Tenacre Country Day School

Curriculum

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Grade 6

Tenacre’s Sixth Graders have the opportunity to emerge as school leaders, taking pride in their responsibility as positive role models for one another and the entire school community. Problem-solving, critical thinking and sophisticated oral and written work are the hallmarks of this last year at Tenacre.

  • Reading

    A variety of novels with historical backdrops are read. They have been selected for their interest, quality of writing, and insight into historical events such as the Civil War.

    The novels include:
    •  How I Found the Strong
    •  Lyddie
    •  Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
    •  New Boy
    •  The Wednesday Wars
    As part of reading class, emphasis is given to factual and inferential comprehension, note taking, quiz and test preparation, and class discussion. For comprehension skills, in particular, students utilize test-preparation booklets such as Comprehensive Assessment of Reading Strategies (CARS). Students also study the meaning of words specific to the above novels and prepare for weekly vocabulary quizzes. In the spring, the class participates in an independent reading project, which allows students their choice of books with the goal of reading a minimum of 100 minutes per week.

  • Writing

    The goal in writing class is for each student to take his or her writing to the next level.  We want each student to feel confident and enthusiastic about writing. The class is structured as a workshop, whereby all the students are actively engaged in the writing process. Attention is given to brainstorming, planning, writing drafts, revising, and editing. Genres include:
    • 5-paragraph essays
    • journalism
    • 30-minute, timed essay
    • poetry
    • research paper on a historical figure
    • photo essay
    • film project
    • friendly letter and business letter writing
    The majority of the writing assignments are completed in class and not assigned as homework. Most of the writing is done on laptop computers. Compositions will be assessed for content and mechanics. In addition, grammar will be taught using a grammar workbook, as well as teacher-prepared materials and online resources.

  • Mathematics

    Building on the efforts of the lower grades, sixth grade follows the Singapore Math curriculum. Classes are one hour in length and incorporate mental math, problem-solving activities, direct instruction, and independent practice. Sixth grade math is taught in three small flexible groups to allow teachers to differentiate material to best support each child. At the beginning of each unit, students are pretested and assessment results are used as part of the planning process for instruction. Opportunities for math enrichment are offered. They include challenge packets for students who finish their work early, opportunity to participate in the Noetic Math Contest, as well as  Math Club (a MathCounts program), which is offered  after school. The curriculum shifts direction in the second semester and becomes more project-oriented. It includes a stock market simulation, volume study, and a millions project. These projects ask students to apply their knowledge of rational numbers, graphing, and statistics within the context of real life.

    Emphasis is placed on developing a range of skills that include:
    • Model drawing
    • Pre-algebra computation
    • Linear and plane geometry
    • Fraction and decimal concepts
    • Ratio, proportions, and percent

  • Social Studies

    The curriculum examines events in U.S. history, starting with the Civil War and ending with the Vietnam War. The textbook, Creating America: A History of the United States 1877 - 21st Century, guides us through the Civil War, industrial America, immigration, the Progressive Era, and the Civil Rights Movement. Current events and world geography are also woven into the curriculum throughout the year.

    We supplement our use of a textbook by studying primary sources such as journals, maps, and letters. The social studies program also focuses on teaching students a variety of study skills, including:
    • taking notes
    • previewing textbook chapters
    • developing understanding of historical events
    • developing study strategies for exams
    • public speaking
    • debating
    • cooperative learning
    In November, we visit Lowell Mills National Historic Park on an all-day field trip to deepen the class's understanding of the Industrial Revolution and the novel, Lyddie. A unit on world beliefs is also taught. The purpose of this unit is to provide the students with a basic understanding of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism, as well as information that will further their study of current events, politics, and world history in secondary school.

    In the second semester, the class works on an independent research paper. This paper offers students an opportunity to research and explore a historical figure of their choice. Once the paper has been completed, students portray these figures before parents and other classes in a showcase referred to as The Wax Museum.

  • Science

    Major units include:
    Adaptations
    In this life science unit, students learn about Charles Darwin and his theory of natural selection. They investigate several examples of the fascinating structures and behaviors of organisms related to their varying environments. Students use their knowledge to then design and create a futuristic animal that must fit and survive on new planets with unique climates.
     
    Structures – Integrated STEM Unit
    The students design, build and test various structures in relation to strength and purpose. Local and nationally recognized bridges and other structures are also used to investigate basic engineering principles. Students are presented with an engineering challenge to design and construct a truss style bridge out of Popsicle sticks and glue. They use West Point Bridge Builder software to first design and test a model before constructing their final bridge. Bridges are load tested, then analyzed.
     
    Earth’s Structure and Plate Tectonics
    In this unit, students begin by getting to know the earth inside and out through an investigation into the structure of the earth. They will learn about Earth’s constantly changing surface and develop an understanding of what causes the ground to shake violently, volcanoes to erupt and great mountain ranges to rise to incredible heights through a study of plate tectonics.
     
    Chemistry
    Atomic Structure, the Periodic Table of Elements, the Law of Conservation of Mass, phases of matter, simple chemical reactions and pH levels are topics covered in this introductory chemistry unit. Students follow the scientific method to conduct various chemistry experiments to explore physical and chemical changes.
     
    Genetics
    In this life science unit, students learn about the basics of hereditable traits. Students take an inventory of their own observable traits and compare them with the population of their classmates. They investigate dog DNA and through random selection, interpret genotypes to create dogs with varying phenotypes.
     
    Super Science Experiments
    As a final science project at Tenacre, students independently investigate a science topic in which they are interested. After researching the topic, the student selects a question to answer through experimentation, designs the experiment, records and analyzes results and draws conclusions. 

  • Spanish

    In order to give students at this level a real audience to speak the language, Spanish students work with science and library teachers on an interdisciplinary, project-based learning opportunity studying the endangered species and the environmental issues in the Spanish- speaking world. Students study various aspects of Spanish- speaking countries over their Tenacre career, and this interdisciplinary project helps them understand that a country is more than just geographical features and facts and allows them to make connections between the local and global implications of environmental issues. This project also gives students an authentic audience on which to practice their Spanish in written and oral forms as they write letters to different embassies and consulates to gather information for their projects. In addition, there is a bilingual presentation at the end of the year. Students are able to use Spanish for a purpose to communicate and lead initiatives. The inclusion of authentic materials like folktales and music to learn about how natives are activists for the environment of their countries is very valuable to better comprehension of the target language.

    Sixth Graders will:
    • Review all vocabulary learned up to this point and expand vocabulary with approximately 500 new words
    • Learn the past and future tenses
    • Collaborate with science and library classes for an interdisciplinary, project-based learning opportunity to study endangered species and  environmental issues in the Spanish-speaking world. Students will write letters to different embassies and consulates to gather information for their projects and present bilingual projects at the end of the year.

  • Music

    Sixth-grade’s leadership focus is present in the music curriculum. Starting with preparing and presenting a performance based on their school theme, sixth graders take the lead in December Celebration acting as both singers and narrators. The culminating project is the spring musical, which allows students to take ownership of all aspects of their performance, including sets, blocking, costume design, and acting. Other areas of focus include: 

    • Singing technique
    • Hand signs solfege
    • Musical form
    • Performance preparation for December Celebration
    • Composer study
    • Curriculum preparation for field trip to Wheelock Family Theater
    • Ukulele 
    • Spring musical preparation

  • Art

    In sixth-grade students explore different media as they continue to build upon skills of drawing, painting, sculpture, ceramics, fiber arts and collage. Students explore art theory to further expand upon their knowledge of color, perspective, and design. They understand how art appreciation, art history, art production, and art criticism are steps in the creative process. 
    Skills:
    • to develop sophisticated strategies to problem-solve and formulate original ideas 
    • to expand upon knowledge of diverse artists and cultures throughout history 
    • to gain a broad knowledge about the careers an artist can have and how art is involved in everyday careers
    • to collaborate with their peers to create the scenery for the class play
    • to engage in design literacy and concepts of graphic design

  • Technology

    As the leaders of the school, Grade 6 students pursue unique applications of technologies and prototyping to invent and create via comprehensive design challenges. They solve thematic, real world problems through innovation using the following skills and tools:
    • CAD work
    • programming and simple coding
    • robotics materials
    • graphics/multimedia editing applications
    • design and iterative process
    • fabrication
    Regular critiques, digital documentation and a collaborative environment support the iterative and creative processes.

  • Physical Education


    • Skills in interscholastic team sports (3 seasons): soccer/field hockey, basketball, baseball/softball
    • Cooperative games and activities
    • Tennis
    • Healthy lifestyles unit
    • Fitness
    • Football/lacrosse mini-unit
    • Handball
    • Ultimate Frisbee
    • Street hockey
    • Outdoor winter adventure program: cross-country skiing, downhill skiing

  • Library

    Grade 6: Formal research process and information literacy skills with heavy emphasis on synthesizing multiple and possibly conflicting resources
    Literature appreciation
    • Think critically about the text and images and examine for non-fiction or literary devices
    Information Literacy Skills
    • Participate in the social exchange of knowledge, creating as well as consuming ideas
    • Integrated inquiry project on why should we protect a particular endangered animal and its biome
    • Practice safe and ethical behavior in personal electronic communication
    • Cycle and recycle fluently between all steps of the research process as the need arises
    • Cite sources including images
    • Find copyright free media
    • Draw conclusions based on research
    • Synthesize primary documents such as artifacts, diaries, letters, images, museum replicas
    Lifelong learning
    • Identify personal areas of interest for inquiry project-based learning
    • Look at primary sources as vaults of information
    • Evaluate own ability to select resources for both personal and research purposes
    • Maintain openness to different opinions, whether in print or group discussions
    • Demonstrate leadership and confidence by presenting one's own and other experts ideas both formally and informally
    • Read, view, and listen to information presented in multiple formats

Faculty

Tenacre Country Day School

78 Benvenue Street, Wellesley, MA 02482
P. 781-235-2282      F. 781-237-7057
Summer Programs 781-235-3238
Tenacre Country Day School

About Tenacre

We are a private school for
pre-kindergarten to grade 6.