December 2013

To Whom It May Concern:

This letter is written concerning Sarah Nordgren who recently completed her fall semester of student teaching in my classroom. That placement was in second grade at Kelly Elementary School in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.

During the time that Sarah was with me she was, by the conclusion of the semester, responsible for all aspects of the second grade day which included instruction of all subject areas, following the days schedule, addressing any discipline issues that may arise, and generally handling classroom management. As you well know, the day in an elementary classroom is filled with much more than these mentioned things and Sarah did a job that far surpassed what I would have expected from any student teacher. My expectations were high and she knew that from the first day. She looked for input from me, accepted criticism with professionalism, worked constantly on making lessons of the highest quality, and by the last weeks; one would have been hard pressed to identify her as a new teacher.

Sarah displayed professionalism at all times but that was also accompanied by a genuine relaxed and enjoyable personality that was appreciated by myself, the students, and other professionals in our building. Sarahs natural ability to relate to the children as a learning group as well as her intuition in dealing with individual students was wonderful. I constantly observed Sarahs growing rapport with the class and as that happened so did her ability to manage the classroom. I was continually pleased with her verbal and nonverbal communication.

I cannot say enough about how pleased I was to have Sarah with me for the first part of the school year. I have been a teacher for almost forty years and constantly hesitate taking student teachers for many reasons. But Sarah warmed my heart with her sincerity, honesty, willingness to learn, and her commitment to doing the right thing for these children. Having Sarah join your staff could be nothing but an asset to your school or organization.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact me at 570-523-3220 ext: 3096.

Sincerely, Lane M. Taylor 2nd Grade Cooperating Teacher