‘To Whom It May Concern: Lam writing on behalf of Elizabeth Nichelson, my student teacher whom I mentored at Graham Kapowsin High School in the Spring of 2023. In this time, I have come to know Ms. Nichelson as an aspiring teacher of great potential that cares deeply for her students, She has dedicated herself to becoming a lifelong learner, a teacher who cares for all of her students, and a willing collaborator within our staff, First and foremost, Ms. Nichelson is a diligent student teacher who listens, takes direction easily and warmly. {200s into every lesson ready to try and fail, and proudly leams from each day with grace and dignity. She spent countless hours reading our curriculum, planning, and making sure to understand our assessments, scope and sequence, and school culture as she designed her lessons and always asked for feedback. Ms. Nichelson regularly volunteers many hours of her personal time to tutor our highest need students; she shows patience and empathy with my ninth graders, and an appropriate sense of humor and reflection with my AP students. There is little she loves more than to see students feel successful. I observed Ms. Nichelson facilitate both small group and large group activities to help ensure great outcomes; she reflected on each lesson and checked in frequently to see ifthe skills were being acquired to the pacing needed to be successful on assessments. As wwe transition to Standards Based Grading, Mrs. Nichelson was careful in learning to calibrate, score, and transition scores to the gradebook; she took careful notes, asked many questions, and was sure to adhere to the principals of assessing student learning, I must emphasize that Mrs. Nichelson worked hard to observe and lean as much about pedagogy as she possibly could in the time of her student teaching. She observed, interviewed, and took notes on teachers from a variety of disciplines in order to take in as much classroom management skills as possible. She was not afraid to try out new lessons, new teaching techniques, or redo an activity that simply did not go well. Few veteran teachers show such resilience. Students loved her kind, patient attitude, but also knew that she would hold them to classroom expectations. Mrs. Nichelson is everything one can hope for in a beginning teacher: willing to try, willing to learn, and with anever fading positive attitude and a deep belief that all children. She will spend the time and give you all of her effort to add to the culture and success of your school. I recommend Elizabeth Nichelson to your program. NBCT English Language Arts ELA Program Department Chair Graham Kapowsin High School 22100 108" Ave E Graham, WA 98338 (253) 800-6100