Systems and System Models

Systems and System Models Worksheet (Grade 6 Science, TEKS 6.5D)

Teach grade 6 students to think in systems all year. This one-page reading and activity sheet opens with the guiding question "What are the parts, and how do they interact?" and models four systems: an ecosystem, the human body, the solar system, and an electrical circuit.

What's Inside

• A thinking lens box with the guiding question
• A system model chart for an ecosystem, the human body, the solar system, and an electrical circuit
• Activity 1: Students match sets of parts to the right system
• Activity 2: Three cards where one part changes, a cut wire, dead plants, and a failed organ, and students circle what happens
• A visual answer key with answers marked in red

How Teachers Use It

Use it to introduce systems, then return to the guiding question in body systems, ecosystem, space, and energy units. It also works as practice for TEKS 6.5D. The sheet takes about 10 minutes, needs no prior knowledge, and prints clearly in black and white.

This worksheet is part of the Reading in Science series for grade 6. It supports TEKS 6.5D: examine and model the parts of a system and their interdependence in the function of the system. TEKS 6.5 is not a single unit. It is a set of recurring themes, so pair this sheet with the other TEKS 6.5 sheets and return to the guiding questions all year.

Why It Works

Each sheet opens with a thinking lens, a guiding question students can ask in every science unit, then shows it with grade 6 examples from life, Earth, and physical science. Activities stay at the circle, sort, match, and write-a-letter level, so students build confidence while the answer key lets teachers check work fast. The clean layout is also easy to project for a whole-class review.