6th grade Social Studies: how to help at home
What your child learns in 6th grade social studies in the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), and simple things to try at home.
Focus areas this year
- Contemporary world cultures: societies in the world's regions today
- Geography: world maps, regions, countries, population and migration
- Economics and government: economic systems, development, and limited and unlimited governments
- Culture: culture traits, religious observances, diffusion, and science and technology
Easy ways to practice social studies at home
- Follow a current event together and ask who is affected and why people see it differently.
- Build a timeline of a family event or a historical topic they are studying.
- Use an atlas or online map to trace a trade or travel route.
- Ask “Whose voice is missing from this story?” when reading about the past.
What each unit covers
Time & Evidence
Counting years in BCE and CE, centuries and calendars, artifacts and archaeology, and judging primary and secondary sources about the ancient world.
Trade Routes & Beliefs
The Silk Road and Indian Ocean trade, how religions and ideas spread, the Islamic Golden Age, medieval Europe and the Magna Carta, up to about 1450.
Economies of the World
The factors of production, free enterprise, socialist, communist and traditional economies, agricultural, retail, manufacturing and service industries, measures such as GDP, GDP per capita, literacy and life expectancy, and trade between countries.
Governments & Citizens
Limited and unlimited governments, rule by one, few or many, how China, Germany, India and Russia organize government, the origins of democracy in ancient Greece, human rights abuses, and the rights and duties of citizens in different societies. Described factually.
Cultures & Beliefs
What defines a culture and a culture region, multicultural societies, cultural diffusion, the basic institutions of every society, the arts, and the meaning of religious holidays and observances named in the Texas standards (Christmas, Easter, Ramadan, the hajj, Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashanah, Diwali and Vaisakhi), described factually.
Science, Technology & Change
Discoveries and inventions that shaped the world, how resources and political decisions affect technology, how communication and transportation spread cultures, and how people adapt to and change their environment.
World Maps & Globes
Latitude and longitude, hemispheres, kinds of maps and projections, continents, oceans and major landforms.
World Regions
The countries of the world's regions, why people live where they do, migration, population density, climates, and how people adapt to and change their environment.
Sources & Points of View
Telling primary and secondary sources apart, facts and opinions, points of view about an issue, spotting bias, and judging whether a source is valid, credible and up to date.
What the report card levels look like at home
- Beginning
- Just getting started with this idea. Short, regular practice with lots of support helps most.
- Approaching
- Understands parts of it and is building confidence. Keep practicing the tricky parts.
- Meeting
- Has it! Mixed review now and then keeps it strong.
- Exceeding
- Applies it confidently, even in new or harder situations. Try challenge mode and real-life problems.
Your child’s teacher decides the level on the report card. Read the Texas report card guide.
Common questions
Follow a current event together and ask who is affected and why people see it differently. Build a timeline of a family event or a historical topic they are studying. Keep sessions short, about 10 to 15 minutes, and stop on a success.
The Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) 6th grade social studies units include Time & Evidence, Trade Routes & Beliefs, Economies of the World, Governments & Citizens, Cultures & Beliefs, Science, Technology & Change.
Free printable 6th grade social studies practice sheet
Questions from every unit, with an answer key.