A complete description of the middle school language arts Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills can be found at the Texas Education Agency web site. Some of the knowledge and skills emphasized in sixth grade, specific to reading, are described below. 

Across genres, students will compare and contrast the historical and cultural settings of two literary works; identify the literary language and devices used in memoirs and personal narratives and compare their characteristics with those of an autobiography; compare and contrast the stated or implied purposes of different authors writing on the same topic; and compare and contrast the structure and viewpoints of two different authors writing for the same purpose, noting the stated claim and supporting evidence.
With literary texts, students will work primarily with fiction to summarize the elements of plot development in various works of fiction and explain how authors create meaning through stylistic elements and figurative language emphasizing the use of personification, hyperbole, and refrains. Students will also infer the implicit theme of a work of fiction, distinguishing theme from the topic; analyze the function of stylistic elements in traditional and classical literature from various cultures; explain how figurative language contributes to the meaning of a poem; and describe different forms of point-of-view, including first- and third-person.

With informational texts, students will work primarily with expository text to summarize the main ideas and supporting details in text, demonstrating an understanding that a summary does not include opinions. Students will also explain whether facts included in an argument are used for or against an issue; explain how different organizational patterns develop the main idea and the author's viewpoint; synthesize and make logical connections between ideas within a text and across two or three texts representing similar or different genres; identify faulty reasoning used in persuasive texts; interpret factual, quantitative, or technical information presented via graphical components in procedural texts; explain messages conveyed in various forms of media; and recognize how various techniques influence viewers' emotions.