October Newsletter
CMS
A Message from the Principal
We hope your Fall Break was welcomed with food, fun and family. Most importantly we hope students had time to relax and reset for quarter 2. With that being said, we need your support.
The first nine weeks have come and gone quickly. Students are well aware of policies, procedures and expectations. We expect students come to school on time. Make it to classes on time. Do their assignments on time. We expect students to do their part. We will not lower these expectations but challenge students to ride to them. We need your partnership. My staff and I thank you in advance.
Principal Ridge
Counseling Corner
SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING AT CMS:
We are off to a great start with the implementation of the Mindful Schools curriculum! In September, students joined CMS counselor Madison Raksinh and school social worker Laurene Shindledecker in discussing the definition of mindfulness and learning how it can be useful in many ways. Students learned that mindfulness helps us to: understand how and what we are feeling; bring more awareness to what is happening in the present moment; learn how the mind, body and emotions work together and to purposely pay attention to emotions, experiences, senses, thoughts and physical sensations through our 5 senses. Each lesson will allow students to learn new mindful skills such as: mindful breathing, mindful listening, mindful compassion for self and others, mindful thoughts, mindful test taking and more!
PBIS At CMS:
The PBIS store is up and running. It’s been exciting to see our students shop. They especially enjoy spending their well earned PBIS points on snacks, CMS pop sockets, stress balls, backpack pins and stickers. We have some fun items in our store this year and our students are motivated to earn those points!!! Donations to the store are always welcome. If you would like to donate or have questions, please contact the CMS school social worker, Laurene Shindledecker lshindledecker@jocombs.org
STRATEGIES TO HELP YOUR STUDENT SUCCEED:
I heard a great idea from a teacher this week that we want to share with all parents!
Go into your student’s Chromebook and create folders for each of their classes! Ex. A folder for ELA, a folder for Math, Science, Social Studies…And NAME their assignments!
We are noticing that students are doing assignments, not naming them and keeping all of them in one place. Then when it comes time to turn them in, the students can’t find them.
Just a simple tip that will help them organize their thoughts and assignments.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
Have you heard the news yet? The Pinal County Public Library is now open! The library is located off Bella Vista Road, East of Central Arizona College. What an exciting opportunity for our community! We hope you find some time to check out the library and discover all that it has to offer.
PARENT UNIVERSITY VIRTUAL EVENT
CMS Parents, we hope that you can join us for the November J.O. Combs Unified School District Parent University virtual event. Teen Lifeline will be presenting on the topic of suicide prevention and awareness. Please see the attached flyer for details
****Advanced registration is required****
CMS SPOTLIGHT ON ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
Athletic Updates
Cougar Family,
First-quarter sports came to an end last week. All of our athletes did a great job and competed in each game. CMS is proud of our student-athletes for working hard and getting better as the season progressed. I wanted to remind you that the first quarter sports banquet will be on October 7th at 6:00 pm in the CMS cafeteria.
Softball tryouts and wrestling begin Tuesday, October 5th. Please remember that your child will need to bring a completed sports packet, a copy of the insurance card, and athletic clothing to tryout. If the front office does not have the completed sports packet, your child will not be able to tryout.
l will be available in the front office. If you have any questions or concerns please reach out to me.
Go Cougars!!
Mr. Clark
Dean of Students
Athletic Director
Combs Performing Arts Center News
"Trap!" by Stephen Gregg October 14, 15, and 18 at 7 pm, tickets available at www.etix.com
Community Auditions for "Dustin the Star Duster" have been postponed until October. For information www.art4kids.net. Performances December 18 at 3 pm and 7 pm
Combs High School Dance Concert November 18 and 19 at 7 pm. Advanced tickets $6 at www.etix.com
TAD Management presents 2021/22 award winning Tribute Concerts!
Tickets at www.cofare.io Venue San Tan Valley
December '63 Tribute to The Four Seasons-November 12, 2021 at 7 pm
Tickets at www.cofare.io search Venue San Tan Valley
Please contact Corianna Lee at 480.882.3540, Ext 7591 for any questions.
Just a reminder about the Titan Family Portal. This is our new secure online system for convenient access and a user-friendly experience in managing meals at school.
The Titan Family Portal allows parents/guardians to:
● Submit an online application for free and reduced meals
● See menus and nutritional information
● Remotely monitor your children’s cafeteria meal accounts
● Make online payments to your children’s cafeteria accounts (Transaction fee $2.66)
● Set up automatic, recurring payments
● Set up low account balance email or text alerts
Website: https://family.titank12.com/
Mobile app: parents may access their account by searching for Titan Family Connect app in their phone’s app store.
Join the Combs Team
Combs Middle School
Email: agonzales@jocombs.org
Website: https://combsms.jocombs.org/
Location: 37611 North Pecan Creek Drive, San Tan Valley, AZ, USA
Phone: 480.882.3510
Twitter: @CombsCougars
J.O. Combs Unified School District #44 does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, age or sexual orientation in admission and access to its programs, services, activities, or in any aspect of their operations and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. J.O. Combs Unified School District #44 also does not discriminate in its hiring or employment practices. The following employees have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policies: Compliance Officer for Title IX, Assistant Superintendent, 43371 N. Kenworthy Rd, San Tan Valley, AZ 85140 or 480-987-5300 and Compliance Officer for Section 504/ADA, Director of Student Services, 43371 N. Kenworthy Rd, San Tan Valley, AZ 85140 or 480-987-5300.
El Districto Escolar Unificado de J.O. Combs #44 no discrimina en base a su raza, color, religión, origen nacional, sexo, discapacidad, edad, o la orientación sexual para la admisión y su acceso a sus programas, servicios, actividades, o en cualquier aspecto de sus operaciones y proporciona un acceso igualitario a los Boys Scouts y otro grupos de jóvenes designados. El Districto Escolar Unificado de J.O. Combs tampoco discrimina en sus prácticas de empleo y contratación. Los siguientes empleados han sido designados para manejar las preguntas en cuanto a las pólizas de no discriminación: Funcionario de Cumplimiento de Título IX, Superintendente Asistente 43371 N. Kenworthy Rd, San Tan Valley, AZ 85140 or 480-987-5300 and Funcionario de Cumplimiento para la Sección 504/ADA, Director de Servicios Estudiantiles, 43371 N. Kenworthy Rd, San Tan Valley, AZ 85140 or 480-987-5300.