Sixth Grade Core Knowledge Math Organization Guide

Ready to homeschool sixth grade math? This guide will help you get organized and prepared to teach your student using the Math curriculum from Core Knowledge.

Free Resources

How-to Videos: Watch the videos to learn to use the CK Middle School Math curriculum to homeschool. The information in this document assumes you have reviewed these videos and understand the basics of how the curriculum is structured and how to use the Teacher’s Guides.

Unit-Specific Prep Checklist: Includes notes for each unit what to print, required advanced preparation broken out by lesson, as well as additional unit-specific supplies. Click here to view the CKMath Grade 6 Unit-Specific Prep Checklist.

Daily Schedule: A free daily schedule for homeschooling Grade 6 using the Core Knowledge curriculum is available by clicking here.

Primary Materials

Units: There are currently 4 units in the Grade 6 CKLA curriculum and these represent 18 weeks of lessons (one half of a standard school year). Additional units will be released by CK. All students start with Unit 1 and progress through the units in order. You will download each unit separately from the CK website. Each unit will be downloaded as a file folder containing multiple files including the Teacher’s Guide, Student Book, Teacher Presentation Materials, and Teacher Resources. All files are in PDF format.

Teacher’s Guide: This is a hands-on math curriculum that requires direct teaching so all information to be learned in the lesson is laid out in the Teacher’s Guide. When you are ready to start a lesson with your student, you will simply open the PDF file for the Teacher’s Guide on your tablet or laptop, navigate to the lesson indicated on the daily schedule, and work through the instructions in the Teacher’s Guide for that lesson. Please be sure to watch the how-to videos first so you can be familiar with how to use the Teacher’s Guide efficiently.

Student Book: All unit folders contain a Student Book PDF file. The Student Book file should be printed prior to beginning each unit (or school year). This will save you time each school day. The Student Book can be printed as a double-sided, black and white document if needed. However, since sometimes the multicolored figures are helpful for solving math problems, if printing in color is an option, doing so will limit how often the student needs to consult the digital file to see the color of figures, etc. Once printed you can choose to:

• Keep the loose workbook pages in a file folder or other safe place so you can access the appropriate work page each day.
• Three-hole punch the worksheets and store them in a three-ring binder.
• Have your local office supply store coil-bind or comb-bind the pages into a bound book (typically about $4-$5).

Please keep all completed pages until the unit is finished so they can be quickly accessed if needed.

Solutions to all problems contained in a lesson in the Student Book are found within each lesson in the Teacher’s Guide.

Teacher Presentation Materials: These are visually larger versions of graphics generally contained in the student workbook. They can be displayed on a large screen in front of a classroom, etc. You can ignore these materials if you are teaching one student.

Teacher Resources: This folder will contain multiple resources as separate documents. Please note, copies of all these same resources can be found in the back of each unit’s Teacher’s Guide. These individual files are simply split up to make it easier to print any resource you may wish to.

• Assessments: Assessments are an important part of the curriculum. You will need to print these files. There will be 4-6 assessments/files to print per unit. You can choose whether to place these pages in the binder or folder with the Student Book pages or keep them in a separate folder. Please see below for more information about Assessments.
  
  
• Assessment Answer Keys: This document includes all teacher instructions for administering assessments including when assessments should be given (all assessments are also scheduled on the Daily Schedule you can download here). These Answer Keys also include explanations for solutions to help students who struggled with a particular problem.
  
  
• Printable Lesson Plans: These contain the same exact lesson plans as the Teacher’s Guide but in slightly bigger font making them a bit easier to glance at and follow during a lesson. These files are convenient if you prefer to print the lesson plan pages and lay them out on the table, etc. while you are teaching a lesson.
  
  
• Blackline Masters: You will need to print this file. Ideally, these documents should be printed at the beginning of the unit (or school year) and kept in a folder for easy access. A chart on the first page of the file will guide you through when each Blackline Master is used, how many copies you will need for each student, whether they will need to be cut out to be used, and whether card stock is recommended. I’ve also placed notes in the Unit-Specific Prep Checklist reminding you when you’ll need a Blackline Master for a lesson and whether prep work (cutting shapes out, etc.) is required.
  
