# Grade 6 — Week 1: Habits of a Scholar

**Life Academy** · Parent/Coach script · rigorous + teen-respectful · ~100–130 min/day  
**Rule:** Mastery before coverage. Primary sources · I do → We do → You do · retrieval · dual coding.  
**Pathway credit note:** Week 1 evidence logs toward English Language Arts 6, Mathematics 6, Science 6, World History: Ancient Civilizations (see `../TRANSCRIPT.md`).

## Week hook
> Knowledge sticks when you retrieve it on purpose.

## Targets
| Strand | Focus |
|--------|-------|
| ELA | Annotation system (claim / evidence / question marks); myth cold open (Prometheus) |
| Math | Ratios as comparisons; tape diagrams (CPA) |
| Science | What scientists do: question → evidence → claim (CER intro) |
| History | Timeline skills; map of river-valley world (Day 2) |
| Life Skills / SEL | Weekly planner + phone/device boundaries |
| Academic vocab | annotate, ratio, claim, evidence, retrieve |
| Primary source / text | Edith Hamilton *Mythology* Prometheus retelling **or** Aeschylus *Prometheus Bound* (public-domain translation excerpt, ~1 page) |
| Socratic prompt | Is a myth “false,” or is it a different kind of true? |

## Materials
Myth excerpt (print), composition notebook, sticky flags, counters or tiles, graph paper, timer, world map or blank river-valley map, ice cube + dish (or plant + light), device for Voice Coach / Lesson Studio.

## Coach stance
1. Model briefly — teens tune out lectures.
2. Wait 15–30 seconds before helping.
3. Correct with the **rule / theorem / text evidence**, not “sound smarter.”
4. End with teach-back or a Socratic close.
5. Protect sleep and movement — elite is sustainable, not grind theater.

### Day 1 — TEACH (~100–130 min)

**Hook reread:** “Knowledge sticks when you retrieve it on purpose.”

#### 1) ELA — Annotation system + Prometheus cold open · 40 min
**Pattern:** I do → We do → You do · disciplinary literacy

**Primary text (print this excerpt — public-domain paraphrase of Aeschylus / classical tradition):**
> Prometheus: “I hunted out the secret spring of fire that filled the fennel stalk, which has proved to mortals a teacher of every craft and a great resource.”  
> Chorus: “Did you perhaps go further than you have told us?”  
> Prometheus: “I caused mortals to cease foreseeing their doom… I planted in them blind hopes… Besides this, I gave them fire.”  
> *(Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound, tr. Herbert Weir Smyth — public domain. Print ~20–30 lines around this exchange if available.)*

**Voice-ready passage (mark for AI read-aloud) — ~60–90 sec:**
> Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to humankind. For this, he was bound to a rock. Each day an eagle tore at his liver; each night it grew back. The story does not ask whether the theft happened. It asks what a community owes courage — and what power owes justice.

**I do (8 min):** Coach reads the Aeschylus exchange aloud once clean. Second read: mark margin **C** (claim the myth makes about humans/gods), **E** (evidence detail), **?** (question), **!** (surprise). Think aloud: “I’m not summarizing plot — I’m hunting the claim. ‘Teacher of every craft’ is evidence that fire means more than heat.”  
**We do (10 min):** Next 8–12 lines (or Hamilton continuation). Student suggests marks; coach confirms only with text evidence.  
**You do (15 min):** Third chunk independent. Teach-back: “What is the claim of this myth in one sentence?”  
**Elite bar:** Student must quote three exact words from the text when stating the claim — no vibe summary.  
**Check:** Student points to a marked **E** and reads the exact words — no waving at the page.

#### 2) Math — Ratios · tape diagrams · 40 min
**CPA → symbols → defend**

**I do:** Concrete: 2 red / 3 blue counters. “A ratio compares two quantities.” Draw tape diagram (2 units : 3 units). Write 2:3 and 2/3. Say: “Same comparison, two notations.”  
**We do:** 4:6 and 3:5 — build with tiles, draw tape, write both notations. Student narrates the second.  
**You do:** 6 problems (part-to-part and part-to-whole) + 3 retrieval from Grade 5 fraction sense (e.g., 3/4 of 12).  
**Retrieval (3 min):** “What is 1/2 of 18? Shade a bar. How is that like a ratio?”  
**Bridge:** Recipe (2 cups flour : 1 cup milk) or sports (3 shots made : 5 attempted).

**Voice Coach (tap):**
> A ratio compares two quantities. Say with me: two to three. Now write it two ways — with a colon, and as a fraction. The tape diagram shows equal-sized units so you can see the comparison.

#### 3) Science — CER kitchen observation · 25 min
**NGSS:** Observe → Explain → Record → Argue

Lab: ice melt in warm vs cool spot **or** plant leaf in light vs shade (10 min observe).  
CER starter table: **Question | Observation (not inference) | Claim | Evidence | Reasoning**  
I do one observation row. We do second. You do third + draft claim.

#### 4) Life Skills — Planner + device boundaries · 15 min
Build Mon–Fri blocks (ELA/Math/Content/Life). Set **2 device rules** in writing (e.g., phone in basket during core blocks; no scroll in movement breaks). Photo planner for portfolio.

