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Grade 6 · Quarter 2 · Week 14 · Wednesday

Limits of Athenian Democracy

Athenian Democracy & the Golden Age — Pericles, the Parthenon, and the world's first democracy.

Week standards: 6.EE.B.5 · 6.EE.B.6 · RI.6.2 · W.6.2 · MS-LS1-6 · C3 D2.Civ.6.6-8

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

Who counted as a citizen? Women, metics, enslaved people excluded.

Learning target: I can who counted as a citizen? Women, metics, enslaved people excluded.

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 "Who counted as a citizen? Women, metics, enslaved people excluded" 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 "Who counted as a citizen? Women, metics, enslaved people excluded".

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

Resources to teach from

  • Interactive / simulation: iCivics — free civic games & lessons — iCivics (Justice O'Connor) (https://www.icivics.org/)
  • Primary source: Founding documents archive — National Archives (https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs)
  • Textbook / OER reading: OpenStax World History Vol. 1 (full free textbook) — OpenStax — Rice University (https://openstax.org/details/books/world-history-volume-1)
  • Article: World History Encyclopedia — search — World History Encyclopedia (https://www.worldhistory.org/)

Math

50 min

Write expressions for word problems with one variable.

Learning target: I can write expressions for word problems with one variable.

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 "Write expressions for word problems with one variable" 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 write expressions for word problems with one variable." 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 Math 6 — Unit 6 'Expressions & Equations' — Illustrative Math (https://im.kendallhunt.com/MS/students/1/6/index.html)
  • Video: Intro to variables (5 min) — Khan Academy (https://www.khanacademy.org/math/cc-sixth-grade-math/cc-6th-equations-and-inequalities-topic/cc-6th-variable/v/what-is-a-variable)
  • 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

Compare ancient and modern democracy; what changed? (RI.6.2).

Learning target: I can compare ancient and modern democracy.

Step-by-step

  1. Warm-up (5 min): one-question opener tied to yesterday's lesson.
  2. Together (10 min): Compare ancient and modern democracy.
  3. Independent practice (12 min): what changed? ..
  4. Closure (5 min): students name one thing they learned and one question they still have.

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 "Compare ancient and modern democracy".

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

Resources to teach from

  • 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

Investigation: leaf surface area and light absorption.

Learning target: I can investigate investigation: leaf surface area and light absorption.

Step-by-step

  1. Phenomenon (5 min): show an image, video, or demo and ask, "What do you notice? What do you wonder?"
  2. Mini-lesson (10 min): teacher introduces the science of "Investigation: leaf surface area and light absorption" with a labeled diagram.
  3. Investigation (20 min): students gather data — observe, measure, model, or run the lab.
  4. Sense-making (8 min): students record a Claim-Evidence-Reasoning response in the lab notebook.
  5. Share-out (2 min): one group presents data; class compares results.

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 "Investigation: leaf surface area and light absorption" on a sticky note.

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

Resources to teach from

  • 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/)
  • Interactive / simulation: PhET Simulations (free, classroom-ready) — PhET — CU Boulder (https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/filter?subjects=earth-science,biology,physics,chemistry&type=html)

Materials & worksheet checklist

Bring every day

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

ELA

  • Passage: Reading Passage: Mesopotamian Scribal Culture (with comprehension) [1B]
  • Assessment: Q1 ELA Assessment [Q1]

Science

  • Lab notebook

End-of-day reflection (student)

One thing I learned today:

One question I still have:

SixthGrade · Quarter 2 · Week 14 · WednesdayPrinted for classroom use

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