How to read this page
Alberta publishes its curriculum as long official documents written for teachers. This page is the same content, translated for the fridge door: each subject below shows this year's units and the skills inside them. If a skill sounds unfamiliar, that's the point — now you know what to ask about at dinner.
Mathematics this year
Math builds in layers, and this year's layer matters — each unit below leans on the ones before it. In Alberta, that's Mathematics 6 — 7 units, 33 skills.
Number
- Understanding negative numbers
- Standard algorithms for addition and subtraction
- Factors, primes and composites
See the full Mathematics 6 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
English Language Arts this year
Reading, writing, and speaking skills deepen this year — less "can they read it," more "what do they make of it." In Alberta, that's English Language Arts 6 — 6 units, 21 skills.
Text Forms and Structures
- Reading form as a clue to purpose
- Text-to-self, text-to-others, text-to-world
Oral Language
- Oral skills that make speaking effective
- Listening to understand, not just to reply
Comprehension
- Strategies that unlock meaning
- Responding with evidence
Writing
- Building a persuasive argument
- Researching and writing a report
Conventions
- Grammar that keeps writing accurate
- Punctuation and spelling conventions
See the full English Language Arts 6 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
Science this year
Science gets more structured this year — real investigations, real explanations, real vocabulary. In Alberta, that's Science 6 — 7 units, 20 skills.
Energy
- The forces that act on objects
- Renewable and non-renewable energy resources
Living Systems
- Living and non-living parts
- Food chains and dependencies
Space
- The Sun, planets and moons
- Representing size, order and distance
Computer Science
- Hiding detail to focus on what matters
- How technologies affect us
See the full Science 6 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
French this year
French builds through listening, speaking, and simple reading — confidence first, grammar second. In Alberta, that's Core French 6 — 6 units, 20 skills.
La boîte à outils — Grade 6 Grammar Concepts
- What "conjugating a verb" means
- Matching French sounds to letters and accents
- Saying "some": du, de la, de l', des
Les verbes en action — Using Verbs and Vocabulary
- Singular forms of common –er verbs
- Feelings, emotions and how you feel
La nourriture et la santé — Understanding and Writing
- Listening for key words about food and health
Mon quartier — Reading and Presenting
- Reading short texts about a neighbourhood
L'Alberta et l'environnement — Vocabulary in Context
- Talking about where Alberta is
La culture francophone — Francophone Alberta and Winter Festivals
- Francophone communities in Alberta
See the full Core French 6 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →
Grade 6 is a PAT year
Alberta students write Provincial Achievement Tests in Grade 6, based on the same curriculum below. Steady work through the year is the preparation; MapleMind's exam mode can simulate the format.
Three ways parents use this list
Common questions
What does my child learn in Grade 6 in Alberta?
Alberta's official curriculum sets out Mathematics, English Language Arts, Science, Social Studies, French for Grade 6 — 104 specific skills in total. The big themes: Mathematics covers number and algebra; English Language Arts covers text forms and structures and oral language; Science covers matter and energy. The full list is on this page.
Is this the official Alberta curriculum?
It's built from Alberta's official program of studies, reorganized into plain language — and each subject links to a course page that quotes the ministry's own wording and links to the government source, so you can check our work. One honest caveat: we're not the ministry, curricula do change, and we can't guarantee this reflects the very latest revision, so confirm anything important against the live provincial curriculum data.
Does Grade 6 have a provincial test in Alberta?
Alberta students write Provincial Achievement Tests in Grade 6, based on the same curriculum below. Steady work through the year is the preparation; MapleMind's exam mode can simulate the format.
My child is finding one of these skills hard. What can I do?
That's normal — every skill on this page is one most kids wobble on at first. MapleMind teaches any of them one-on-one: a short lesson in plain words, a worked example, then solving together. It's free to start, on any device, in 14 languages.
Keep exploring
Knowing the list is half the job
The other half is the teaching — and that's what MapleMind does. Pick any skill on this page and see it taught properly, free, in under a minute.
MapleMind isn't affiliated with any ministry of education. We build these guides from each province's official program of studies and refresh them from time to time — but curricula change, and we can't guarantee this page reflects the very latest revision. Always confirm against the live provincial curriculum data. Last updated 2026-08-15.
Social Studies this year
Social studies widens the lens this year — history, geography, and how communities and governments work. In Alberta, that's Grade 6 Social Studies — 3 units, 10 skills.
Time and Place
- Direct democracy in ancient Athens
- Magna Carta to the Bill of Rights
+ 2 more skills in this unit →Systems
- Canada's parliamentary system
+ 1 more skill in this unit →Citizenship
- Fundamental freedoms and individual rights
- Civic participation and project planning
+ 2 more skills in this unit →See the full Grade 6 Social Studies curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →