This cluster includes the following access points.
| Access Point Number |
Access Point Title |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.1a: | Write an introduction that introduces the writer’s claim within an argument. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.1b: | Create an organizational structure in which ideas are logically grouped to support the writer’s claim. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.1c: | Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence from credible sources. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.1d: | Use words, phrases and clauses to link claims and reasons. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.1e: | Provide a concluding statement or section that follows the argument presented. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.1f: | Distinguish claims presented orally or in writing that are supported by reasons and claims that are not. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.2a: | Organize ideas, concepts and information (e.g., using definition, classification, comparison/contrast, cause/effect). |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.2b: | Provide an introduction that includes context/background information establishing a central idea or focus about a topic. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.2c: | Develop the topic (add additional information related to the topic) with relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations or other information and examples. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.2d: | Include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables) and multimedia when useful to promote reading understanding. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.2e: | Use transitional words, phrases and clauses that connect ideas and create cohesion within writing. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.2f: | Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.2g: | Maintain a consistent style and voice throughout writing. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.2h: | Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and summarizes the information presented. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.3a: | Engage and orient the reader by establishing a context and introducing a narrator and/or characters. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.3b: | Organize ideas and event so that they unfold naturally. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.3c: | When appropriate use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, and description, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.3d: | Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence and signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.3e: | Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to convey experiences and events. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.3f: | Provide a conclusion that follows from the narrated experiences or events. |
| LAFS.6.W.1.AP.3g: | Use figurative language appropriately, including similes and metaphors. |
Vetted resources educators can use to teach the concepts and skills in this topic.
| Name |
Description |
| Earth's Spheres WebQuest: | This WebQuest is designed for 6th grade students. Students will work individually or in pairs to explore interactive websites and answer the questions on their Task Sheet. This is designed as an introduction to Earth's spheres (Hydrosphere, Atmosphere, Cryosphere, Biosphere, Geosphere) and how these spheres interact to support life on our planet. |
| Gr. 6 Lesson 3-Florida’s Limestone–Tums for Our Water and Soil : | Students will conduct a controlled experiment to determine the effect Florida's limestone has on the pH levels of Florida's water and soil. Students will compare limestone's effect to that of other rocks and minerals found naturally in Florida. At the end of this investigation, students should be able to articulate the effect limestone has on the pH of water in Florida, the importance of this phenomenon, and a basic understanding of the process by which limestone affects pH levels in water. |
| Climate and Careers!: | Students will explore chosen outdoor careers and how the careers connect to certain climates based on temperature and precipitation. The guiding question states "How might you use evidence from weather data and dot plot displays to allow you to identify which location's climate would be best for your career and why?" Students will collect data online and display the data using dot plots on posters with analysis using the mean. Students will engage in collaboration throughout. A power point is included with all necessary resources. |
| Narrative Writing: A Lesson Learned the Hard Way in “Thank You, M’am”: | In this lesson, students will read Langston Hughes’ short story “Thank You, M’am,” analyzing the impact of plot and character in developing the story’s theme. After reading the story, students will use details gathered from the text to write a narrative that predicts/portrays what would occur if the characters met again. |
| Narrative Writing: Climate Change and “The Sand Castle”: | In this lesson, students will view a video about climate change, read and analyze a short story depicting the effects of climate change, and write their own narratives sending a message to their readers about the impact of climate change. |
| Conduction, Convection, Radiation! What's the Breeze Now?: | In this lesson students will be exploring how radiant energy causes the temperature of different Earth materials to rise at different rates. Students will observe that this difference in temperature has direct effect on air movement. Students will reach to conceptual understanding of future trends. |
| Views on Freedom: Part 3 of 3: | This final lesson in three-lesson unit guides students through the process of writing and revising an essay based on the concept of freedom and using text evidence from two sources - the poem "Sympathy," and the folk tale "The People Could Fly." The lesson consists of a review of the two previous lessons in the series, three days of organizing thoughts and getting teacher and peer feedback on each step in the essay and producing a final copy. An assignment sheet and detailed organizer are all provided. Students must have completed lessons #1 and #2 in this series to complete this lesson. |
| Smooth Smoothie: | In this Model Eliciting Activity, MEA, students will analyze data to decide what blender to use, the number of times the recipes are used and the total ingredients needed. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| "The Scribe": A Close Reading Lesson: | This close reading lesson focuses on identifying theme in the short story, "The Scribe" by Kristin Hunter. The lesson incorporates information on the Great Depression and allows students to make a cross-curricular connection between history and language arts. Students will define unfamiliar words using context clues, analyze story elements, and identify stated and implied themes. |
| A Close Reading: An Excerpt from A Corner of the Universe: | In this lesson, students will conduct three close readings of an excerpt from A Corner of the Universe by Ann M. Martin. This lesson will engage students in a thought-provoking text that will challenge students to explore how a character's point of view can influence how events are described and shape a text. In conjunction with point of view, students will have opportunities to use context clues to define selected vocabulary words within the text. Upon completion of the close reading activities, students will practice their narrative writing skills by creating an original dialogue between the main character and her mother. A rubric specific to the writing task is included along with guided reading questions and sample responses. |
| A Picture's Worth A Thousand Words: From Image to Detailed Narrative: | This two-day lesson, "A Picture's Worth A Thousand Words: From Image to Detailed Narrative," by Traci Gardner, is provided by ReadWriteThink.org, a website developed by the International Reading Association, the National Council of Teachers of English, with support from the Verizon Foundation.