  
• Cool Downs: These are the wrap up portions for the lessons and are an important part of the curriculum. You will need to print this file. You can choose whether to place these pages in the binder or folder with the Student Book pages or keep them in a separate folder (the former option will make the lessons easier to administer on a daily basis).
  
  
• Family Support Materials: These documents are meant to be sent home with students so families can assist with homework. You can ignore this file although it could be helpful to a homeschooling parent if you just need an additional explanation in a different format or to give to another adult or older student who will be helping your student with their work. These files often include links to online videos explaining important math concepts.
  
  
• Unit Learning Targets: This information is included in each lesson in the Teacher’s Guide so you can ignore this separate file. The Learning Targets are helpful to reference when finishing lesson to double check all outcomes have been achieved.

Other Required Supplies: The following items are used throughout the school year and should be assembled and kept on hand.

• Geometry Tool Kit: One of the goals for 6^th grade is to help students begin to understand how to choose the right math tools for a task. The Teacher’s Guide recommends keeping the following supplies in a small container near the student for every lesson.
  • Tracing Paper (smaller size is better, 5”x5” is a good size, “Patty Paper” can be found online and is useful if you can find some that is not covered in wax and can be written on)
  • Graph Paper
  • Colored Pencils
  • Scissors
  • Index Cards
  • Ruler
• Card Stock: Useful for printing Blackline Masters (see above)
• Printer Paper in Assorted Colors: Useful for printing Blackline Masters (see above)
• Sticky Notes
• Tape
• Glue or Glue Sticks
• Snap Cubes
• Pattern Blocks

This is a hands-on math program so keep in mind there are additional supplies used that are unit-specific or even lesson-specific. Please refer to the Unit-Specific Prep Checklist for more information.

Important Tips

Before You Start:

• Please take time to watch (and maybe re-watch) the How-to Videos as well as carefully read through the first 5-10 lessons in the Teacher’s Guide. Even if you are an experienced homeschooler, there is a rhythm and flow to this curriculum that is likely different than what you have previously used.

• Whether you need to review every lesson in advance long term will likely depend on your individual comfort level with teaching math as a subject. If you have no experience in this area, don’t worry! The curriculum is fully scripted and will guide you through exactly how to present the material to your student, explanations for answers to problems, etc.

• Make a habit of gathering any supplies needed for the lesson in advance. Lessons will flow more smoothly if you don’t have to stop and hunt for things. Using the Unit-Specific Prep Checklist will help.

Advance Preparation: Some lessons include Advance Preparation and those lessons should be called out in the Unit-Specific Prep Checklist. Often the preparation recommended in the Teacher’s Guide can easily be rolled into lessons. For example, your student can cut out the Blackline Master themselves vs. you preparing that in advance.

Group Activities: This curriculum was designed to be used in a classroom setting and includes many “group activities” where a small group of students is instructed to puzzle through a concept. In a homeschool setting, you will be sitting right next to your student presenting the lesson. When the group activity portion is called for, you will act as your student’s group member. Ideally allow your student a brief time to puzzle through the question or activity but you should also be a useful group member and make observations, pose helpful questions, etc. that help guide your student’s reasoning, allowing them to arrive at the solution.

Assessments: Assessments are an important part of this curriculum and all assessments are scheduled on the Daily Schedule you can download here. Please do not skip any assessments. They not only provide an opportunity to check that your student is retaining concepts, they also serve as important opportunities to practice the skills taught so far. This curriculum includes three types of assessments:

• Check-Your-Readiness Assessments: All units start with two Check-Your-Readiness Assessments (labeled A and B). Assessment A should be completed one school day and Assessment B completed the following school day. These assessments provide important review and focus to help your student transition to the information to be presented in the new unit.

• Mid-Unit Assessments: Some units include Mid-Unit Assessments (labeled A and B) and should be completed over two school days. These assessments provide an opportunity to verify your student is retaining concepts and important practice of concepts taught in the unit.

