What does a student learn in StateGeorgia,GradeGrade 6,SubjectEnglish Language Arts?

Reading, writing, speaking, and listening show up in every part of sixth-grade English. These four habits run through all the skills students build across the year.

Students learn how grammar and punctuation work in real sentences, then apply those rules in their own writing. They also build vocabulary by figuring out what unfamiliar words mean from context and word parts.

Reading, writing, and discussion all build on real texts. Students practice skills by working directly with stories, articles, and other written material, not just talking about ideas in the abstract.

Students read and write with a clear sense of why it matters, building habits that help them understand what they read and say what they mean in writing.

Students practice seeing themselves as real readers and writers, building a personal set of strategies they can reach for when reading or writing gets hard.

Students set their own reading and writing goals, track how well they're meeting them, and adjust when something isn't working. It's a habit of stepping back to ask: am I improving, and what do I do next?

Students name the types of reading and writing they connect with most and explain why, pointing to specific topics, styles, or genres that keep them engaged.

Students choose reading and writing topics that interest them personally and connect to what they are studying in class.

Students collect a set of reading and writing moves they can reach for when a text gets hard or an assignment needs a new approach.

Students share their own writing with the group, listen as classmates read theirs, and give useful feedback in return. The class builds shared habits around how those conversations work.

Students take on reading and writing tasks with less guidance over time, making their own decisions about how to plan, draft, and work through a text.

Students practice reading and writing as real communication, choosing words and ideas with a purpose. They connect what they read or write to other texts, their own lives, or the wider world.

Students read and write texts that tell a story, whether from real life or made up. This includes understanding how others tell stories and practicing how to shape their own.

Students read to actually learn something: picking up facts, sharpening skills, or forming opinions they can share with others.

Reading and writing as a way to think. Students use articles, notes, and other texts to work out ideas, then write to show what they understand and where their thinking has grown.

Students take notes, make charts, or write summaries to help them think through what they are reading and decide what they actually believe about it.

Students read to gather information that helps solve a real problem or make a decision, then write to share what they found and make a case for a specific choice.

Students use reading strategies (like previewing, pausing to question, and reflecting after) to make sense of challenging texts across subjects and assignments.

Before reading, students decide what they're looking for. While reading, they check whether it's making sense and change their approach if it isn't.

Students quickly look over a text before reading it in full, noting headings, sections, and any parts that seem most relevant to their purpose.

Students connect what they already know to what they're reading, then adjust their thinking when the text challenges or adds to that knowledge.

Students pause while reading to put a section into their own words or picture it as a scene. Both habits help them hold on to meaning as they move through longer or more complex texts.

Before and during reading, students guess what will happen next and keep notes on whether those guesses turn out to be right.

Students read between the lines. They notice what a text implies, not just what it says outright, and they track those inferences across the whole piece to back them up with specific details.

When students hit an unfamiliar word, they use the surrounding sentences and what they know about prefixes, roots, and suffixes to figure out what it means.

Students plan, draft, revise, and edit their writing for different purposes and readers. Over time, they get comfortable moving back and forth through those steps rather than treating writing as a one-and-done task.

Before writing, students decide what they want their piece to accomplish and who will read it. That focus shapes every choice they make, from the opening sentence to the final word.

Students decide how to organize their writing before drafting: choosing whether to tell a story, explain an idea, or argue a point, based on who will read it and why.

Students figure out what to write about by thinking through what they already know, reading to find more, and talking it over with classmates before putting ideas on the page.

Students decide which ideas and details belong in their writing plan, keeping the ones that best support the piece and setting aside what doesn't fit.

Students write a first draft by pulling together their ideas, choosing words that fit the piece, and using writing techniques that match what they want the reader to feel or understand.

Students reread their own writing and ask whether it actually does what they set out to do, using their own judgment or a classmate's reaction to decide what still needs work.

Students revise their own writing after reflecting on it or hearing feedback from others. They rework how it's organized, what it says, and how it's worded until the piece does what they meant it to do.

Students review their own writing to fix grammar, spelling, punctuation, and other rules of written English before the work is finished.

Students learn to ask who wrote a piece, who it was meant for, and why, then use those answers to understand what a text really means or to make sharper choices in their own writing.

Students learn to read a text by first asking: when was this written, where, and what was happening in the world at the time? That same thinking shapes how they write for their own audience and purpose.

Students figure out what background knowledge or research they need before reading or writing. They look for clues about who made the text, who it was made for, and why.

When students read or write, they think about the circumstances surrounding a text: the time, place, and situation that shaped why an author wrote it and what a reader brings to it.

Students look at how the time, place, and circumstances around a piece of writing shape what the author chose to say and how readers respond to it.

Students learn to spot the choices an author makes, like word selection or tone, to reach a specific reader and accomplish a specific goal. Then students use those same moves in their own writing.

Students figure out why a text was written, who it was written for, and whether it actually does what the author intended. They use the same thinking when writing their own work.

When reading, students figure out why an author wrote something and who it was written for. When writing, students use that same thinking to shape their own point of view and make clear what they want readers to take away.

Students look at a piece of writing and explain why the author chose certain details, words, and structure based on who they were writing for and why.

Students study how a writer's word choices, structure, and point of view shape a reader's experience, then apply those same moves in their own writing.

Reading like a writer means students notice the choices an author made, such as word choice, sentence structure, or how a scene opens, and think about why those choices shape how a reader feels or reacts.

Students read and write texts looking at how word choices, structure, and tone shape what an audience thinks or feels. In sixth grade, the focus shifts to rhetorical choices: how a writer builds a case, stirs a reaction, or earns a reader's trust.

Students study why an author chose a specific word or phrase, then explain how that choice shapes what readers think or feel. The focus is on connecting exact words to the effect they have on the audience.

Students look at how an author builds sentences, short and punchy or long and layered, and explain why those choices pull in a particular reader or push the writing toward its goal.

Students look at how a text is organized and explain why an author made those choices. How does a heading, a chapter break, or a repeated pattern shape what readers notice and understand?

Students write with a real reader in mind, choosing words, structure, and detail based on what the audience needs to understand or feel. Every decision ties back to the purpose of the piece.

Students practice blending storytelling details, factual explanation, and persuasive moves into a single piece of writing to reach a specific audience and get a specific result.

Students choose specific words and phrases to steer how a reader thinks or reacts. Every word choice is a decision made with a purpose in mind.

Students choose how to build their sentences, such as keeping them short for impact or combining ideas for flow, based on who will read the writing and what the writing needs to do.

Students choose how to organize their writing, such as which sections to use, how to order ideas, and where to add headings or lists, so the piece is easy to follow and makes the right impression on readers.

Students look at how a text is laid out, including headings, spacing, and images, and think about why the author made those choices. Then they use the same thinking when writing or designing their own work.

Students experiment with different types of writing, such as stories, arguments, and how-to pieces, paying attention to how word choice and structure change the feeling and purpose of a piece.

Students think about how the format of a piece of writing shapes what goes in it. A poem and a news article cover the same topic differently, so students learn to notice those choices and use them in their own writing.

Students learn how the type of writing (a poem, a news article, a short story) shapes the way ideas get organized on the page. They use that knowledge when reading and when writing their own pieces.

Students read and create texts that mix words, images, and other media, making deliberate choices about format and style to reach a specific audience or accomplish a clear goal.

Students talk, listen, and present ideas in different settings, from small group discussions to full-class conversations. The focus is on sharing what they know and learning from what others say.

Students work with classmates to finish shared assignments and projects, dividing tasks, listening to different ideas, and moving the group toward a common goal.

Students come to group discussions having read, thought, or prepared beforehand, ready to contribute ideas rather than just listen.

Students work with a group to agree on shared rules, set goals, and keep the work moving on a class project.

Students add their own ideas to group discussions and projects, listen to what classmates say, and give feedback on others' contributions.

Students talk through topics, ask questions, and work out problems with classmates, then use those conversations to build or improve written work.

Students choose how to organize and deliver a presentation based on who is listening and why. A speech for classmates sounds different from a report for a panel of judges.

Students practice saying ideas out loud in a way others can follow, whether sharing a finding, explaining a text, or walking the class through their thinking.

Students choose the right format and style for who they're talking to and why. A class presentation, a written report, and a small-group discussion each call for different choices, and students practice making those calls.

Sixth graders adjust how fast or slow they speak, how they sound, and what they do with their hands and face based on who is listening and why. A speech to persuade sounds different from a casual group discussion.

Students ask questions during a presentation and answer questions from the audience. This back-and-forth helps them explain their ideas more clearly and respond to what listeners actually want to know.

Students memorize and recite poems or speeches out loud, building familiarity with how language works at its best. Reading great writing aloud helps students hear patterns, rhythms, and ideas they might miss on the page.

Students read and write with an eye on how sentences are built, paying attention to grammar rules that show up in real texts. They notice how those rules work, then apply them in their own writing.

Students apply grammar rules, punctuation, and word usage when reading closely or writing. This means noticing how sentences are built and using that same knowledge to make their own writing clearer and more precise.

Students use verb forms that show whether an action is ongoing, completed, or was ongoing before something else happened. For example, knowing the difference between "I was reading" and "I have read" and "I had been reading."

Students use participles, verb forms that act as adjectives, to add description to sentences. For example, "the running water" or "a broken window" both use a verb turned into a describing word.

Pronouns like "it," "they," or "this" need a clear noun to point back to. Students find sentences where the connection is fuzzy and rewrite them so the reader knows exactly who or what the pronoun means.

Correlative conjunctions are paired linking words like "either/or" and "neither/nor." Students use these pairs to connect two words, phrases, or full clauses in a sentence, and they practice until the pattern is second nature.

Punctuating dialogue correctly means placing quotation marks around a speaker's exact words, adding a comma before or after an attribution like "she said," and ending with the right punctuation. Students are expected to do this without reminders.

Semicolons can stand in for commas when a list gets confusing because the items already have commas inside them. Students learn when a semicolon keeps a sentence clear that a comma alone would tangle up.

Students practice setting off extra information in a sentence using commas, parentheses, or dashes. The extra details are ones the sentence would still make sense without.

Students learn when to use ellipses, the three dots that show a pause, a trailing thought, or a missing part of a quoted sentence.

Students practice placing hyphens in compound words and with prefixes or suffixes, like "self-aware" or "well-known." This is an introduction to the skill, so the focus is on recognizing when a hyphen belongs and trying it out in writing.

Students learn when and how to use a semicolon to connect two closely related sentences, with or without a linking word like "however" or "therefore."

Students practice using nouns, verbs, adjectives, and other parts of speech in the right role inside a sentence, such as naming who does the action or describing what happens.

When students quote or paraphrase from a source, they use capital letters, quotation marks, commas, and end punctuation in the right places. This includes adding parentheses around the citation that shows where the evidence came from.

Sentence structure shapes how ideas land on a reader. Students learn to rearrange, combine, and trim sentences so their writing is clearer and their meaning comes through exactly as intended.

Reading a sentence, students notice how it is built, using the order and structure of words to figure out meaning in more complex texts.

Students practice building sentences of different lengths and structures, from short simple sentences to longer combined ones, while keeping verb tenses consistent so the writing doesn't jump between past and present.

Sixth graders learn to write sentences where the subject does the action rather than receives it. They also practice making sure the subject and verb match, so a sentence like "the team plays" stays consistent throughout a paragraph.

Students practice adding descriptive words and phrases to sentences so their writing gives readers a clearer, more specific picture of what they mean.

No grammar rule is tested at this grade. This standard is part of a progression that starts in 9th grade, so students in Grade 6 are not responsible for it yet.

Students practice figuring out unfamiliar words by studying roots, prefixes, and suffixes, and by reading and discussing widely. The goal is a larger working vocabulary they can use in their own writing and speech.

Students practice building word knowledge across everyday conversation, schoolwork, and subject-area reading, then use what they've learned to make sense of new texts and express ideas more precisely.

Students build vocabulary by reading and listening across subjects, picking up everyday words alongside the specific language used in science, history, and other courses.