In the lesson, students view an image that tells a story and brainstorm the possible event or situation the image illustrates. Each student then writes a narrative from the point of view of one of the characters, revealing the character's thoughts/feelings and the events that led up to the image or the events that will follow. |
| Decisions, Decisions!: | In this Model Eliciting Activity, MEA, students will research a list of companies to invest in through purchasing stocks. Students will calculate the amount invested and readjust their investment choices. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Choose Your Own Adventure: A Hypertext Writing Experience: | This lesson prepares students for a summative assessment in which they co-author a narrative modeled after Choose Your Own Adventure stories. After reading one or more adventure stories, the teacher will facilitate discussion of the second person point of view while helping students identify the story's literary elements including setting, character, plot, and conflict. Students will then meet in literature circles to brainstorm ideas for their own group Choose Your Own Adventure story. Web authorizing software needed if wanting to post on the web. Groups create their own websites. Parts of the story can be hyperlinked to each other and uploaded to the internet. Graphic organizers, links to online Choose Your Own Adventure-style stories, and a rubric for students to conduct self-assessment are provided in this web resource. |
| Vacation: | In this Model Eliciting Activity, MEA, the purpose of this lesson is to provide students with the opportunity to solve real-world problems using addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division of multi-digit decimals. They will write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| I want a cell phone: | Students develop a procedure to select a cell phone based on qualities they think their parents value in a cell phone. Students present their solution in writing to a marketing company, who wishes to use the results to market cell phones to parents of elementary students. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Analyzing Central Ideas and Details to Answer a Research Question: | In this lesson, students will formulate a research question, practice analyzing the central ideas and relevant details of informational texts they locate during a partner research activity, and then synthesize this information into an expository paragraph. |
| Lily's Cola TV Commercial: | In this Model Eliciting Activity, MEA, given a tight budget, students need to find the number of people that can be hired to film a soda commercial. Students will make the selection using a table that contains information about two types of extras. Experienced extras earn more money per hour than novice extras; however, novice extras need more time to shoot the commercial than experienced extras. In addition, students will select the design that would be used for the commercial taking into account the area that needs to be covered and the aesthetic factor. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Let's Ride!: | Let's Ride! is a model-eliciting activity that asks students to use pluses and minuses to indicate if eight models of 4-door sedans meet specific standards based on gas mileage, seating capacity, warranty, and type of engine. The students then have to rank the cars and indicate their top four choices. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| A Room with a View: Which Characters Reached their Peak Potential in The View from Saturday?: | In this lesson, students will compare two characters from the novel, The View from Saturday, analyzing how many of their physical and emotional needs were met by the time the story ends. This determination will be reached by using Abraham Maslow's "Hierarchy of Needs" as a guide. Students will also explore the influence of gender on how many human needs are reached in someone's lifetime. As a summative assessment, students will compare two characters from the novel, identifying the needs each character fulfilled and interpreting their findings in the form of a written analysis. Students will use their analysis and comparison as the basis for an informal class debate. |
| Vacation Time: | The students will create a package list for a travel company. They must use all operations with decimals as well as compare decimals. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Exercising A Right or a Wrong?: | In this lesson, students will debate the issue of whether a character was justly punished for his violation of a school rule: standing in respectful silence during the national anthem. They will assume the identities of administrators, teachers, parents, and students while arguing the issue in a mock PTSA meeting held in a school library or auditorium. In preparation for the debate, students will be asked to speak and write from the perspective of a character, stating their opinions in a slanted or biased way in both a newspaper article and persuasive paragraph using text evidence to support their perspective. |
| The Secret Life Continues: An Extension of "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty": | After students read James Thurber's short story "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty," they will write a narrative of a daydream to add to the text using narrative techniques and incorporating multimedia elements. |
