Students in grade six continue to conduct investigations and begin to apply mathematical skills in evaluating and analyzing variables of data. They identify basic skills of the scientific inquiry process, such as how thinking scientifically is helpful in daily life and how technological advances affect the quality of life. Students research how men and women of other countries and cultures contribute to science. Sixth-grade students identify rocks, their distinct properties and formation and characteristic properties of the minerals that form them. They learn to recognize that a cell continually divides to create new cells, reproduction of cells occur, similar cells have special functions, and characteristics of an organism are a result of inherited traits. Students acquire knowledge of the uses, properties and chemical processes of the small particles that compose matter. They learn the renewable and nonrenewable sources of energy as part of the grade six indicators. (back)