6th Grade - Gateway 2

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 6 meet the criteria that texts are organized around a topic or theme to build students’ ability to read and comprehend complex texts independently and proficiently.

The text sets within each unit that the whole class reads build students’ knowledge in the science and social studies topics. The same topic or theme is addressed in small group reading. The eight units contain topics or themes about science or social studies content. Over the course of four weeks per unit, students participate in listening, reading, writing, and discussing around a science or social studies topic and a Big Question.

The following are examples of units throughout the program that are organized around a topic and/or theme:

• In Unit 1, the overall theme is choices and students focus on the Big Question: "How do choices affect who we are?" Over the course of four weeks, students read autobiographies, a speech, poems, a myth, and a piece of realistic fiction. Throughout the four weeks, students read about society and choices, risk and choices, and identity choices. Texts include: Facing the Lion by Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton, A Work in Progress by Aimee Mullins, Does My Head Look Big in This? By Randa Abdel-Fattah, and King Midas retold by Jennifer Tetzloff.
• In Unit 3, students read about the topic of digging up the past and focus on the Big Question: “How can we bring the past to life?” Over the four weeks, students read magazine and history articles, an explorer journal, a diary, and a piece of historical fiction. Students read about Ancient Egypt, ancient cultures, and ancient perspectives. Examples of texts in this unit include: Valley of the Kings by Dr. Kent R. Weeks, Sarah Parcak Explorer’s Journal by Sarah Parcak, The Journal of Nakht by Richard Platt, and The Golden Goblet by Eloise Jarvis McGraw.
• In Unit 5, students read about why people take a stand. Students read a history article, a memoir, a biography, biographical fiction, historical fiction, and a persuasive essay to figure out why people take a stand. Over the course of the four weeks, students read about standing up for civil rights and making a difference. Texts in this unit include: The Civil Rights Movement by Kevin Supples, Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad by Ann Petry, Iqbal: A Novel by Francesco D’Adamo, and Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry by Mildred D. Taylor.
• In Unit 7, students learn about Ancient China. Over the four weeks, students read two history articles, an essay, a fantasy, a play, and a profile to address the Big Question: "Why should we study ancient cultures?" Students study change and continuity and diverse lives. Texts in this unit include: The Emperor’s Silent Army by Jane O’Connor, A Silent Army by Jacqueline Ball and Richard Levey, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin, and Christine Lee: Bio-Archaeologist, a profile.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 6 meet the criteria that materials contain sets of coherently sequenced questions and tasks that require students to analyze the language, key ideas, details, craft, and structure of individual texts.

Throughout the program, students are asked a series of questions to help them analyze the details, key ideas, craft, language, and structure of individual texts. Many questions are analysis questions and some ask students to compare different aspects of the text or to make inferences.  

Students are asked a variety of questions throughout the program that require them to analyze the language, key ideas, details, craft, and structure of texts. Examples include:

• In Unit 1, Week 3, students read the realistic fiction text, Does My Head Look Big in This?, learn about figurative language, and answer question: "Why does Amal say there is something X -Men like about her hijab?" Students then learn how to identify, analyze, and write using analogies.
• In Unit 2, Week 4 students read the personal narrative, Survival Stories: The Girl who Fell from the Sky, and answer a set of questions to build comprehension: "How do you know that Diller is telling the story? How does the collage help you predict what the story is about?"
• In Unit 3, Week 1, students read the magazine article, “Valley of the Kings”, and are led through a series of questions to help comprehension skills for the genre: compare and contrast, using text features, and making inferences. Examples of questions include: “What does the amount of land tell you about Ramses II? How does the photograph help you to better understand the tomb? What would it be like to dig out a tomb as large as KV 5 with only homemade hoes and baskets made from tires?”
• In Unit 5, Week 2, students read the memoir, Rosa Parks: My Story, and learn to connect across texts while recalling what they know about Rosa Parks from reading The Civil Rights Movement. The series of questions include questions about which passengers most likely got off the bus to ask for transfers by citing evidence, what did they learn about Rosa Parks in the two texts, and how is the memoir different from the historical article.
• In Unit 8, Week 1, students read the science article, "Finding Mars on Earth", and answer a series of questions about the diagrams. They are asked how the labels help them get more information and how questions help students see how infographics connect to the text.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 6 meet the criteria that materials contain a coherently sequenced set of text-dependent questions and tasks that require students to analyze the integration of knowledge and ideas across both individual and multiple texts.

Throughout the materials, students build knowledge of various topics throughout the year, including Ancient China, Earth, and the Civil Rights Movement. Students answer a series of questions about the texts in order to integrate knowledge both in individual and multiple texts. Students compare and contrast texts within units to build knowledge. Examples include:

• In Unit 1, Week 4, students read the autobiography, The Jacket from the Circuiti. Students are asked to recall events and the character from the realistic fiction story, Does My Head Look Big in This, which they read the week prior, to make connections between the two texts about choices people have to make.
• In Unit 3, Week 2, students read Animals Everlasting and Valley of the Kings. The teacher leads a discussion about reading multiple texts on the same subject. Students complete a chart comparing what they learned and engage in Academic Talk about the discoveries made in each text.
• In Unit 5, Week 4, students review and compare the themes in Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry and Iqbal. Students review the discussions of the texts from previous lessons and complete a comparison chart. The teacher points out that people can take a big stand in small ways. The teacher models by thinking aloud about the way characters in both texts took a stand.
• In Unit 7, students learn about Ancient China. In Week 1, they watch a video about Ancient China and answer a series of questions about the images in the video about the spread of China’s influence through the Silk Road and the impact of trade on western civilizations. Then throughout the rest of the unit, students read additional texts about ancient China, including the biography Emperor Qin and history article The Emperor’s Silent Army, to think about the spread of China’s influence.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 6 meet the criteria that materials include a cohesive, year-long plan for students to interact with and build key academic vocabulary words in and across texts.

