Transition to Middle School
Sixth grade marks the beginning of middle school and a turning point in many subjects. Your child may welcome the new challenges with enthusiasm. If he or she is feeling overwhelmed, you may opt to ease the transition by editing the start date of some subjects to commence later in the year.
Math
If your child has completed level five of Beast Academy, you should move on to a middle school math curriculum. Our curriculum includes two options for middle and high school math.
The first option is Art of Problem Solving, the successor to Beast Academy. Unlike Beast Academy, the Art of Problem Solving books contain no stories or illustrations, and present the content in greater depth than traditional middle school courses. Our default curriculum allows two years for completion of the Prealgebra course, but you may lengthen or shorten this to suit your needs.
The Art of Problem Solving courses are excellent, but are challenging and designed for gifted math students. If your child struggles in math, we suggest skipping the Art of Problem Solving Prealgebra course, and instead moving straight from Beast Academy to the (non honors) Algebra 1 course. This course uses the Jacobs Algebra textbook, which presents the material clearly and simply and includes plenty of review, as well as an overview of Prealgebra concepts in the early chapters.
History
If you have been following our history curriculum in previous grades, your child will have surveyed American history as part of world history but not yet studied it in depth. In sixth through eighth grade, you will focus on American history using the series A History of US. To complement the history course, the curriculum contains a selection of fiction books that bring to life various periods of American history. (If you are outside the US, feel free to substitute the history of your own country for American history.)
Typing & Writing
By now your child should be able to handwrite easily and with minimal spelling or other mistakes. We suggest introducing typing this year using one of the fun and effective typing software packages for kids. You may opt to practice typing in lieu of other writing practice to allow time for this. Once your child can type proficiently, have him or her learn to use word processing software and begin completing daily writing assignments on a computer. Typing skills are a prerequisite for next year's computer programming coursework.
Art (Optional)
Art becomes optional in middle school, but we recommend continuing formal art courses as long as your child enjoys them. This year's art course focuses on sculpture, but you may substitute the seventh grade Drawing with Graded Graphite Pencils or eighth grade Color and Composition course if desired.