To: Whom It May Concern

Re: Letter of Reference for Lauryn Lyons

Date: 3/2/21

It is a sincere pleasure to write a letter of reference for Lauryn Lyons. In the spring of 2020, Lauryn was in the
Elementary Social Studies Methods course I regularly teach for the University of Arizona. From the beginning of
that semester, it was clear Lauryn was an extremely thoughtful future teacher with an exciting future in the
profession of teaching.

Lauryn’s performance in my course was exceptional. Lauryn’s ability to ask thoughtful questions and critically
analyze educational issues quickly made her a leader among her peers. In addition to her leadership skills, Lauryn
has well-developed relational skills that made her a strong team member for many different groups she
participated in that semester. Lauryn’s outgoing and positive manner was especially appreciated in the abrupt
move to online learning during the COVID-19 Mitigation at the university.

Lauryn is currently completing a very successful student teaching placement in a kindergarten classroom at Lulu
Walker Elementary (Amphitheater School District). Despite COVID, Lauryn has shown great flexibility with
different teaching modes and has developed an outstanding rapport with students. Lauryn has discovered that she
enjoys planning, and the engaging, hands-on lessons she has created for students have been very well received.
Most importantly, Lauryn’s students understand that she cares about their ability to be successful in the
classroom.

Recently, Lauryn told me about a small success that made her very happy. Here are her words: “We were
reading on the rug, and to make sure the students were using their finger to track what they were reading I would
say, ‘Tracker finger in the air,’ making the students model me and put that finger in the air. I emphasized that we
needed our tracker finger to really read the sentence. Modeling this also encouraged more participation from the
students.  After we read the book as a whole group, the students went back to the tables, and I asked one of my
students to read. While she was reading the book, she would put her tracker finger in the air without any
prompting. This made me super happy.”

As you can see, this new teacher already knows the joy teachers receive when they see their students learning.
Lauryn’s commitment to and passion for this profession is strong, and she is extremely excited to have her own
classroom. I am confident that any school district that hires Lauryn will be extremely fortunate. If you have any
further questions about Lauryn, please feel free to contact me. I would be happy to speak with you.

Sincerely,

Crystal Soltero, Ph.D.

University of Arizona
Department of Teaching, Learning, and Sociocultural Studies
csoltero@email.arizona.edu; 520.400.3235

Arizona’s First University – Since 1885