Grade 6 Academic Program

Language Arts in Grade 6 at Lumen Verum Academy will include writing, grammar, vocabulary, spelling, fictional and nonfictional literature, and poetry. In all courses students will participate in meaningful discussions, which will include listening to others respectfully and articulating their own ideas.

In this course, students will be able to identify and construct complete sentences by learning about the usage of proper grammar. Having a solid understanding of grammar is essential for the proper formation of students’ rhetoric and will help students learn to reason well, think well, and speak well. Students will recognize and identify different types of sentences including simple sentences, compound sentences, complex sentences, and compound-complex sentences. Students will recognize verbs in the active and passive voices and avoid unnecessary use of the passive voice.

Students will also continue to develop their skills in writing and research. Students will be able to construct a persuasive essay, a research essay, and a business letter. Students will give special attention to identifying a thesis, supporting their thesis with evidence, and organizing an outline. In Vocabulary, students will concentrate on learning Latin and Greek roots which form common roots in the English language. Students will be exposed to the best literature and poetry in the Western tradition, including reading stories adapted from Homer’s “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey.” They will learn classic mythology and will articulate how spiritual knowledge and enduring truths are represented and communicated through fairy tales, fables, myths, parables, and stories. Students will also analyze and study literature that reflects the transmission of a Catholic culture and worldview.

This course will help facilitate the solidifying of major foundational skills and concepts in mathematics in order to prepare students to study Algebra and Geometry. Key concepts covered this year include: place value, rounding, exponents, ratios, conversions between fractions, decimals and percents, properties of operations, solving equations, measurement, geometry, probability, and statistics, as well as various pre-algebra concepts such as variables, expressions, and equations. Sixth grade is an important year for students to develop strong mathematical habits such as precision, order, perseverance, inquiry, and logical reasoning. Since students will begin encountering more abstract concepts, they will be challenged to demonstrate growth in both their mathematical proficiency as well as their ability to reason abstractly in order to develop a deep understanding of the concepts they study.

In Grade 6 History, students will study the lasting impact and ideals of the ancients and then see those ideals come to fruition in the modern world. Students will study Judaism and Christianity as well as ancient Greece and Rome. Students will then study the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, Romanticism, Industrialism, Capitalism, Socialism, and the Latin American Independence movements. Students will study how the crossroads of Greece, Rome, and Judeo-Christianity laid the foundations for the modern world. Students will learn of the great figures of the West: Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Julius Caesar, Isaac Newton, Rene´ Descartes, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Thomas Jefferson, and others. Students will give special attention to the ideals of the Enlightenment that impacted the French and American Revolutions.

Most importantly, in all History classes at Lumen Verum, students will study history in the context of the Catholic understanding of God and man. Students will study great people of the past so that they can emulate their virtue and reject their vice. Students will learn about the Catholic Church’s role in history and properly understand history as a way of understanding what God does for humanity.

In Grade 6 Science, students will learn about plate tectonics, oceans, astronomy, energy and heat, and the human body. When studying plate tectonics, students will learn about the Earth’s surface, its layered structure, crust movements, volcanoes, and to look for evidence of long-term movement of plates. When studying oceans, students will learn about the ocean floor, the composition of seawater, currents and tides, and marine life. The study of astronomy will investigate gravity, stars, and galaxies. When studying energy, students will learn about the six forms of energy, fossil fuels, nuclear energy, heat, and energy transfer. The study of the human body will include the study of the circulatory and lymphatic systems and the immune system.

An important goal of the science curriculum is to inspire wonder and awe at God’s creation. Students will study the natural world as God’s creation and learn to revere it as such. Students will exhibit care and concern for all stages of human life. Students will study science as a means to an end, not an end in and of itself. They will come to appreciate the truths that the study of science can reveal and their proper relationship with faith.

Students will study many of the periods and schools of art throughout history. They will be exposed to and study the great works and artists of the Classical, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, Neoclassical, and Romantic periods. Students will be exposed to truly beautiful art that will inspire them to contemplate the beauty of God’s creation. Students will come to appreciate art as a means of lifting their hearts and minds to God.

Students will study the elements of music. They will learn about the orchestra and the families of instruments. They will learn frequently used Italian terms and the vocal ranges. They will learn to recognize themes and variations as well as many different musical terms and notations.

In Grade 6, students will study classical music from the Baroque period to the Romantic period. They will study and know the works of Bach, Handel, Mozart, and Beethoven. They will develop an appreciation for what is truly good and beautiful in music. Students will come to recognize how truly beautiful music will lead a human person to contemplation of God.

Grade 6 Religion will focus on learning Scripture and fostering a love for God’s written word. Students will learn all of the key stories of the Chosen People of God from creation to the fulfillment of God’s promise in Jesus Christ. Students will study the stories of creation, the Patriarchs, Moses and the exodus, the kings and prophets of Israel, the Gospels, and the epistles of the New Testament. Students will study scripture to learn of God’s love affair with man. Students will study man’s creation, fall, and redemption.

Students will also learn of God’s presence with us now in His Church. They will study the Catholic Church as founded by Jesus Christ. They will be able to list the four marks of the Church, know the precepts of the Church, and understand the Church as the visible sign of God’s presence. Students will also learn how Jesus Christ inaugurated the Kingdom of God on earth and how we participate in this kingdom today. As the students journey through Salvation History they will be exposed to Sacred Scripture, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, and various Magisterial documents.