• End-of-Unit Assessments: All units include End-of-Unit Assessments (labeled A and B) and should be completed over two school days. These assessments provide an opportunity to verify your student is retaining concepts and important practice of concepts taught in the unit.

The Assessment Answer Keys can be found in the Teacher Resources folder and included detailed solutions and explanations to help a student who may be struggling with a concept.

Lesson Flow: Plan for 50-60 minutes of math each day with about half that time requiring your direct attention and presence. The other half of the time your student will work independently on the Practice Problems for that day. There is a distinct flow to the lessons in this curriculum and with rare exception, you can generally expect the following:

• Prepare for the Lesson (5 minutes): Read/scan the first 1-2 pages of the lesson including the Goals, Lesson Targets, and Lesson Narrative. Be sure you’ve also gathered all needed materials in advance (using the Unit-Specific Prep Checklist makes this easier)
  
  
• Direct Teaching (20-25 minutes): You will actively teach your student following the lesson script in the Teacher’s Guide:
  • Warm-up (Lesson x.1): Each lesson has a warm-up activity to introduce the concept to the student often through a discover-method approach.
  • Primary Lesson (Lesson x.2): The Teacher’s Guide will walk you through presenting the material and working through example problems with your student.
  • Applying What Was Learned (Lesson x.3): You will be using the instructions in the Teacher’s Guide to help your student apply the information they just learned to example problems.
  • Cool Down (Lesson x.4): Each lesson has a concluding activity to help reinforce what was learned. Cool Down worksheets are located in a separate file in the Teacher Resources folder—see above for instructions on printing these in advance.
    
    
• Student Works Independently on Practice Problems (15-25 minutes)
  
  
• Review Student’s Work and Have the Student Rework Any Missed Problems (5-10 minutes): Solutions and explanations for every practice problem are included in the lesson in the Teacher’s Guide. It is very important to review your student’s work each day and ensure they correct any problems before moving on.

Built-in Review: This curriculum does include reviewing formally covered concepts. A portion of the Practice Problems your student will work through each day will review previously taught concepts. Helpfully, each review problem includes a note (both in the Student Book and the Teacher’s Guide) citing which lesson originally covered the concept reviewed in the problem. The Assessments included in the curriculum also serve as important opportunities to review and practice concepts.

Unit-Specific Prep Checklist

This checklist will help you prepare for each new unit of the Core Knowledge Sixth Grade Math curriculum. Please refer to the specific unit list prior to starting a new unit. It will guide you through what what documents to print, unit-specific supplies that should be gathered, and special notes for lessons in that unit.

Unit 1: Area and Surface Area

• Read the Unit Introduction: Teacher’s Guide pg. 1-9

• Things to Print:
  • Student Book
  • Blackline Masters
  • Assessments
  • Cool Downs

• Gather the Unit Specific Supplies:
  • Tangrams, commercially produced or use the Lesson 2 Blackline Master (Lesson 2)
  • Isometric Dot Paper, several sheets, can be printed here: https://lrt.ednet.ns.ca/PD/BLM/pdf_files/dot_paper/iso_dot_1cm.pdf (Lesson 12)
  • Pre-assembled or commercially produced polyhedral, see lesson notes below (Lesson 13)

