Grade 6 Science: how to help at home
What your child learns in Grade 6 science in the Manitoba Curriculum, and simple things to try at home.
The Big Ideas this year
- What causes events to happen?
- How are time and the motion of the Solar System related?
- How are organisms similar and different from each other?
Easy ways to practise science at home
- Turn everyday questions into investigations: “Which paper towel holds the most water?”
- Read a science news story together and ask what evidence it gives.
- Look up how a household machine works, such as a bike gear, a lamp or a fridge.
- Have your child draw and label a diagram of something they just learned.
What each unit covers
Think Like a Scientist
Planning a fair test, working safely, design criteria and constraints, simple coding ideas such as conditions and variables, and how science and technology connect to careers and communities.
Gravity & Friction
Working out net force, telling balanced from unbalanced forces, mass versus weight on the Moon and other planets, and when friction helps or causes problems.
Buoyancy
Practises the idea that a fluid pushes up on objects, why some things float and others sink (density, shape and the fluid), and how ships, submarines and life jackets use buoyancy.
Flight
The four forces of flight and how balanced and unbalanced forces change motion, how air makes flight possible, how birds, bats and insects fly, and the impacts of aviation.
Stored Energy
Practises the idea that objects can hold stored energy (chemical, elastic, height) and that it can be transferred to cause events such as motion, heat and light.
Circuits
Conductors and insulators, what each part of a circuit does, and how series and parallel circuits behave and where each is used.
Earth, Moon and Sun
Why we have day and night, seasons, Moon phases, eclipses and tides, and which bodies give off light and which reflect it.
Galaxies & Space Tech
Our place in the Milky Way, light-years and other galaxies, telescopes, satellites and Canadian space technology, and how Indigenous peoples have observed and shared knowledge of the sky.
Traits & Fossils
Practises how plants and animals pass traits to their offspring, the difference between inherited traits and learned skills, and how fossils give evidence of how organisms have changed over time.
Sorting Living Things
Telling mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish apart, vertebrates from invertebrates, the kingdoms, and the levels of classification.
What the report card levels look like at home
- Level 1
- Just getting started with this idea. Short, regular practice with lots of support helps most.
- Level 2
- Understands parts of it and is building confidence. Keep practising the tricky parts.
- Level 3
- Has it! Mixed review now and then keeps it strong.
- Level 4
- Applies it confidently, even in new or harder situations. Try challenge mode and real-life problems.
Your child’s teacher decides the level on the report card. Read the Manitoba report card guide.
Common questions
How can I help my Grade 6 child with science?
Turn everyday questions into investigations: “Which paper towel holds the most water?” Read a science news story together and ask what evidence it gives. Keep sessions short, about 10 to 15 minutes, and stop on a success.
What does my child learn in Grade 6 science in Manitoba?
The Manitoba Curriculum Grade 6 science units include think like a scientist, gravity & friction, buoyancy, flight, stored energy, circuits.
Free printable Grade 6 science practice sheet
Questions from every unit, with an answer key.