#### Movement / brain break (2–3 min)
Walk-and-talk: “Say your myth claim in one breath.” Then stretch.

### Day 2 — PRACTICE

**Hook reread:** “Knowledge sticks when you retrieve it on purpose.”

#### 1) ELA — Second myth / continue Prometheus · 40 min
Second myth option: Pandora (Hesiod PD) **or** finish Prometheus. Find **3 evidence marks**. Oral retell in 90 seconds using two quotes. Skill Gym lite: Vocab in Context (annotate, claim, evidence, retrieve, ratio) — 5 items.

#### 2) Math — Equivalent ratios with tables · 40 min
Build ratio table for 2:3 → 4:6 → 6:9. Prove equivalence with tape diagrams. 8 practice + 2 “which does not belong?” error items.

#### 3) History — River-valley map · 30–40 min
**Primary-source method lite:** Label Tigris/Euphrates, Nile, Indus, Yellow on map. For each: 2 facts + 1 question. Dual coding: redraw map from memory (3 min). Timeline strip: “before cities / first cities / writing appears” (approximate is OK — precision comes later).

**Document micro-dose (10 min):** Read 3 short laws from the Code of Hammurabi (public-domain selection — e.g. §§1, 3, 8 or parallel). Protocol: (1) who wrote / for whom? (2) one fact, (3) one distrust note (“What voice is missing?”). Do **not** moralize modern politics — stay with what the text claims justice is.

#### 4) Life Skills check-in · 10 min
Rate yesterday’s device rules 1–5 honesty. One fix for today.

#### Movement / brain break (2–3 min)

### Day 3 — APPLY / LAB

#### 1) ELA — Theme paragraph · 40 min
Prompt: “What does this myth teach a community to value?” Quote sandwich: claim → quote → explain. 6–10 sentences. Parent challenges one unsupported sentence.

#### 2) Math — Real-life ratios · 40 min
Recipe scale, map scale (1 in : 50 mi), sports stats. 5 applications; student must draw before computing on at least 3.

#### 3) Science — Finish CER · 30 min
Complete CER; peer (parent) challenges one claim: “What observation would change your mind?” List one limitation of the lab.

#### 4) Life Skills · 10 min
Midweek planner check — move one block that failed.

#### Movement / brain break (2–3 min)

### Day 4 — DISCUSS / WRITE

#### 1) ELA — Socratic + revise · 40 min
Socratic (15 min) on: *Is a myth “false,” or is it a different kind of true?* Rules: text evidence or pass. Then writing workshop: revise Day 3 paragraph with one stronger evidence sentence.

**Voice-ready discussion stem:**
> When we say a myth is “true,” we might mean historically accurate — or we might mean it tells a true thing about fear, power, or gift-giving. Which kind of true is Prometheus using — and how do you know from the text?

#### 2) Math — Mixed ratio set + teach-back prep · 35 min
6 mixed items; student prepares 2-minute teach-back of tape diagrams for Friday.

#### 3) Science / History connect · 25 min
Compare evidence rules: myth claim vs lab claim. T-chart. One sentence: “Both need ___; they differ in ___.”

#### 4) Life Skills · 15 min
Finalize device rules for the quarter. Sign (student + coach).

#### Movement / brain break (2–3 min)

### Day 5 — MASTERY + Skill Gym + Teach-back

#### Spaced retrieval first (test before reteach)
1. **ELA gate:** Annotate unseen ~150-word myth excerpt (pass = 4 accurate marks + 1 summary sentence).
2. **Math gate:** 5 ratio items (4/5) including one tape diagram.
3. **Content:** Sketch river-valley map from memory (3/4 labels) **or** CER completeness check.
4. **Skill Gym:** Quote Trap + Ratio Dash (5 min each).
5. **Teach-back (2 min):** Student teaches ratio to parent.

**If below bar:** Reteach Days 2–3 skills Monday. Mastery > coverage.

## Voice Coach lines (teen register)
> Knowledge sticks when you retrieve it on purpose.
> Annotate means mark the thinking: claim, evidence, question.
> A ratio compares two quantities — two to three, written 2:3 or 2/3.
> In science, a claim without evidence is just an opinion wearing a lab coat.
> Socratic stem: Is a myth false, or a different kind of true?
> Teach it back in two minutes. Precision beats praise.

## Skill Gym focus
**Quote Trap + Ratio Dash** — 8–10 minutes. Accuracy before speed. Log scores.

## Weekend extension
Cook or build something using a ratio (pancake mix, LEGO scale). Photo optional for portfolio.

## Mastery Gate (pass criteria)
| Strand | Pass bar |
|--------|----------|
| ELA | 4 accurate annotation marks + 1 summary on unseen excerpt |
| Math | 4/5 ratio items including tape diagram |
| Science / History | CER table complete **or** 3/4 river labels from memory |
| Life Skills | Planner photo + 2 written device rules |

**Advance rule:** Pass ELA + Math to advance; Science/History/Life below bar → weekend reteach packet.