In sixth grade, students explore the geography and development of the Eastern Hemisphere, including the nations of Africa, Asia, and Europe.
By the end of the school year, all students should be able to:
■ Understand that time can be measured in years, decades, centuries, and millennia.
■ Identify the key turning points and events for Eastern Hemisphere nations (for example, the Roman Empire, the Middle Ages, and the Russian Revolution).
■ Compare and contrast current events with historical events.
■ Use primary sources to report on historic periods in countries of the Eastern Hemisphere. For example, use original photographs, films, diaries, and other firsthand materials to report on World War II and the Holocaust.
■ Understand the development of early civilizations of the Eastern Hemisphere. For example, know why the lands along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers are known as the Cradle of Civilization.
■ Read and interpret maps to understand that civilizations developed where geographic conditions were most favorable.
■ Use special-purpose maps, globes, and photographs to understand the natural resources of countries of the Eastern Hemisphere.
■ Understand that the migration of peoples has led to the exchange of ideas.
■ Understand how governments in the Eastern Hemisphere have changed to meet people’s needs (for example, changes in China, South Africa, etc.).
■ Compare and contrast views on authority and the law held by people in different nations of the Eastern Hemisphere.
Learning at Home
With your child, browse an online newspaper from a country in the Eastern Hemisphere—for example, Pravda from Russia, english.pravda.ru; China Daily from China, www.chinadaily.com.cn; or The Times, from London, England, www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news.
Encourage your child to learn more about New York City’s “sister cities” in the Eastern Hemisphere. Go to the New York City Global Partners Web site, www.nyc.gov/html/unccp/scp/html/scphome/home.shtml and click on “NYC’s Sister Cities.”
With your child, explore the art from many Eastern Hemisphere cultures and many periods in history at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. Browse the museum’s online timeline of art history, www.metmuseum.org/toah/splash.htm.