Students practice using the precise, subject-specific words that fit each context, whether writing an essay, discussing a novel, or explaining a science concept.

Students use roots, prefixes, and suffixes to figure out what an unfamiliar word means, then choose words precisely when they write or speak.

Students break apart unfamiliar words by looking at roots, prefixes, and suffixes, often from Greek or Latin, to figure out what the word means. A word like "geography" splits into "geo" (earth) and "graphy" (writing), which points to the meaning.

Knowing whether a word is acting as a noun, verb, or adjective can help students figure out what an unfamiliar word means in a sentence they are reading.

Students use Greek and Latin word parts, like roots and prefixes, to build new words and figure out what unfamiliar words mean when they show up in reading or writing.

Knowing whether a word is a noun, verb, or adjective helps students pick the most exact word for what they want to say. Students practice choosing words by their job in a sentence, not just by feel.

Students look beyond a word's dictionary meaning to ask what feeling or attitude it carries. Then they use that thinking to read more carefully and choose words more deliberately when they write.

This standard is a transition marker, not a skill students practice. It signals that vocabulary work from earlier grades is stepping up to a new level in sixth through eighth grade.

Students figure out what an unfamiliar word means by looking at the words around it, finding synonyms or antonyms nearby, or working through an analogy that compares it to something familiar.

Words can share the same basic meaning but carry very different feelings. Students learn to tell apart words like "confident" and "arrogant" by noticing the emotional weight each one carries.

Students look up unfamiliar words or phrases using a dictionary, thesaurus, or online search tool, then confirm the meaning fits how the word is used in context.

Closely related words like "angry," "furious," and "irritated" mean slightly different things. Students use a dictionary or thesaurus to figure out those differences and pick the most precise word when writing or speaking.

Students look at who wrote a text, when, and why, then explain how those details change what the text means or how it lands on a reader.

Students read a text and ask: who wrote this, for whom, and why? Then they explain how those answers shape the word choices, tone, and details the author included.

A single piece of writing can do more than one thing at once. Students read a text and figure out what it is trying to do, who it was written for, and how those goals shape the words the author chose.

Text mode features are things like headings, captions, sidebars, and bold words. Students use those features to better understand what a passage is saying and why the author organized it that way.

Students build a project that mixes words, images, or other media to communicate a clear message to a specific audience, like classmates or a community group.

Students read a text and figure out what the author believed or experienced, then explain how those views shaped what the author chose to write. A politician's speech and a refugee's memoir cover the same war differently for good reason.

A text can present more than one point of view on the same topic. Students read to find those different perspectives and explain how they shape or push back against each other.

Students look at the facts, quotes, and examples an author chooses to include, then explain what those choices reveal about the author's point of view and whether they make the argument trustworthy.

Students look at where, when, and what was happening when a text was written, then explain how those details shaped what the author said and how the story or argument developed.

Students find and use trustworthy sources to answer questions about topics they're studying or curious about, then check that those sources hold up before relying on them.

Students study how a piece of writing is organized and why the author made those choices. They look at things like paragraph order, transitions, and word choice to see how structure shapes what a reader understands.

Students study how a piece of writing is put together and why the author made those choices. Then they use what they notice to organize their own writing in a way that makes the meaning clear.

Authors don't always follow a simple beginning-to-end order. Students explain why a writer might rearrange sections, add headings, or shift the structure to make a point land harder or fit the reader better.

Students choose how to organize a piece of writing, picking structures like cause-and-effect or headings and visuals, based on who will read it and why.

Students use repeated words and connected phrases to guide readers smoothly from one idea to the next, making the whole piece easier to follow.

Students write multi-paragraph pieces with a clear opening, body paragraphs that back up the main idea with facts or details, and a closing that wraps it up.

Reading like a writer, students study how word choice, sentence structure, and tone shape a piece of writing. Then they apply those same moves in their own work.

Figurative language (like metaphors and similes) and word connotation shape how a text feels and what it means. Students identify specific word choices and explain how those words create a mood or tone in a poem, story, or article.

