As schools work to implement the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), a team at Stanford University found that project-based learning is an effective framework for engaging students. The team used project-based learning, group activities, and performance-based assessments to design an effective, engaging curriculum. Over a three-year period,…

Research on teacher professional learning has shown that formative assessment can improve student learning more than most instructional practices. Empirical evidence indicates that thoughtfully implemented formative assessment practices improve students' learning, increase students' scores, and narrow achievement gaps between low-achieving…

An after-school enrichment activity offered to sixth-grade students gave a group of 10 students an opportunity to explore the effects of the California drought in their community using an engaging scientific device: the UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle). Although this activity was specifically designed for a small after-school enrichment group, it…

This textbook is a reader developed on the principle that the expanding life of a child as a citizen of the world demands acquaintance with a considerable portion of the world's best thought as expressed in literature. The general method of presenting these classics rests upon the assumption that literature is addressed to the heart and to the…

This lesson plan is concerned with early humankind and its development into human societies. It presents four topics for Unit I: (1) cave art; (2) paleontological discoveries; (3) evolution from hunting-gathering to farming; and (4) development of language. It also suggests completion time for each topic; addresses the uses and significance of the…

This document outlines ancient civilization teaching models for California sixth graders. It is another response to teachers' requests for practical assistance in implementing the "History-Social Science Framework." Units include: (1) Early Humankind and the Development of Human Societies; (2) The Beginnings of Civilization in the Near…

When archaeologists dig up the artifacts of ancient civilizations, they make discoveries and attempt to find out what life was like for ancient people. Students in the classroom explore the civilizations of the ancient world attempting to answer questions about how people lived thousands of years ago. In this activity for grade 6, students, in…

In this lesson, student teams research one of the species of early humans. Teams will create presentations that include information on physical traits, habitat, era, means of survival, culture, and relationship to modern humans. Students are provided with background information, detailed instructions, on-line resources, and reflection questions.…

This unit for sixth-grade students provides a fuller understanding of Julius Caesar's significance. Before students delve into the sample topic, they need an understanding of Roman values, lore, republican ideals, and structure of early Roman history. The first few activities in this lesson are to be taught prior to beginning the actual study of…

This curriculum guide seeks to contribute vision to the values and goals of outdoor education and to show their relevance to all curricular areas. Direction is provided for developing and implementing a dynamic curriculum in outdoor education. The guide is divided into three sections. Section I addresses the informational needs of administrators…

This unit for sixth graders focuses on the origins of Chinese civilization, the rise of early Chinese imperial centers, and the breakdown of order by the beginning of the sixth century B.C. Among the topics in the unit are: Early history and geography of India; Buddhism; Early history and geography of China; Confucius; and Culture, politics,…

Describes the implementation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration SEEDS Project in a sixth-grade class in Turlock, California. Describes student activities and media coverage surrounding the project. (MDH)

On November 17, 1995 the following news item appeared in "Time Magazine": "Long-lost cave reveals burial tombs of Maccabees." You (the student) are a journalist who has been asked by your editor to follow up that news item with an in-depth feature a two page spread with text and graphics entitled "The Life and Times of…

Banpo is a village that existed 6,000 years ago near Xi'an in the Shaanxi Province of China. Artifacts unearthed from the Banpo site are all that remains of this prehistoric clan-based community. Five excavations conducted from 1953 to 1957 revealed the remains of 45 houses, 200-odd storage pits, six kilns, 250 tombs, and more than 10,000 stone…

This model lesson for sixth graders about the beginnings of civilization in the Near East and Africa aims to have students focus on the cultural and geographical features of a region: landforms, climate, and vegetation. The lesson features three major topics: (1) Sumer and Mesopotamia, (2) Egypt, and (3) Kush. It addresses the uses and…