Meet the Teacher Night

scoombs@kyrene.org (480) 541-6300Mrs. Coombs, 6th Grade Language Arts

About Mrs. Coombs

Graduated summa cum laude from Arizona State in 2010 with a BA in English literature; received M.Ed in secondary education from ASU in 2013

This is my 4th year at Aprende Middle School and my 5th year in the Kyrene District

I love books, coffee, dark chocolate, and dogs!

Communicationwww.kyrene.org/apr

Communication

Teacher Sites

In Addition…

Text @apren to (480) 725-2273 for Aprende notifications via text message

Update your contact information in ParentVUE before the start of school in order to receive updates on upcoming events.

Sometimes these messages do not forward to your email address, but instead post in ParentVUE itself. Download the app and log in regularly!

Text Reminders

Sign up for language arts text reminders!

If your child is in...

2nd Period ELA: text @coombs2 to 81010

3rd Period AdvELA: text @coombs3 to 81010

6th Period ELA: text @coombs6 to 81010

7th Period AdvELA: text @coombs7 to 81010

Last Tidbits

Email is our preferred method of communication.

There are many places to find our email addresses!

We will respond within 1 business day.

How to Check Gradeswww.kyrene.org/apr

How to Check Grades

How to Check Grades

Kyrene’s ParentVUE gives you immediate access to your student’s grades.

In fact, you and your student should log on to check them together once a week!

How to Check Grades

If you have never used ParentVUE before -OR- you need to update your email address from last year, please fill out the form on the clipboard at the back of the room before you leave this rotation tonight.

What will my student be learning this year?

Reading

The district has adopted a new ELA curriculum entitled myPerspectives.

There will be four thematic units that include various reading selections such as short stories, informational text, poetry, novels, etc. There units are: Childhood, Animal Allies, Modern Technology, and Exploration.

What will my student be learning this year?

Writing

In 6th grade we strongly focus on determining main idea, citing textual information, and elaborating/substantiating ideas.

By the end of 6th grade, students will be able to write a well-organized essay that asserts a claim and supports it with textual evidence from valid sources in MLA format.

What will my student be learning this year?

Language

Vocabulary: Students will learn how to determine the meaning of an unknown word using context clues and Greek and Latin roots.

Grammar: We will focus on crafting varying sentence structure in writing, using commas correctly, and properly integrating quotes.

What will my student be learning this year?

Speaking and Listening

One-on-one, group, and teacher-led discussions

Presentations of work, including visual displays and/or multimedia components

Interpretation of speeches and multimedia presentations

Adaptation of speech appropriate to context

Supplies

Our supply list is designed to help your student be organized. If, for some reason, you are unable to purchase the colors as indicated by class, please clearly label each notebook and folder.

For language arts, your student needs to have these EXACT colors of highlighters: pink, yellow, blue, and green. NO SUBSTITUTIONS!

Supplies, contd.

One of the top supplies your child needs is an independent reading book. Your child should have one in his/her backpack at all times.

Ask your teacher for book recommendations—we love to share!

There is a library permission slip at the back of the room if you want your child to be able to check out 7th and 8th grade books.

Suggested Donations

Glue sticksPaper (lined or printer paper—white or color)Pencils.. Lots and lots of pencils!Coloring suppliesHighlightersIndex Cards

We don’t need any more Clorox wipes or Expo markers, thank you!

Why read 20 minutes at home every day?

Student A Student B Student C

Reads 20 minutes per day = 3,600 minutes

per school year = 1,800,000 words per

year

Reads 5 minutes per day = 900 minutes per school year = 282,000

words per year

Reads 1 minute per day = 180 minutes per

school year = 8,000 words per year

Scores in the 90th percentile on

standardized tests

Scores in the 50th percentile on

standardized tests

Scores in the 10th percentile on

standardized tests

Why read 20 minutes at home every day?

Assuming these students started reading each day in kindergarten, by the end of 6th grade:

Student A will have read for the equivalent of 60 school days,

Student B will have read for 12 school days, and

Student C will have read for 3.

Want to be a better reader? It’s easy: just read.

Questions?

Please email me at scoombs@kyrene.org with any questions you may have that we didn’t get a chance to answer tonight! Please include:

Your name AND your student’s name

Your question(s)