6th Grade Literature – St. Joseph School
General Course Description:
This class aims to help students develop higher-level thinking skills and communication skills in a variety of ways. We
focus on reading and analyzing novels, short stories, plays, fables and poems. The class is a blend of traditional
instruction and collaborative group work. Students will hear audio versions of novels and work on study questions each
week. In addition, they will write an essay or create a project for each text they read. Also, they will choose two “outside
reading” books (to be approved by the teacher) and write book reports. One of the reports is a Facebook-style page and
the other is a cereal box-style report. Students also learn 20 new vocabulary words every two weeks from the Sadlier
Vocabulary Workshop book and take quizzes every two weeks. They also take a mid-term and a final exam on the words.
Standards Used:
Common Core State Standards
English Language Arts Standards for the Archdiocese of Detroit, based on the Common
Core: http://www.aod.org/~/media/Extranet/Principals/Curriculum/6th%20Grade/Sixth%20Grade%20Language%20Art
s%20Standards.ashx/)
Main Themes of Class:
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Develop skills in listening, speaking, writing, reading, viewing and presenting in a variety of contexts
Develop critical thinking skills in analyzing novels, poems, plays and fables through essays and other projects.
Engage in literature in a variety of genres – fables, poetry, plays, and realistic, historical and science fiction.
Apply English skills and knowledge in a variety of contexts, especially writing.
Use language as a vehicle for reflection, creativity, learning, self-expression.
Major Assignments:
Create a booklet – Students identify various components of a story -- setting, characters (main and secondary), plot, and
figurative language – in a booklet format. Provide opinion of story and discuss legend in the book. Write and draw on
index cards and place in pockets of booklet.
Create a Facebook page – Students create a Facebook page on a novel of their choosing, identifying key elements of the
story including setting, characters, plot, favorite quotes, theme or message of book.
Create a cereal box book report – Students create a cereal box book report including elements of a novel – summary,
plot, characters, and a glossary. They also create a game and include a prize inside.
Essay questions– Students answer a series of essay questions that involve higher-level or critical thinking.
Reflective essays – Students write reflective essays about themes in a play they’ve read in class. Students write an essay
about a fictional utopia (based on a science fiction novel they’ve read).
Reciting a play – Students take on characters in a play and recite different parts each day, then write reflections on
major themes and diary entries from the perspective of a character.
Main Texts:
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Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park
Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
The Diary of Anne Frank (play) by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Vocabulary Workshop – Level A (Sadlier)