6th grade Science
9 units matched to the Washington State Learning Standards.
Focus areas
- Matter and its interactions
- Cells and living systems
- Weather, climate and the water cycle
Units
Unit 1
Body Systems
How the nervous and endocrine (hormone) systems send messages, how the excretory system removes waste, and the basic organs of the reproductive system, all at a simple organ-and-job level.
Learning standard: MS-LS1-3 · body systems made of interacting groups of cells
Unit 2
Mixtures & Solutions
Telling pure substances from mixtures, mechanical mixtures from solutions, solutes and solvents, comparing concentration, and choosing separation methods like filtering, evaporation, magnets and distillation.
Learning standard: MS-PS1-2 · properties of pure substances and mixtures
Unit 3
Particles and Heat
Solids, liquids and gases in the particle model, faster particles when heated and slower when cooled, melting, freezing, evaporation and condensation, and why mass stays the same in a phase change.
Learning standard: MS-PS1-4 · how adding or removing thermal energy changes particle motion and state
Unit 4
Our Senses
Practices natural sensory systems: sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. It follows the Grade 6 science skill descriptors on natural and technical sensory systems in the New Brunswick curriculum.
Learning standard: MS-LS1-8 · sensory receptors that send messages to the brain
Unit 5
Cells: Life's Building Blocks
Practices evidence that living things are made of cells, the parts of plant and animal cells and their jobs, and how the cell works as a system.
Learning standard: MS-LS1-1; MS-LS1-2 · living things are made of cells, and the parts of a cell work together
Unit 6
Weather Systems
Practices how air masses and fronts change the weather, and how the sun and gravity drive the water cycle, including the rain shadow of the Cascades and atmospheric rivers.
Learning standard: MS-ESS2-4; MS-ESS2-5 · the water cycle driven by sunlight and gravity, and how air masses cause weather changes
Unit 7
Climate & Climate Change
Practices how sunlight, oceans, latitude and mountains shape regional climates, and how human activity is raising Earth's average temperature, with ways to reduce it.
Learning standard: MS-ESS2-6; MS-ESS3-5 · what shapes regional climate, and the causes of rising global temperatures
Unit 8
Thermal Energy & Insulation
Practices how thermal energy moves from warmer to cooler objects, how mass and material affect temperature change, and how to design a device that slows heat transfer.
Learning standard: MS-PS3-3; MS-PS3-4 · designing to reduce heat transfer, and how mass and material affect temperature change
Unit 9
Engineering Design
Practices the engineering design process: defining a problem with criteria and constraints, comparing solutions, testing to find the best features, and improving a design step by step.
Learning standard: MS-ETS1-1; MS-ETS1-2; MS-ETS1-3; MS-ETS1-4 · defining design problems, evaluating and testing solutions, and improving designs
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