EASTERN DEPARTMENT + TEACHER EDUCATION Education First emichedu/coe/ted August 8, 2015 To Whom It May Concern, Jam writing this letter at the request of Lauren Noye, a student in my RDNG 350 Integrated Language Arts, RDNG 300 Early Literacy, and RDNG 220 Instructional Uses of Tradebooks classes. I have known Lauren for two years and am most willing to write this letter of recommendation as [am impressed with her intelligence, work ethic, willingness to learn, and concern for young people. Lauren demonstrated an understanding of the language arts and how they can be integrated in thematic teaching, recognized the stages of literacy development, realized that children progress at different rates, and gained an awareness of effective teaching practices. She understood the importance of assessing children’s progress and individualizing her instruction to mect the needs of each child. She recognized quality children’s literature and authors and how to make the reading process enjoyable. Lauren participated in class discussions and projects with enthusiasm. She read seven novels, accessed and critiqued websites and completed study guides on the chapters in our text, She completed an author poster and an evaluation log of books from seven genres, She received a B+ in 220 and 300, and a B in 350. Lauren was eager to share her ideas with the class and was receptive to suggestions from the instructor and her classmates regarding strategies to be used in engaging children in learning. She had a great deal of intellectual curiosity and a real ‘commitment to being well informed. Lauren had a firm grasp of the principles and issues of language acquisition and how to teach reading and writing. She understood the components of the Common Core Standards. 1am confident Lauren has the talent, interest and knowledge to be an effective teacher. She will flourish in her career as a teacher and will represent the teaching field and Eastern Michigan University well. If I may be of any further assistance, please feel free to contact me at marybigler@emich.edu or 734-487-1410. Sincerely, DoW \engy Brad Dr. Mary Bigler, Professor, Dept. of Teacher Education Porter Building Room 313, Ypsilanti, MI 48197. 734.487.3260 « Fax: 734.487.2101