ 8: How do readers compare and contrast elements across texts to evaluate the author s effectiveness in revealing theme and purpose? RI.6.3; RI.6.6; RL.6.7; W.6.2; W.6.4; W.6.5; W.6.9; W.6.10; L.6.1; L.6.2; L.6.3 story elements between texts. Visually, in writing, or dramatically represent the impact of the changes on the text Complete Understanding Theme (pp. 318-323) Complete Theme versus Topic (pp. 326-336) Model the Skill: Character and Theme pp 361 Using the suggested texts, complete the pattern organizer (attached) and respond to the synthesizing questions Complete Read for Information: Compare Author s Purposes p. 141 (can be done with any text pair) Complete Writing Workshop (page 296-304) Comparison-Contrast Essay Compare and contrast elements within paired texts. Design a grid depicting the patterns within each of the paired texts Using the grid, evaluate the effectiveness of the author s ability to reveal the theme (message) Critique the resolution (or character development, setting, etc) of a story, using textual evidence to support your opinion. Critique the supporting details and elaboration (or organization, purpose, etc.) of a text, using textual evidence to support your opinion. Life Doesn t Frighten Me and On Turning Ten pp 288-295 Words Like Freedom and Dreams pp 400-405 Life Doesn t Frighten Me and On Turning Ten pp 288-295 The Dog of Pompeii pp 324-337 Scout s Honor pp 360-373 Words Like Freedom and Dreams pp 400-405 Pair 1: Settling in Space page 78-85 AND All Summer in a Day pp 66-77 Pair 2: AND Twain s Tale Transplanted to Today pp 166-169 Pair 3: The Horse Snake pp 126-137 AND Le Mat Village Holds On to Snake Catching Tradition pp 138-141 Pair 4: Scout s Honor pp 360-373 AND Wilderness Survival pp 374-375 AND How to Build a Bat house pp 378-381 Settling in Space page 78-85 Le Mat Village Holds On to Snake Catching

LEQ 1: What influence/impact do first person, third person (limited and omniscient) have on texts? RL.6.1; RL.6.6; RI.6.1; RI.6.6; L.6.1 Tradition pp 138-141 Wilderness Survival pp 374-375 How to Build a Bat house pp 378-381 Reflection Task: Speaking and Listening Workshop: Participating in a Discussion (pp 180-181) Concept: Voice and Perspective Use teacher-created packets containing texts with examples of author voice (1 st, 3 rd, etc,). Have students complete an observation chart to record differences in the language used to distinguish author s voice. Using the scientific method, have students define each voice and provide a list of attributes to exemplify each. Be sure to have students use suggested texts to include as examples Reference see: Text Analysis Workshop: Character and Point of View (page 192-197) Complete Model the Skill: First Person Point of View (pp. 199-204) Complete Model the Skill: Third Person Point of View (pp. 207-217). Eleven pp 198-205 Ghost of the Lagoon pp 206-219 Jeremiah s Song pp 220-233 Role-Playing and Discovery / The Life and Adventures of Nat Love pp 264-273 LEQ 2: How can readers distinguish between voice Develop or find scenarios for students to dramatize. Scenarios should allow students to speak in a variety of voices. Have students dramatize the scenarios and then Ghost of the Lagoon pp 206-219 Jeremiah s Song pp. 222-230 President Cleveland, Where Are You? pp.

and perspective? RL.6.1; RL.6.6; RI.6.1; RI.6.6; L.6.1 LEQ 3: How does an author s voice influence their perspective? RL.6.1; RL.6.6; RI.6.1; RI.6.6; LEQ 1: How do readers identify and evaluate elements of author s craft (use of figurative discuss how they saw the events. Discussion should lead students to define perspective as how topics, events, and/or situations are viewed Read and be able to identify the voice used to tell a story. Have students differentiate between the speaking voice and how the story is presented. (Be sure students are able to name critical components of the story, which will enable them to more readily connect to difference in voice and how the author delivers the text.) Mini Task Option: Choose a paragraph from a story have students identify the POV, and then rewrite it in a different POV. Share and analyze the impact of the various POVs on each story. Have students distinguish between both the speaking voice used to retell the story and the perspective on the people, places, and/or events presented in the story. Have students complete an organizer allowing them to retell portions of a text from various perspectives within the text. Students should be able to explain how each character s perspective influenced their understanding of the text CONCEPT: Elements of Author s Craft Use an observation chart as a format to name, define, and exemplify elements of author s craft. Have students create a foldable or complete an organizer, which can be placed in a writer s notebook or daybook as a reference tool. Have students choose a text and explain in writing how 236-246 The Red Guards pp. 276-283 The True Story of the Three Little Pigs pp. 460-466 (provide a traditional version of this story) Tuesday of the Other June pp. 470-481 Primer pp. 482 Ghost of the Lagoon pp 206-219 Jeremiah s Song pp 220-233 Role-Playing and Discovery / The Life and Adventures of Nat Love pp 264-273 The Red Guards pp. 226-230 Ghost of the Lagoon pp 206-219 Jeremiah s Song pp 220-233 Role-Playing and Discovery / The Life and Adventures of Nat Love pp 264-273

language, grammatical structure, diction/word choice sentence type and structure? the author s craft elements contributed to making the story memorable RL.6.1; RL.6.4; RI.6.1; RI.6.4; L.6.3 LEQ 2: How do point of view and author s purpose influence diction/word choice? LEQ 3: How do specific sentences fit into the structure of a text and Have students develop a chart showing author s purpose, voice, and text connections. Students should be able to show connections between the author s language (formal, informal, etc.) and purpose of the text Using previously read suggested texts, conduct a Socratic seminar to discuss the impact of author s craft on the theme. (Hint: If this is the first time, it may be useful to have student respond to guiding questions in order to gain entry into the seminar) Choose a previously read text, develop an essay describing the author s use of diction/word choice and explaining the impact of the word choice/diction on the purpose, audience, and overall meaning of the text Create a bubble map with the text s theme in the middle and specific sentences that help to identify the theme in the outside bubbles. Can be used with any text (story, poem, non-fiction). Choose one of the sentences, explain its The Problem with Bullies pp. 487-490 Alone in the Nets pp. 588-589 Teen Athletes pp. 590 Nadia the Willful pp. 350-356 Previously read text. Non-fiction articles (from textbook or Internet) could be used.

contribute to the development of the theme? meaning and significance to either the entire text, characters within the texts, and overall message RL.6.1; RL.6.5; RI.6.1; RI.6.5; L.6.3; L.6.5 Reflection Task: Speaking and Listening Workshop: Asking Questions and Paraphrasing (pp 306-307).