Sixth Grade Language Arts Curriculum
Writing and reading comprehension will always be an important aspect of your child’s education. Sixth grade language arts is no different. This year, students will read more complex texts in a number of different genres, and also do a lot of non-fiction reading. This will help them further develop their ‘reading to learn’ skills that they began building a few years back. As far as writing is concerned, sixth grade language arts focuses on getting students to become more independent writers as they begin to work on formal essays and more detailed writing assignments.
This page includes information on everything you need to know about teaching 6th grade language arts including objectives and goals for reading, grammar and writing. You’ll also discover how Time4Learning’s comprehensive 6th grade language arts curriculum can help your child meet those objectives.
What Language Arts Concepts Should a 6th Grader Know
In 6th grade, students should be able to perform numerous language arts activities such as:
- Reading and understanding different genres (plays, poems, and news articles)
- Support their answers by using details and facts from a text
- Use different sources (books, websites, articles) to do research
- Understand grammar rules, punctuation, capitalization
- Write a complete paragraph with topic sentence and supporting details
A comprehensive sixth grade language arts curriculum will help your child build on what they already know, teach them more advanced skills, and even provide opportunities to review challenging concepts they may need help with.
Learn more about Time4Learning’s sixth grade language arts curriculum by checking out out 6th grade language arts lesson plans.
6th Grade Reading Goals/Objectives
A comprehensive 6th grade language arts curriculum will help your child accomplish all of this year’s goals and objectives in reading, including:
- Identify, summarize, or explain the main idea of a text using supporting details
- Compare and contrast characters, settings, ideas, point of view, and/or plot
- Achieve comprehension by reading literature with an emphasis on vocabulary
- Use a variety of strategies to comprehend reading selections
- Use the reading comprehension process skills of summarizing, predicting, visualizing, questioning, and clarifying
- Expand their vocabulary and use them in discussions, reports and texts.
6th Grade Writing Goals/Objectives
Sixth grade language arts writing goals aim at making students more independent writers by teaching them how to effectively use the steps in the writing process (plan, draft, write, revise, edit, print, and share). Below are some of this year’s writing goals and objectives.
- Create paragraphs and multiple-paragraph essays
- Create a fictional short story that includes dialogue
- Write letters for various situations, including business letters, e-mail messages, etc.
- Consistently apply rules of spelling
- Demonstrate increased vocabulary and enhanced language use
6th Grade Grammar Goals/Objectives
In order to be good writers, students must be knowledgeable about capitalization, punctuation, verb tenses, and all the other aspects that make up grammar. Below are some of the grammar goals and objectives for sixth grade language arts.
- Discriminate between transitive and intransitive verbs and direct and indirect objects
- Identify and use descriptive adjectives and adverbs to enhance writing
- Identify and correctly punctuate dependent and independent clauses
- Use commas in appositives and after introductory words and phrases, as well as with names in direct address
- Identify pronouns, demonstrate agreement between pronouns and antecedents
Time4Learning 6th Grade Language Arts Lesson Plans
The student will demonstrate knowledge by determining the meaning of synonyms from grade level appropriate vocabulary, by correctly choosing a given word or phrase that means the same thing, in reading activities that incorporate explicit instruction and application.
The student will demonstrate knowledge by determining the meaning of antonyms from grade level appropriate vocabulary, by correctly choosing a given word or phrase that means the opposite, in reading activities that incorporate explicit instruction and application.
The student will be able to analyze and determine the correct meaning of a word, based on the prefix of the root word or how the prefix is used in the context of a passage.
The student will be able to analyze and determine the correct meaning of a word, based on the suffix of the root word or how the suffix is used in the context of a passage.
The student will be able to identify and select the appropriate homophone or word that sounds the same, based on the context of a passage which fits the best meaning of the given word or phrase.
The student will be able to identify and analyze the author’s use of idioms, based on the context of a passage and how these expressions are used in literal and interpretative information.
The student will be able to identify and determine the meaning of unknown words, based on the understanding of Latin and Greek roots.
Use the reading comprehension process skills of summarizing, predicting, visualizing, questioning, and clarifying with extensive scaffolding and support, through think aloud prompts.
Use the reading comprehension process skills of summarizing, predicting, visualizing, questioning, and clarifying with scaffolding and support, through think aloud prompts. with scaffolding and support, through think aloud prompts.