Students choose figurative language, like a metaphor or simile, to create a specific effect in their own writing. The goal is to match the language to the audience and purpose, not just add decoration.

Students learn the difference between formal writing (like an essay or report) and informal writing (like a text message or conversation), then practice switching between the two depending on their audience and purpose.

Students study how word choice, structure, and point of view shape meaning in what they read, then use those same techniques in their own writing.

Students read stories to spot how authors build tension, reveal character, and control pacing. Then students try those same moves in their own writing.

Students look at how an author uses techniques like dialogue, pacing, and description to build the story's plot, characters, and setting across the whole text, not just in one scene.

Students look at how the setting, key events, and characters speed up or slow down the action in a story. They explain why certain moments feel rushed or drawn out based on what the author chose to include.

Students find more than one theme in a story, then explain how the characters' choices and relationships push those themes forward.

Students pick two stories from different genres, such as a fantasy and a historical novel, and explain how each one tackles the same big idea in its own way.

Students practice storytelling moves like dialogue, pacing, and descriptive detail to make their writing more compelling for a reader.

Expository writing explains real topics: how something works, why it happened, or what it means. Students read nonfiction that uses these techniques, then practice using them in their own writing.

Students identify how a nonfiction piece is built: where the main idea sits, how facts and details support it, and how the writing wraps up at the end.

Students read two accounts of the same historical event and explain how each author tells it differently, looking at what each one includes, leaves out, or emphasizes.

This standard was taught in earlier grades and is not part of 6th grade work.

Students practice the building blocks of strong nonfiction writing: a clear main idea, supporting facts, and an ending that wraps things up. The goal is writing that a reader can actually follow.

Students read arguments and figure out how the writer builds a case: what claim is being made, what evidence supports it, and whether the reasoning holds up. They also use those same moves when writing their own arguments.

Students identify how a writer builds an argument: the main claim, the evidence behind it, the opposing view the writer addresses, and the conclusion that wraps it up.

This standard isn't taught in Grade 6. Students will begin working on this skill in 9th grade.

Students write an argument by stating a clear position, backing it up with relevant evidence, and addressing the opposing side before wrapping up with a logical conclusion.

This standard isn't taught in Grade 6. Students will encounter this skill in 9th grade.

Students read poems closely to spot how the poet used sound, line breaks, and word choice to create a feeling or effect. Then students try those same moves in their own writing.

Students read poems and spot the tools poets use: how stanzas break up a poem, how end words rhyme, how figurative language and sound patterns shape what a reader feels.

Students write original poems using tools like rhyme, imagery, and figurative language to shape how a reader feels or responds.

Students read, discuss, and compare multiple sources to build knowledge on a topic. They pull ideas from different texts to support their thinking in writing, projects, and class conversations.

Students pick a topic, write questions to guide their search, then find trustworthy sources and use them to back up what they discover.

Students learn to ask their own research questions, then sharpen those questions to dig into a topic that has no easy answer.

Students find and pull together information from reliable sources, like books, websites, and interviews, to support their research on a topic or text.

Students pull from what they've already read and researched to dig deeper into a new text, using prior knowledge to support, push back on, or build beyond the ideas they find there.

Students find and use several sources, print and digital, to answer a research question. They check whether each source can be trusted, choose the most relevant evidence, and cite it correctly so the work stays their own.

Students find facts and details in books and websites that back up a main idea or research question, then record where each source came from, including the author, title, and page number.

Students look at print and digital sources to figure out which ones can be trusted and which ones might be misleading. They learn the signs of a reliable source and the red flags that suggest a source is not.

When students quote or paraphrase a source, they add a short credit in parentheses and list that source on a works cited page. This is the basics of giving authors credit for their ideas.

Students read literature from a specific era and identify what made that period's writing distinctive: its common themes, story types, and the way writers used language.

Students read works from a specific era in history and explain what those works have in common: the ideas writers kept returning to, the forms they chose, and the way the language sounds on the page.

Students read the original myths and stories that later authors borrowed from and rewrote. Recognizing the source helps students understand what the newer version kept, changed, or left out.

Sixth graders read at least one piece of literature from a specific time period in history and show they understand what they read.