6th grade Social Studies
12 units matched to the Arizona Academic Standards.
Focus areas
- Early farmers and the first civilizations
- Ancient India, China, Greece and Rome
- Medieval times, the Islamic world and the Renaissance
Units
Unit 1
World Maps & Globes
Continents and oceans, hemispheres, latitude and longitude, map scale, projections and kinds of maps.
Learning standard: 6.G1.1 · maps of the Eastern Hemisphere, latitude and longitude
Unit 2
First Farmers
The long story of early humans, how farming began about 12,000 years ago, domestication, food surpluses, and how settling down led to specialized jobs and the first cities.
Learning standard: 6.H1.1; 6.SP1.3 · the first farming societies and the change from hunting and gathering
Unit 3
Where Civilizations Grew
How geography shaped Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indus Valley and Shang China along their rivers, plus Greece, Rome and the Maya. Includes a reading passage about the Nile flood.
Learning standard: 6.G3.2; 6.G2.1 · how rivers, land and climate shaped the first civilizations
Unit 4
Mesopotamia & Egypt
Why civilizations grew along the Tigris, Euphrates and Nile, cuneiform and hieroglyphs, Hammurabi's Code, pharaohs and pyramids.
Learning standard: 6.H1.1; 6.H3.1 · Mesopotamia and Egypt, their rulers, laws and religions
Unit 5
Ancient India & China
The Indus Valley and Yellow River, Chinese dynasties and the Mandate of Heaven, Confucius, Hinduism and Buddhism, and inventions such as paper and zero.
Learning standard: 6.H3.2; 6.H1.1 · ancient India and China and the beliefs that began there
Unit 6
Greece & Rome
Athens and Sparta, the Roman Republic and Empire, the Twelve Tables and Code of Justinian, and the Greek and Roman ideas found in US government.
Learning standard: 6.H3.1; 6.H3.3 · citizens and government in Athens and Rome
Unit 7
World Beliefs
Where and when major religions and philosophies began (Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism, Christianity, Islam), their key figures, texts and ideas, described respectfully and factually.
Learning standard: 6.H3.2 · the world's major religions and how they compare
Unit 8
Trade Networks
Specialization, barter and the first coins, the Silk Road and sea routes (with a reading passage and goods table), and how trade led to both cooperation and conflict.
Learning standard: 6.E5.1; 6.H1.2 · the Silk Road and other trade routes, and how trade spread people and ideas
Unit 9
Medieval Europe
How medieval Europe was organized (kings, nobles, knights and peasants), the role of the Church and guilds, the Magna Carta, the Black Death, and how change came to the feudal system.
Learning standard: 6.H2.1; 6.H3.1 · medieval Europe, feudalism and the church
Unit 10
The Islamic World
The early Islamic world and its cities, scholars and discoveries (such as algebra and optics), the exchange of knowledge through trade and translation, and the Ottoman Empire.
Learning standard: 6.H1.2; 6.E3.3 · the Islamic world, its cities and trade, and the exchange of ideas
Unit 11
Renaissance & Reformation
The rebirth of art and learning in Italy, how the printing press spread ideas, the Reformation, and how questioning led to new science.
Learning standard: 6.H3.2; 6.SP1.2 · the Renaissance and Reformation and the changes they brought
Unit 12
Time & Evidence
Counting years in BCE and CE, centuries and calendars, artifacts and archaeology, and judging primary and secondary sources about the ancient world.
Learning standard: 6.SP3.3; 6.SP1.1 · how historians know about the past, using primary and secondary sources
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