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Grade 6 · Quarter 1 · Week 3 · Thursday

Daily Life in Babylon

Mesopotamia II — Babylon, Empire & Hammurabi's Code — From city-state to empire; one of the world's first written legal codes.

Week standards: 6.NS.A.1 · RI.6.2 · RI.6.6 · W.6.1 · MS-LS1-3 · C3 D2.Civ.5.6-8

Suggested timing

8:30 Morning meeting · 8:45 Social Studies · 9:30 Math · 10:15 break · 10:30 ELA · 11:30 Science · 12:15 lunch · 1:00 specials & wrap-up

Social Studies

40 min

Family, marriage contracts, schools (edubba), and merchant houses.

Learning target: I can explain family, marriage contracts, schools (edubba), and merchant houses.

Step-by-step

  1. Warm-up (5 min): map / timeline question on the board to activate yesterday's learning.
  2. Mini-lesson (10 min): teacher-led overview of "Family, marriage contracts, schools (edubba), and merchant houses" using the textbook or atlas.
  3. Guided practice (15 min): annotate a primary source, label a map, or sort cards on a timeline with a partner.
  4. Independent practice (10 min): students respond in their notebook with one claim + one piece of evidence.

Check: Exit ticket: name two specific details (place, person, date, or cause) and explain why they matter.

Home tip: At home, ask: "Where on a map would you find what you studied today?" Have your child point it out and tell you one cause and one effect from "Family, marriage contracts, schools (edubba), and merchant houses".

Homework: Read tonight's textbook section (10–15 min) and add three new facts to your notebook timeline.

Resources to teach from

  • Textbook / OER reading: OpenStax World History Vol. 1 — Ch. 4 'Asia' — OpenStax (https://openstax.org/books/world-history-volume-1/pages/4-introduction)
  • Primary source: Terracotta Army (Smithsonian feature) — Smithsonian (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/terra-cotta-soldiers-on-the-march-30942673/)
  • Article: Silk Road map + overview — Asia Society (https://asiasociety.org/education/silk-road)
  • Video: Mandate of Heaven (5 min) — Khan Academy (https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/world-history/world-history-beginnings/ancient-china/v/the-mandate-of-heaven-and-the-zhou-dynasty)

Math

50 min

Word problems with fraction division (recipes, sharing, scaling down).

Learning target: I can word problems with fraction division (recipes, sharing, scaling down).

Step-by-step

  1. Number talk (5 min): mental-math warm-up tied to today's concept.
  2. Mini-lesson (12 min): worked example of "Word problems with fraction division (recipes, sharing, scaling down)" with the teacher modeling thinking out loud.
  3. We do (10 min): class works two problems together; students explain each step.
  4. You do (15 min): students try 4–6 problems independently or with a partner; teacher confers.
  5. Closure (5 min): one student presents a solution; class critiques the reasoning.

Check: Exit ticket: 2 problems — one procedural, one word problem — graded for accuracy and reasoning.

Home tip: Ask your child to teach you tonight's idea in 60 seconds: "Show me one example of word problems with fraction division (recipes, sharing, scaling down)." Teaching it back is the fastest way to lock it in.

Homework: Practice set: 6–8 problems mirroring class work. Show steps; circle the answer.

Resources to teach from

  • Textbook / OER reading: Illustrative Mathematics 6 — Unit 4 'Dividing Fractions' — Illustrative Math (https://im.kendallhunt.com/MS/students/1/4/index.html)
  • Video: Dividing fractions by fractions (visual) — Khan Academy (https://www.khanacademy.org/math/cc-sixth-grade-math/cc-6th-arithmetic-operations/cc-6th-dividing-fractions/v/dividing-fractions-example)
  • Textbook / OER reading: Illustrative Mathematics — Grade 6 (free, CCSS-aligned) — Illustrative Math (Kendall Hunt OER) (https://im.kendallhunt.com/MS/students/1/index.html)
  • Video: Khan Academy — Grade 6 math — Khan Academy (https://www.khanacademy.org/math/cc-sixth-grade-math)

ELA

45 min

Argument essay: draft a thesis with two reasons.

Learning target: I can argument essay: draft a thesis with two reasons.

Step-by-step

  1. Bell-ringer (5 min): a sentence-level grammar warm-up or quick-write prompt.
  2. Read-aloud / shared reading (12 min): "Argument essay: draft a thesis with two reasons" — students follow along and annotate.
  3. Discussion (10 min): turn-and-talk on a focus question, then share out with text evidence.
  4. Writing (15 min): students respond in writer's notebook — one paragraph minimum, citing the text.
  5. Share (3 min): two volunteers read a sentence they're proud of.

Check: Exit ticket: one quoted sentence from today's text + one sentence explaining what it shows.

Home tip: Ask: "Who is the main character or speaker in what you read today, and what do they want?" Then have your child read aloud one favorite sentence from "Argument essay: draft a thesis with two reasons".

Homework: Independent reading 20 min + log title, pages, and one sentence of reaction.

Resources to teach from

  • Article: CommonLit — argument writing collection (Grade 6) — CommonLit (free, login optional) (https://www.commonlit.org/en/texts?grade_levels%5B%5D=6&genres%5B%5D=Opinion+%26+Argument)
  • Printable: Argument essay rubric (4-point) — Site rubric library (/rubrics)
  • Article: CommonLit — Grade 6 free reading library — CommonLit (https://www.commonlit.org/en/texts?grade_levels%5B%5D=6)
  • Article: ReadWorks — Grade 6 passages + questions — ReadWorks (https://www.readworks.org/find-content#!q:/g:6/t:/dt:/sb:relevance)

Science

45 min

Circulatory system; pulse-rate investigation before/after exercise.

Learning target: I can circulatory system.

Step-by-step

  1. Warm-up (5 min): one-question opener tied to yesterday's lesson.
  2. Together (10 min): Circulatory system.
  3. Independent practice (12 min): pulse-rate investigation before/after exercise..
  4. Closure (5 min): students name one thing they learned and one question they still have.

Check: Exit ticket: one claim + one piece of evidence from today's investigation, with units where relevant.

Home tip: Ask: "What did you observe today, and what do you think it means?" Encourage your child to draw a labeled sketch of "Circulatory system" on a sticky note.

Homework: Finish lab notebook entry (sketch + CER paragraph) if not done in class.

Resources to teach from

  • Interactive / simulation: BioDigital Human (free with signup) — BioDigital (https://www.biodigital.com/)
  • Video: Body systems overview (Crash Course Kids) — Crash Course Kids #28 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPwMftpCpiI)
  • Printable: CER (Claim-Evidence-Reasoning) graphic organizer — Stanford SCALE (https://www.nextgenscience.org/sites/default/files/Using%20Phenomena%20in%20NGSS.pdf)
  • Textbook / OER reading: OpenSciEd — free NGSS middle-school units — OpenSciEd (https://www.openscied.org/access-the-materials/)

Materials & worksheet checklist

Bring every day

  • Sharpened pencil & eraser
  • Day's notebook (one section per subject)

ELA

  • Lined paper

Science

  • Lab notebook

End-of-day reflection (student)

One thing I learned today:

One question I still have:

SixthGrade · Quarter 1 · Week 3 · ThursdayPrinted for classroom use

Part of the K–6 Homeschool Curriculum series · Grade 6 · Eastern Hemisphere & Ancient Civilizations