Use the reading comprehension process skills of summarizing, predicting, visualizing, questioning, and clarifying to independently read and comprehend texts with minimal think aloud support.
Develop summaries, paraphrase, or synthesize information from two or more literary or expository texts containing context clues.
Analyze and explain the impact of characters and settings within the plot of literary text(s), and how these relationships affect the central conflict.
Identify, summarize, or explain the main idea(s) using the supporting details in an expository text.
Identify, summarize, or explain the main idea(s) or theme(s) using the supporting details and symbolism in a literary text.
Distinguish between fact and opinion in an expository text or within news sources.
Read, interpret and make predictions using charts, graphs, diagrams, maps or other graphic representations.
Identify and distinguish between cause and effect in expository and literary texts.
Identify and use knowledge of the author’s purpose by analyzing how the literary technique of mood contributes to the comprehension of a literary or expository text.
Use knowledge, information, and ideas from literary texts, expository texts, or from multiple sources to make inferences about the text(s) (e.g., make inferences, draw conclusions, make generalizations, infer sequence of events, and infer a character’s feelings.)
Compare and contrast characters, settings, ideas, point of view, and/or plot within varied genres that includes figurative language such as metaphors.
Students will demonstrate knowledge of comprehension skills on grade level appropriate literary and expository passages, with questions that simulate a high-stakes assessment.
The student will explore content through discovery and develop vocabulary through the use of a literature-based glossary.
The student will achieve comprehension by reading literature with emphasis on vocabulary and respond to the literature. Authentic nonfiction literature is included.
The student will use a variety of strategies to comprehend reading selections. Student uses prior knowledge and will analyze and evaluate to make sense of texts. Student will monitor his or her own comprehension and act purposefully when comprehension breaks down using strategies. Student will write for different purposes and write a variety of compositions based on practical and literary prompts and complete a research-writing project.
Through learning activities focused on recognition and application, the student will practice language art skills. These activities have direct instruction, practice, and scored assessment.
The student will explore content through discovery and develop vocabulary through the use of a literature-based glossary.
The student will achieve comprehension by reading literature with emphasis on vocabulary and respond to the literature. Authentic fiction literature is included.
The student will use a variety of strategies to comprehend reading selections. Student uses prior knowledge and will analyze and evaluate to make sense of texts. Student will monitor his or her own comprehension and act purposefully when comprehension breaks down using strategies. Student will write for different purposes and write a variety of compositions based on practical and literary prompts and complete a research-writing project.
Through learning activities focused on recognition and application, the student will practice language art skills.
The student will explore content through discovery and develop vocabulary through the use of a literature-based glossary.
The student will achieve comprehension by reading literature with emphasis on vocabulary and respond to the literature. Authentic nonfiction literature is included.
The student will use a variety of strategies to comprehend reading selections. Student uses prior knowledge and will analyze and evaluate to make sense of texts. Student will monitor his or her own comprehension and act purposefully when comprehension breaks down using strategies. Student will write for different purposes and write a variety of compositions based on practical and literary prompts and complete a research-writing project.
Through learning activities focused on recognition and application, the student will practice language art skills.
The student will explore content through discovery and develop vocabulary through the use of a literature-based glossary.
The student will achieve comprehension by reading literature with emphasis on vocabulary and respond to the literature. Authentic fiction literature is included.
The student will use a variety of strategies to comprehend reading selections. Student uses prior knowledge and will analyze and evaluate to make sense of texts. Student will monitor his or her own comprehension and act purposefully when comprehension breaks down using strategies. Student will write for different purposes and write a variety of compositions based on practical and literary prompts and complete a research-writing project.
Through learning activities focused on recognition and application, the student will practice language art skills. These activities have direct instruction, practice, and scored assessment.
The student will explore content through discovery and develop vocabulary through the use of a poetry-based glossary.
The student will achieve comprehension by reading poetry with emphasis on vocabulary and respond to the poems.
The student will use a variety of strategies to comprehend reading selections. Student uses prior knowledge and will analyze and evaluate to make sense of texts. Student will monitor his or her own comprehension and act purposefully when comprehension breaks down using strategies. Student will write for different purposes and write a variety of compositions based on practical and literary prompts and complete a research-writing project.
Through learning activities focused on recognition and application, the student will practice language art skills. These activities have direct instruction, practice, and scored assessment.
6th Grade Language Arts Extensions Lesson Plans
Identify interjections, conjunctions, and prepositions in grade-level written composition. Use prepositional phrases to elaborate ideas.