| Mucho Mulch: | In this MEA students will continue to explore and discuss the problems faced when soil is weathered and eroded away. Through the activity they will explore one of many solutions to this issue. They will also gain more perspective on the importance of considering the choices they make daily and how every choice can and does affect the environment. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Teen Cell Phone Plans: | In this Model Eliciting Activity, MEA, the purpose of this lesson is to solve real-world and mathematical problems. Students will also use operations with multi-digit decimals to solve problems. They will write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence. Students will engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Fancy Fractions Catering Company Project: | Fancy Fractions Catering Company will be hosting a party and need your help to make it happen! Your help is needed to find out how much of each ingredient is needed to feed 200 people and the most economical way of doing this (Brand name brands or store brand). You also have the option of omitting up to three ingredients from the recipe. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Batter Up Travel Plans: | A traveling baseball team coach is asking a group of engineers to provide a travel plan from Boston to Jacksonville, Florida with the hopes of attending Major League baseball games along their route. The students will design the route on a large US map highlighting their travel plan and submit the map and a written rationale of their plan. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Best School for Kevin: | In this MEA, the students will compare data to decide which school would be the best for a couple's son who is transferring into the county. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Orange Juice Conversion: | In this MEA, the students will be able to convert measurements within systems and between systems. They will be able to use problem solving skills to create a process for ranking orange juices for a Bed and Breakfast. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| A Poignant Passage about the Middle Passage: | In this lesson, students will explore what makes a passage poignant by analyzing an important chapter from the historical fiction novel, The Slave Dancer, by Paula Fox. In cooperative groups, they will use their prior knowledge of figurative language, conflict, theme, and characterization to identify a passage that has high emotional impact, relating to the journey along the Middle Passage during the slave trade. As culminating assessments, students will present their group's textual analysis to the class. |
| Protecting Our Dunes: | An environmental conservation group is asked to plant vegetation on existing sand dunes in South Florida to reduce the erosion of the dunes. Group members must decide which vegetation is best to plant. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Lola's Landscaping MEA: | In this Model Eliciting Activity, MEA, students are asked to develop a procedure to fit the most amount of rectangular prism plant packages on one sheet of cardboard, using nets and surface area. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Storm Window Treatments: | Students will be asked to analyze a given set of data to determine the best storm window treatments for a local company to use when building a new homes. Students will be asked to write a letter to the company explaining how they ranked the storm window treatments. Model Eliciting Activities, MEAs, are open-ended, interdisciplinary problem-solving activities that are meant to reveal students’ thinking about the concepts embedded in realistic situations. Click here to learn more about MEAs and how they can transform your classroom. |
| Arguing for the Sake of WINNING!: | This lesson is based on teaching 6th graders the art of assertively communicating in argumentative writing. They will use the topic of "Banning Cell Phones in Schools" to practice identifying a topic, exploring the PROS and CONS of the topic, identifying arguments and then supporting those arguments with details and evidence. They will write in the form of an argumentative letter and the culminating activity will be a presentation to the principal of their school, who is considering banning cell phones in the school. |
| Close Reading Exemplar: "The Great Fire": | The goal of this three day exemplar is to give students the opportunity to use the reading and writing habits they've been practicing on a regular basis to explore the historic Great Fire of Chicago. By reading and rereading the passage closely combined with classroom discussion about it, students will explore the historical truths related to poverty, city construction, and city services that led to the disaster. In this reading, students learn about historical disasters, but they may not fully comprehend causes or how human actions, nature, or even luck contributed to them, rendering history a flat subject to be memorized rather than explored. When combined with writing about the passage and teacher feedback, students will better understand the dangers inherent in cities and the government role in mitigating that danger. |
| Counting down from 11: Character's Perspective in "Eleven" by Sandra Cisneros: | In this lesson, students will read the short story "Eleven" by Sandra Cisneros to collect text evidence about the character’s perspective on her birthday and age. After collecting text evidence, students will develop their own claim about the character’s perspective in the story through discussion and writing. |
| Planning and Producing Plot: | Students will plan a fictional narrative focusing on the parts of the plot diagram- exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. They will create a storyboard to illustrate each element of their fictional narrative. |
| Positive Steps: Using The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens: | In this multi-day lesson, students will work collaboratively to conduct brief research and create a presentation on one of the habits, from the book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens. After sharing their multimedia presentations with the class, students will determine which one is most important to them personally. Students will write a response to explain how that habit can provide a positive personal impact. |