Five to 10 new vocabulary words are introduced each week and are integrated throughout the week with stand-alone activities, in texts, in questions and answers, as well as in some writing assignments. The Tier II words are weaved into the year-long curriculum and students regularly interact with them each week. Some weeks students learn words that are in the text, and other weeks students focus on vocabulary learning skills such as using context clues or breaking apart a word.

The Teacher Edition includes a vocabulary section in the prefatory material that provide routines for vocabulary practice throughout the week. Routine 1 includes activities for identifying a word when it is unknown, definitions of words, and practice discussions with new words. Routine 2 includes expanding word knowledge with graphic organizers. Routine 3 includes activities for paired work with new words. Routine 4 includes more complex graphic organizers to extend and possibly reteach words (options and samples are provided). Routine 5 includes “Text Talk Read Aloud” to teach text-specific vocabulary after a selection has been read aloud. These include sentence frames and stems. Routine 6 is for reteaching with some guidance for direct instruction.

Following these routines is a selection of possible vocabulary games and activities to incorporate into class time. The section also includes activities and games for vocabulary practice from vocabulary bingo and whole group to other partner and individual activities.

In the individual units, after learning the words, the words appear in the text for the day. The comprehension questions following the text also include the words or the answers require the use of the vocabulary words. The Teacher Edition also provides information on how to reteach words if they are using them incorrectly. Specific examples of vocabulary words and or lessons within the materials include:

• In Unit 2, Week 2, students focus on learning how related words will help them learn new words. They begin by learning deception and discuss other words that have to do with trickery, such as deceive. They practice defining several of their key words using this strategy. The key words are found throughout the texts read during the week. Comprehension questions also contain the words, such as "Why is the adaptation of camouflage so important to the ghost shrimp and glass frogs?"
• In Unit 4, Week 3, students learn 10 new academic and science- related vocabulary words using Routine 1. The teacher incorporates the vocabulary words in discussions and think alouds. For example, the teacher is prompted to say, "I will write what Leon does and what that conveys about his viewpoints, with convey being the key word." Sentence frames are provided throughout various activities for students to use the key words correctly when answering questions about texts. Routine 2 is used as students continue to practice the vocabulary words by drawing pictures of the words, using the words in context, and writing out the definitions. Students are quizzed on their understanding of the vocabulary words at the end of the week.
• In Unit 6, Week 4, students practice using context clues to figure out the meaning of multiple-meaning key words. The words are used throughout the unit in directions, the texts, questions, and reteaching strategies. The words are also used as the teacher builds background knowledge of the topic. Comprehension questions also require the students to use the key words in their answer. Students practice using the words in sentences by sharing sentences for all the meanings of the words.
• In Unit 8, Week 1, students learn 10 new science and academic vocabulary words using Routine 1. The words are found in the texts and comprehension questions include the words, such as "What geological features do Earth and Mars share and how would this help us learn about the terrain?" Additional questions are placed throughout the week to help students who need reteaching, such as asking them which word means to change (transform). Students play the game Picture It toward the end of the week to solidify the vocabulary words for the students.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 6 meet the criteria that materials include a progression of focused research projects to encourage students to develop knowledge in a given area by confronting and analyzing different aspects of a topic using multiple texts and source materials.

In every unit, there is a week-long research project. Students are introduced to the concept and skills of research in Unit 1, and this is revisited in each unit. Students research a variety of topics including space exploration, countries, animals, and ancient cultures. Students present their research in a variety of means, including oral presentations, multimedia presentations, and formal research papers. Throughout the week-long research projects, students are taught to plan by choosing a topic, asking research questions, taking notes from a variety of sources, and then making a draft before a published copy. The topics researched and the means to present research increases in complexity within each unit. These research projects include:

• In Unit 1, students choose a country outside of the United States. They find out about its customs and traditions. They then imagine that they have visited the country and share one custom or tradition that they learned during their “visit.”
• In Unit 2, students present a multimedia report about an amazing animal adaptation. Students begin by writing three or four research questions, gathering the information, and then organizing the information before drafting their ideas and publishing their reports.
• In Unit 3, students complete a research project about ancient Egypt. They research an ancient Egyptian archaeological site and prepare an oral presentation. Students include the site’s top points of interest, conservation efforts, or some other related aspect.
• In Unit 4, students research and then give a speech on an endangered species. Their research and speech must include information on why the species is endangered, how humans impact it, and their viewpoint on ways to protect the animal. In this five-day project, students plan, research for two days, organize, and then present their speech.
• In Unit 5, students research and write a short biography about a civil rights activist. They include a discussion of this person’s beliefs and accomplishments in the biography.
• In Unit 6, students research organic versus non-organic foods in order to create a poster to inform people about the pros and cons of organic versus non-organic foods. This research project includes argumentative writing as they are assigned to convince people to start eating organic food.
• In Unit 7, students research, write a report, and present on important inventions from ancient China. They choose at least one major Chinese invention for the report.
• In Unit 8, students research about a current space exploration project. Their research and report integrates information from different sources to describe one current space exploration project.