Unit Plan 5 (Grade 6 Social Studies): Early Humans and Migration
Trace early human migrations using fossil, map, and DNA evidence while exploring how climate, landforms, and resources shaped movement, routes, and early settlement across regions.
Focus: Trace human migration patterns using fossil, map, and DNA evidence; connect physical systems and resources to movement and early settlement.
Grade Level: 6
Subject Area: Social Studies (History • Geography • Inquiry)
Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 50–60 minutes per session
I. Introduction
Students investigate how people moved across the planet over tens of thousands of years. Using timelines (BCE/CE), route maps, and introductory genetics visuals, they piece together a story that blends fossils, artifacts, and environmental change (ice ages, sea levels, land bridges). The week ends with a concise “Routes & Roots” migration brief that argues for a pathway and timing using multiple forms of evidence.
Essential Questions
- How do fossils, artifacts, maps, and DNA work together to tell the story of human movement?
- In what ways did climate, landforms, and resources shape where early people traveled and lived?
- How can we evaluate sources about the distant past for credibility and bias?
II. Objectives and Standards
Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:
- Create and interpret a BCE/CE timeline showing key waypoints in early human migrations.
- Explain causes and effects (climate shifts, resources, technology) that influenced migration and early settlement.
- Analyze physical systems (glaciation, deserts, coasts, land bridges) that enabled or constrained movement.
- Evaluate sources (fossil notes, maps, simplified DNA trees, secondary summaries) for relevance and credibility.
Standards Alignment — 6th Grade (C3-based custom)
- 6.C3.Hist.1: Create/interpret timelines with BCE/CE, scale, and intervals; align parallel developments.
- 6.C3.Hist.2: Explain causes/effects for key developments (agriculture, urbanization, belief systems).
- 6.C3.Geo.3: Explain how physical systems influence settlement, agriculture, trade, and hazards.
- 6.C3.Inq.3: Evaluate sources for relevance, credibility, and perspective.
Success Criteria — Student Language
- I can place events on a scaled timeline and explain what was happening in different regions at the same time.
- I can justify a migration route using climate/landform evidence.
- I can judge a source’s reliability and explain why I used it (or didn’t) in my claim.