Welcome to 6th Grade Social Studies

Ms. Tina & Mr. Williams

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Image Analysis - See, Think, Wonder

Objectives

1. Families will be able to meet the 6th grade Social Studies teachers and familiarize themselves with 6th grade Social Studies Units and Proficiency scales.

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Standards:

Participation in SS

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• 4th year at BUGS; 9th year teaching
• ES Mathematics; MS Humanities-ELA
• Fun fact: I am a classically trained musician & have performed at Carnegie Hall & Lincoln Center.

Tina Vilar

Ms. Tina

(she/her)

tina.vilar@bugsbrooklyn.org

Mr. Williams

(he/him)

andre.williams@bugsbrooklyn.org

• 8th year teaching at BUGS
• I taught each grade level here at BUGS
• Fun Fact: I had the opportunity to teach at the elementary school that I attended as a child.

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Mr. Williams

Be independent writers, readers and bold thinkers.

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Dive into tough topics while being compassionate citizens of the world.

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Concisely speak, write and present their ideas.

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Acknowledge various arguments & conflicting points of view.

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Social Studies Units of Study

Unit 0: Think Like A Historian (Sept)

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Unit 1: Geography of the Eastern Hemisphere (Sept-Oct)

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Unit 2: Prehistoric People (Oct-Nov)

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Unit 3: Ancient Civilizations (December)

Unit 4: Comparative World Religions (Jan-Feb)

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Unit 5: Classical Civilizations in the E.H. (Mar-Apr)

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Unit 6: Cultural Interactions in the E.H. (May-June)

*no Summatives for Unit 0

Social Studies Proficiency Scales

Skills-based scales

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Content scales

7 Scales; 21 total Learning Targets

Standards-Based Grading in SS

1. BUGS is using Standards-Based Grading/Learning (SBG/SBL)
2. Proficiency scales are based on a scale of 0.0-4.0 and are used to determine mastery of a particular standard and skill.
3. A level 3 indicates grade level expectations, while a 4 indicates advanced proficiency/beyond mastery of a skill.
4. Your child’s summative assessments will be graded on a 0.0-4.0 proficiency scale.

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Formative Assessments

Summative Assessments

Students practice a skill and get feedback. Students can receive help.

• Does not count towards their overall average.
• A formative assessment for a standard is given at least once before a summative assessment.
• Examples: quizzes, exit tickets, peer-reviewed work

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Students perform a skill independently.

• 5 most recent grades count toward their overall average
• Students cannot receive help; must perform skill independently.
• Examples: unit/interim assessments, project-based assessments (PBA), Accountable Talks

How can Families support their Historians at home?

1. Ask what “topic” they learned about in class.
1. How it connects to the Unit?
2. Review Class Slides in Google Classroom
• Classwork > Class Slides > “Unit 1 Class Slides…”
3. Check GC as a “guardian” and regularly check TeacherEase (TE) for assignments & feedback.

What will 6th grade Historians working on next?

1. India is located _____________ of China.
2. China is located __________ of India.
3. Pakistan is located ___________ of Afghanistan.
4. Afghanistan is located _____________ of Pakistan.
5. The Bay of Bengal is located ____________ of Nepal.
6. Nepal is located _____________ of the Bay of Bengal.

What is 6th Grade Social Studies *really* like?

Group Projects (Comparative Religions)

Cultural Culinary Picnic

Silk Road Board Game

Questions?

Please share any general questions you may have. You may also email us directly at:

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Tina.Vilar@BUGSbrooklyn.org

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Andre.Williams@BUGSbrooklyn.org

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Current Events & Projects in SS

Throughout the year, we will be studying various current events, comparing several sources to identify bias and find truth in common threads.

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Some popular sources we will use:

• NewsELA
• The New York Times
• Washington Post

Students will engage in various interactive projects throughout the course of the year. A few examples include:

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• Autobiographical Map design (Unit 1)
• Early River Valley travel advertisement (Unit 2)
• World religion comparison (Unit 3)
• Greek mythology presentation (Unit 4)
• Create your own Silk Road Board Game (Unit 5)
• Ideal civilization project (Unit 5)

Checking scores & feedback

Assessment scores and feedback will be regularly left on Google Classroom & TeacherEase (TE).

Check Google Classroom

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1. For students’ answers on their assessments via Google Forms
2. To check on and submit missing assignments
3. To see project rubrics

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Check TeacherEase

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• For overall average (by learning target)
• To see specific feedback on assessments
• To see missing/ungraded assignments

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Accountable Talks: Air Pollution (Environmental Justice)