• Review the Unit-Specific Notes:
  • Lesson 1:
    • Assemble the “Geometry Toolkit” prior to starting lessons. See Unit 1 TG pg. 11 for more information.
    • Remember, for this lesson and all lessons, you are your student’s team member. All three teaching portions should be conducted sitting right next to your student. While you can allow them a brief time to puzzle through a question or activity, it’s also important that you be an active teammate and make observations, pose helpful questions, etc.
  • Lesson 2: If a commercial set of Tangrams isn’t available, print the Blackline Master (pg. 3) and cut apart the shapes.
  • Lesson 7: Cut the copies of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.
  • Lesson 8: Cut the slips of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.
  • Mid-Unit Assessment: The assessment is divided into two parts (A and B) and is scheduled over two days following Lesson 11 on the daily schedule. The student assessment pages are found in the Teacher Resources sub-folder. The answers for the assessment are found in a separate PDF file in the Teacher Resources sub-folder.
  • Lesson 12:
    • Print several copies of the Isometric Dot Paper. You’ll use it for both this lesson and Lesson 16. (https://lrt.ednet.ns.ca/PD/BLM/pdf_files/dot_paper/iso_dot_1cm.pdf)
    • You will need snap cubes for the first time in this lesson.
  • Lesson 13:
    • Cut the copies of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.
    • Calls for pre-assembled or commercially produced polyhedra to have the student puzzle through during the lesson. Either preassemble a copy of the Blackline Master for Activity Grade6.1.13.1 or Google and YouTube have a number of sets of instructions for making your own.
    • Keep all the nets of polyhedra assembled during this lesson close by as you’ll need them again in future lessons in this unit and other units.
  • Lesson 14: Cut the copies of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.
  • Lesson 15: Cut the slips of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.
  • Lesson 16: You’ll need sticky notes during this lesson as well as the Isometric Dot Paper you printed during Lesson 12.
  • Lesson 19:
    • This lesson consists of puzzling through a practical problem (designing a tent). There is not a separate set of practice problems. Instead you and your student will work through the challenge for the entire lesson.
    • You’ll only need one copy of the Blackline Master for this lesson.

For the first lesson in the next unit, both you and your student will need to gather 10-50 small objects. Plan to do this in advance of starting the unit. See the Unit 2 (Introducing Ratios) TG pg. 12 for more information.

Unit 2: Introducing Ratios

• Read the Unit Introduction: Teacher’s Guide pg. 1-10

• Things to Print:
  • Student Book
  • Blackline Masters
  • Assessments
  • Cool Downs

• Gather the Unit Specific Supplies:
  • Students’ collection of objects, see TG pg. 12 (Lesson 1)
  • Teacher’s collection of objects, see TG pg. 12 (Lesson 1)
  • Tools for Creating a Visual Display, see TG pg. 10 (Lessons 1, 2, 5, 8, 15, 16, 17)
  • Empty containers (Lesson 3)
  • Paper cups (Lessons 3, 4)
  • Teaspoon (Lesson 3)
  • Water (Lesson 3)
  • Drink mix, sugar free and fruit- or chocolate-flavored is best, see TG pg. 45 (Lesson 3)
  • Beakers (Lesson 4)
  • Graduated cylinders (Lesson 4)
  • Food coloring (Lesson 4)
  • Masking tape (Lesson 9)
  • Meter stick (Lesson 9)
  • Stopwatch, app on smart phone can be used (Lesson 9)
  • String (Lesson 9)

• Review the Unit-Specific Notes:
  • The snap cubes you used in Unit 1 are again used in several lessons during this unit.
  • Lesson 1: A few days in advance, you will need to gather collections of objects and tools for creating a visual display. See TG pg. 12 for more information.
  • Lesson 2: Review the Spaghetti Sauce activity (TG pg. 36) in advance and complete the “Required Preparation” listed on TG pg. 28. It should only take a few minutes to do this prep.
  • Lesson 3: You will need a few minutes before the lesson to do the “Required Preparation” listed on TG pg. 45
  • Lesson 4: You will need a few minutes before the lesson to do the “Required Preparation” listed on TG pg. 60
  • Lesson 7: See TG pg. 106, it may be helpful, but not required to bring back the blue and yellow water mixtures (Lesson 4) for this lesson.
  • Lesson 9: The “Required Preparation” for this lesson (see TG pg. 136) can be done together with your student. You will only need one path/warm-up zone.
  • Lesson 13: Cut the copies of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.
  • Lesson 14: Cut the copies of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.
  • Lesson 16: Cut the copies of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.

