Dear Parents,
Welcome to a new school year! I’m excited about sharing my love for reading and writing with each of my students. This year we can accomplish great things together!
I would like to introduce myself to you. My name is Kinsley Durham, and I am your child’s reading and writing teacher. I am originally from Pendleton, SC. I am a graduate of Anderson University with a Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood and Elementary Education and a Master’s Degree in
Education. I also have middle level certification in ELA. This will be my fourth year at Lakeside, and I’m very excited to begin a new year. At Anderson University, I participated in softball. I loved every minute
I spent on the field, and I miss it more and more each day. Since I have always been involved in many activities, I also want my students to feel free to let me know whenever they may have an event they are participating in so I can make arrangements to support them!
-If you would like to view the procedures and routines I use in my classroom, this can be found at the front of your student’s binder. This is for him/her to refer back to any time he/she feels unsure of what to do in my classroom.
-I would like to encourage you to enroll in Parent Portal if you haven’t already. This is a great opportunity for you to check your child’s grades as often as you wish. This can be done in the front office of the school.
Curriculum:
Reading: You will be issued an individual student textbook and will need to bring this with you to class when in use. We will also be studying a variety of texts and responding in different ways. We have 2 novels that will be read for the year. Most of the reading will be done at home. Students should come to class daily ready to discuss the assigned reading from the previous day.
Novels
Regular: Maniac Magee and Behind Rebel Lines
Accelerated: The Lottery Rose and Phineas Gage: A True, but Gruesome Story
Textbook (All Classes)
Collections
Writing: grammar, personal narratives, informational writing, argumentative writing, 2 research projects
(in conjunction with the reading novels), folktales/fairytales, and poetry
Classwork and Homework:
All of your class work, warm-up, notes, and homework are kept in your 3-ring binder, Writer’s Notebook,
Warm-up Notebook, or Reader’s Notebook (students will know for certain where things go daily in class). These things will be your main study guide for all classes, so bring it with you every day. You can expect reading homework nightly (Monday-Friday). The reading log is given weekly. You will be given the logs on Monday and they will be due the following Monday. Please make sure that the form is completely filled out or points will be taken off. This will be a weekly quiz grade, so make sure you complete it! You will be given 4 stems a week. This work will need to be completed for homework if not completed in class. Stem words will be due the following week. The stems will count as a quiz grade.
You will then have a test on the stems covered that week. Writing homework will also be given at different times throughout the year. Students should write all homework down in their agenda!!

Grading Scale:
-Grades will be calculated on a Major and Minor scale.
-Major grades will include test and projects. This category will be worth 40%.
-Minor grades will include daily grades and quizzes. This category will be worth 60%
-Daily Grades – will be counted once
-Quizzes –will be counted twice
-Test and Products – will be counted three times
Thank you for your support and cooperation. If you ever have any concerns about your child, please contact me. You can reach me at 260-5135 during my planning time from 2:30-2:55 P.M.
You may email me as well at KinsleyDurham@anderson5.net
. I will try to answer your email the same day that I receive it. I want this to be a successful school year for your child. By working together we can have a wonderful year! Don’t forget… Read On! Write On!
Sincerely,
Kinsley Durham
6 th
grade ELA
Lakeside Middle School of Inquiry and Innovation, a STEM School