What your child learns in Grade 6 in Nova Scotia
Grade 6 pushes towards more abstract thinking: large numbers, factors, ratio and percent, integers, and patterns and equations. Social studies looks at culture, cross-cultural understanding and children's rights. Grade 6 students may take part in a provincial assessment.
Grade 6 subjects in the Nova Scotia Curriculum
Math
Big Ideas
- Number: Develop number sense.
- Patterns and Relations: Use patterns to describe the world and solve problems.
- Measurement: Use direct and indirect measurement to solve problems.
14 units, including thousandths to billions, facts & factors, mixed numbers & ratios, percents & budgets.
English Language Arts
Big Ideas
- A1 Foundations of Language: Learners will apply listening, speaking, and non-verbal communication skills and strategies to understand and communicate meaning for various audiences, purposes, and cultural contexts.
- A2 Foundations of Language: Learners will apply understanding of foundational language knowledge and skill when reading and writing.
- A3 Foundations of Language: Learners will apply knowledge of sentence structure, grammar, capitalization, and punctuation when reading and writing.
11 units, including roots & analogies, agreement, sentence repair, commas & clauses.
Science
Big Ideas
- Physical Science: Electricity. Learners will test the flow of electrical energy through various materials.
- Physical Science: Electricity. Learners will evaluate renewable and non-renewable sources of energy.
- Physical Science: Flight. Learners will evaluate factors that influence flight.
9 units, including static electricity, circuits, flight, earth, moon and sun.
Social Studies
Big Ideas
- Investigate the role of culture in communities. Learners will investigate the role of culture in communities, inclusive of Acadians, African Nova Scotians, Gaels, Mi’kmaq, and additional groups.
- Analyse the impact of cross-cultural understanding. Learners will analyse the impact of cross-cultural understanding, inclusive of Acadians, African Nova Scotians, Gaels, Mi’kmaq, and additional cultures.
- Compare sustainability practices between Canada and a selected country. Learners will compare sustainability practices between Canada and a selected country.
6 units, including what makes canada, canada?, understanding each other, global challenges, traditions & beliefs around the world.
French Immersion
Big Ideas
- French Immersion is first and foremost a language program: French is both the language students learn in and the language they learn.
- Early French Immersion begins in Primary and Late French Immersion in Grade 7, and both follow Français arts langagiers.
- Students listen, speak, read and write in French for real purposes and audiences.
7 units, including imparfait ou passé composé?, racines et préfixes, les légendes, quand et où?.
Core French
Big Ideas
- Oral communication. Learners will communicate orally in French in a variety of authentic situations.
- Reading. Learners will determine the meaning of a range of French texts representing a variety of cultures and diverse abilities, in authentic situations.
- Writing. Learners will create texts in French (including in electronic format) in a variety of authentic situations.
8 units, including letter patterns, question words, hobbies, giving reasons.
What to look for on the report card
Look for comments about organization, explaining reasoning in math and writing with evidence.
Nova Scotia report cards describe learning with Limited, Basic, Good, Thorough. See what each level means.
Grade 6 students also take the Nova Scotia provincial assessments. Read the Provincial assessments guide.
The Essential Graduation Competencies grow through every subject from Primary to Grade 12. Read about graduation competencies.
Ready for Grade 6?
Grade 6 builds on what your child practised in Grade 5. If a skill feels shaky, a few short practice sessions before or early in the year can help:
- Math: numbers to a million, add & subtract, mental math tricks, multiply, divide
- English Language Arts: talking together, spelling smarts, context clues, greek and latin roots, verb tenses
- Science: weather and the water cycle, forces, friction and machines, simple machines, digestion & breathing, heart, bones & muscles
- Social Studies: learning from the past, land and water, rise and fall, deciding together, meeting in atlantic canada
- French Immersion: qui, que, où, dont, ne… plus, jamais, rien, les adverbes, la ponctuation, la bande dessinée
- Core French: salutations, sounds and accents, numbers 0 to 30, masculine, feminine, plural, likes and dislikes
Common questions
Grade 6 covers math, english language arts, science, social studies, french immersion, core french in the Nova Scotia Curriculum. Grade 6 pushes towards more abstract thinking: large numbers, factors, ratio and percent, integers, and patterns and equations. Social studies looks at culture, cross-cultural understanding and children's rights. Grade 6 students may take part in a provincial assessment.
Nova Scotia report cards describe learning with Limited, Basic, Good, Thorough. Students in Grade 6 also write the Nova Scotia provincial assessments, which is separate from the report card.
Short, regular practice works better than long sessions: 10 to 15 minutes a few times a week, on the skills your child's teacher flags. Read together, use math in real life, and praise effort.
Practise Grade 6 skills with Gradelings
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