Unit 3: Unit Rates and Percentages

• Read the Unit Introduction: Teacher’s Guide pg. 1-7

• Things to Print:
  • Student Book
  • Blackline Masters
  • Assessments
  • Cool Downs

• Gather the Unit Specific Supplies:
  • Four-function calculator, a phone calculator app can be used (Lessons 1, 4, 9)
  • Household items, see TG pg. 24 (Lesson 2)
  • Meter stick (Lessons 2, 3)
  • Quart-sized bottle (Lessons 2, 3)
  • String (Lesson 2)
  • Yardstick (Lesson 2)
  • Base-ten blocks (Lesson 3)
  • Blank paper (Lesson 3)
  • Cuisenaire rods or substitute item, see TG pg. 41 (Lesson 3)
  • Gallon-sized jug (Lesson 3)
  • Graduated cylinders (Lesson 3)
  • Inch cubes (Lesson 3)
  • Liter-sized bottle (Lesson 3)
  • Metal paper fasteners, aka brass brads (Lesson 3)
  • Pre-assembled polyhedral from Unit 1, Lesson 13 (Lesson 3)
  • Salt (Lesson 3)
  • Scale, digital that can output in grams, kilograms, ounces, or pounds (Lesson 3)
  • Straightedge, can use a ruler or index card if needed, see TG pg. 41 (Lesson 3)
  • Teaspoon (Lesson 3)
  • Tray (Lesson 3)
  • Grocery ads from a newspaper, optional (Lesson 5)
  • Train rail schedule for your community, optional (Lesson 8)
  • Tools for creating a visual display, see TG pg. 121 (Lesson 8, 11)

• Review the Unit-Specific Notes:
  • In this unit and going forward, your student will have the option of using a calculator for some activities. Using a calculator is optional since the arithmetic required was learned in fifth grade. If your student needs arithmetic practice, don’t use the calculator. If they could use some calculator practice, this is a good opportunity for that to happen.
  • Lesson 2: The lesson will flow more smoothly if you can take a few minutes in advance and work through the “Required Preparation” on TG pg. 24.
  • Lesson 3: This lesson includes “stations” in a classroom. Your prep can be more informal. Read through the “Required Preparation” section on TG pg. 41 in advance to understand the different activities. The prep work for each activity can typically be done with your student there helping set up. You should also not feel pressured to complete all five stations/activities. Several would suffice as the point is to give the student practice with measuring. Please note, one activity requires watching a video and one activity suggests watching a digital simulation. Having those ready to go in your device’s browser window would be helpful.
  • Lesson 5: If you receive a weekly or daily newspaper, save the grocery advertisements to use during this lesson. This is optional. You can also make up deal scenarios to give your student.
  • Lesson 8: If your community has a train, it might be helpful to access the rail schedule online to use during one of the activities. This is also a good opportunity to practice the life skill of reading a public transportation schedule.
  • Lesson 9: Cut the copies of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.
  • Lesson 14: Cut the copies of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.

Unit 4: Dividing Fractions

• Read the Unit Introduction: Teacher’s Guide pg. 1-8

• Things to Print:
  • Student Book
  • Blackline Masters
  • Assessments
  • Cool Downs

• Gather the Unit Specific Supplies:
  • Pattern blocks (Lessons 4, 5)
  • Tools for creating a visual display (Lessons 5, 9)
  • ¼” graph paper (Lesson 13)
  • Straightedges (Lesson 13)
  • ½” cubes or centimeter cubes x20 (Lesson 14)
  • Measuring tape (Lesson 17)

• Review the Unit-Specific Notes:
  • Lesson 1: Cut the copies of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them. Ideally each of the two pages will be printed on a different color of paper.
  • Lesson 4: For the “Pattern Blocks” activity, see the “Required Preparation” on TG pg. 52 for the list of which block shapes you’ll need to use. This doesn’t need to be done in advance.
  • Lesson 5: For the “Pattern Blocks” activity, see the “Required Preparation” on TG pg. 65 for the list of which block shapes you’ll need to use. This doesn’t need to be done in advance.
  • Lesson 12:
    • Cut the copies of the Blackline Master in advance or plan extra time for your student to cut them.
    • Optional: Consider assembling the objects used in the “How Many Would It Take?” activity. Information on what you’d need to do so can be found in the “Required Preparation” section on TG pg. 183. If you do choose to assemble these items, you can use them again in Lesson 13.
  • Lesson 17: Access an image of United States Postal Service flat-rate boxes here: https://about.usps.com/news/photos/packages-gallery.htm

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