| Name |
Description |
| Unit Plan for Tru Confessions: Two Wishes to Accomplish: | Tru Confessions is the story of Tru, a teenager whose brother Eddie has special needs. Tru writes in her journal about her wish to find a cure for Eddie and to have her own television show. In this unit, students will examine factors that influence how families, classmates, and people in the community perceive and interact with children with developmental disabilities as they work to summarize key details and events from the text, analyze ways in which the author unfolds the plot, and explain how the author develops the point of view of the narrator and discuss how the text’s characters change. |
| A Study of "America Street: A Multicultural Anthology of Stories": | This is a sixth grade unit using the collection of short stories in "America Street: A Multicultural Anthology of Stories" by Anne Mazer. Students will examine point of view, multiple perspectives, character development, and setting in these varied texts. This unit includes a complete packet with graphic organizers, a pacing guide, and an assessment with answer key and possible student responses. |
| Investigating a Mystery in "Chasing Vermeer": | This sixth grade unit is based on the mystery novel Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett. Students will analyze clues and motives, study plot, and make predictions while learning about the artist Johannes Vermeer. It includes a complete packet with creative activities, graphic organizers, a pacing guide, and an assessment with answer key and possible student responses. |
| A Study of Science and Fantasy Fiction in A Wrinkle in Time: | This is a sixth grade unit on the sci-fi novel A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle. Students will examine the characteristics of scientific and futuristic fiction including vocabulary, setting, and plot development. This unit includes a complete packet with graphic organizers, a pacing guide, and an assessment with answer key and possible student responses. |
| Exploring Verse Novels with "Keeping the Night Watch" and "Chess Rumble" : | This is a sixth grade unit on the verse novels Keeping the Night Watch by Hope Anita Smith and Chess Rumble by G. Neri. This unit explores narrative and lyric poetry, figurative language, author's purpose, voice, and symbolism. It includes games, graphic organizers, and a complete student packet, and includes a pacing guide and assessment with sample student answers. |
| Figurative Language and Author's Purpose in "Home of the Brave" by Katherine Applegate: | This is a sixth grade unit on the verse novel Home of the Brave by Katherine Applegate. This unit explores narrative and lyric poetry, figurative language, author's purpose, voice, and symbolism. It is rich with games, graphic organizers, and a complete student packet and includes a pacing guide and assessment with sample student answers. |
| Drawing Conclusions and Solving Mysteries in “Sammy Keyes and the Hollywood Mummy”: | This is a sixth grade unit on the mystery novel Sammy Keyes and the Hollywood Mummy by Wendelin Van Draanen. Students will analyze characters, study the plot, make predictions, and draw conclusions to solve a mystery in this forensic-themed unit. This unit includes a complete packet with graphic organizers, a pacing guide, and an assessment with answer key and possible student responses. |
| Analyzing Characters and Making Predictions in "Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief": | This is a sixth grade unit on the mystery novel Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief by Wendelin Van Draanen. Students will analyze characters, study the plot, and make predictions in this forensic-themed unit. This unit includes a complete packet with graphic organizers, a pacing guide, and an assessment with answer key and possible student responses. |
| "The House on Mango Street": A Short Story Unit Examining Point of View, Perspective, and Plot: | This is a sixth grade unit using the short stories in The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros to identify point of view, interpret a character's perspective, and utilize plot elements to retell a story. This unit includes several graphic organizers, an assessment, and an answer key with sample responses. |
| Examining an Autobiography: "The Lost Garden" by Laurence Yep: | This is a sixth grade unit on Laurence Yep's autobiography, The Lost Garden. Students analyze author's purpose and the key characteristics of an autobiography. This unit contains a student packet, pacing guide, and an assessment with answer key and sample student responses. In addition, this unit includes instructional techniques such as a PIES chart, a T chart, and more! |
| Analyzing an Autobiography through "Rosa Parks: My Story": | This sixth grade unit on Rosa Parks is a thorough examination of an autobiographical novel and includes the study of author's purpose, main idea, and fact and opinion. It includes a student packet, graphic
organizers, a pacing guide, and a unit assessment with sample responses. |
| Analyzing the Mystery Novel "The Westing Game" by Ellen Raskin: | This is a sixth grade unit on the mystery novel "The Westing Game" by Ellen Raskin. Students will analyze the character's motives, identify clues to solve the mystery, make predictions about the conclusion, and identify 'red herrings'. This unit on detective fiction includes a complete packet with graphic organizers, a pacing guide, and an assessment with answer key. |
Vetted resources students can use to learn the concepts and skills in this topic.