Identify and correctly punctuate dependent and independent clauses.
Use Standard English in grade level appropriate composition. Correctly use the following: “good/well; who/whom between/among; which/that/who.”
Use verb tenses correctly, including present, past, future, and perfect forms, and demonstrate parallel structure (consistent tense) in sentences.
Use commas in dates, city and states, and lists. Use commas in appositives and after introductory words and phrases, as well as with names in direct address.
Capitalize names of organizations, nationalities, races, languages, and religions, as well as titles of books, stories, poems, songs, and articles.
Use quotation marks in dialogue and titles, using grade-level vocabulary.
Correctly identify the main idea and supporting details of an entire text. Paraphrase and summarize text to aid in comprehension.
Demonstrate the use of a variety of reading styles and speed to fit different types of text, including poetry, novels, textbooks, instruction manuals, and newspapers.
Correctly identify an author’s voice or point of view in a written selection, and determine if the selection was written in the first or the third person. Identify monologue and dialogue within a written selection.
Explain how an author’s use of formal or informal language (including the use of slang), as well as denotative and connotative meanings, can help to set the mood or tone of a selection.
Demonstrate understanding of an author’s use of flashbacks and foreshadowing.
Differentiate between an author’s use of literal or figurative language, including imagery, metaphor and simile, symbol, and personification.
Identify common propaganda techniques used in the media. Point out examples of false advertising in television ads for toys, and emotional versus logical arguments found in editorials and opinion pages. Determine whether they contain strong or weak arguments.
Determine the defining characteristics of a speech, and read “Are Women Persons?” by Susan B. Anthony.
Determine the defining characteristics of fiction, including fantasy, mystery, science fiction, realistic fiction, and suspense.
Determine the defining characteristics of an essay, and read “Advice to Youth” by Mark Twain.
Determine the defining characteristics of newspapers. Determine that an author’s purpose is to entertain, inform, or persuade, and relate an author’s purpose to specific details within selected articles of the newspaper. Compare editorials to the use of political cartoons in persuasive journalism. Identify bias.
Determine the defining characteristics of folklore. Compare folklore from the ancient cultures of the Israelites, Muslims, Japanese, and Chinese. Read to compare your culture to the cultures of others.
Explore universal themes in storytelling by comparing several versions of the Cinderella story, pointing out similarities and differences in the versions.
Use the steps of the writing process (plan, draft, write, revise, edit, print, and share) to create a fictional short story that includes dialogue.
Use the steps of the writing process (plan, draft, write, revise, edit, print, and share), and use multimedia to create an autobiographical story (e.g., the day you were born, before you started school, a typical day, your family, your friends, what you most enjoy and what you do best).
Use the steps of the writing process (plan, draft, write, revise, edit, print, and share) to write a poem.
Use the steps of the writing process (plan, draft, write, revise, edit, print, and share) to write letters for various situations, including business letters, e-mail messages, and envelopes.
Use the steps of the writing process (plan—including forming questions for investigation—draft, write, revise, proofread, edit, print, and share) to create a one-act play, correctly using theatrical vocabulary, such as stage, set, act, scene, cast, props, and sound effects.
Understand and correctly use the skills of note making, including the use of graphic organizers such as webbing, clustering, and outlining. Write and present an expository speech or persuasive argument (with supporting evidence), making use of technology to enhance presentation.
Determine the purposes for listening, including to gain information, to solve problems, to enjoy, and to appreciate.
Listen to learn by taking notes, organizing, summarizing, paraphrasing spoken ideas, and asking questions.
Write sequenced, concise, multistep instructions. Follow verbal multistep instructions.
Research and report on careers in the field of language arts, to include journalism, library science, publishing, advertising, and theater (television, movies, video, and video-game creation).
Why Choose Time4Learning Sixth Grade Language Homeschool Curriculum
The sixth grade language arts program is made up of extensive learning activities organized in three sections. The sections are alternative teaching approaches which overlap in their teaching of language arts mechanics, reading skills, writing skills, spelling, and vocabulary. Many parents follow the sequence exactly as it is presented. Many rotate doing one exercise from each section.
An effective sixth grade language arts curriculum should teach students in a way that makes learning fun and allows them to progress at a self-directed pace. Time4Learning is an award-winning curriculum for PreK-12th that does just that.
Learn more about our online sixth grade curriculum, designed to help your child learn and master their fundamental concepts.
