The instructional materials for Grade 6 do not meet the expectations for assessing materials at the Grade 6 level. There are some assessment items that align most closely to standards above Grade 6 whose inclusion is mathematically reasonable. However, there are too many items that align most closely to standards above Grade 6 whose inclusion is not mathematically reasonable and whose alteration or omission would significantly impact the underlying structure of the materials.

• In Chapter 1, square roots and cube roots, which most closely align to 8.EE.A.2, are assessed with a few items. The inclusion of these items is mathematically reasonable as they are introduced along with numerical expressions that contain whole-number exponents.
• In Chapter 5, there are assessment items that examine students’ knowledge of extended ratios. The inclusion of these items is mathematically reasonable as they are introduced along with ratios that contain only two quantities.
• The Chapter 6 test has a few problems on sales tax, simple interest, markup, and discounts, which align to 7.RP.A.3. The inclusion of these items is mathematically reasonable as they are introduced along with items that align to Grade 6 standards.
• In Chapter 8, there are assessment items with inequalities that include “equal to.” Although this is only a slight extension of the Grade 6 standards, this inclusion introduces confusion for students as they are initially learning and understanding the similarities and differences between algebraic equations and inequalities. This confusion makes the inclusion of inequalities that are not strict mathematically unreasonable.
• In Chapter 9, there are assessment items asking students to classify quadrilaterals that do not have vertical or horizontal sides. To classify quadrilaterals without horizontal or vertical sides would require students to calculate distances using a method that is beyond Grade 6 standards. The inclusion of this extension is not mathematically reasonable as it could detract from the understandings Grade 6 students are developing concerning distance between points in the coordinate plane.
• The vast majority of Chapter 11 has questions that assess finding the area and circumference of circles, which aligns to 7.G.B.4. The inclusion of these items is not mathematically reasonable, and the omission or alteration of the chapter would significantly impact the underlying structure of the materials.
• Chapter 12 has a very small number of questions that assess the volume of a triangular prism, which aligns to 7.G.B.6. The inclusion of these items is mathematically appropriate as they are introduced with items that align to Grade 6 standards.

*Evidence updated 10/27/15

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 6 do not meet the expectations for spending the majority of class time on the major clusters for Grade 6.

• The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 6 had approximately 52% of the work on the major clusters for 6.RP.A, 6.NS.A, 6.NS.C, 6.EE.A, 6.EE.B and 6.EE.C.