Elizabeth A.

Davis Professor, Science Education

Educational Studies

March 2, 2016
To Whom It May Concern:
This is a reference letter in strong support of Darcy Hackert. I have every confidence in her
abilities as an elementary or middle school teacher. Darcy was a student in my Elementary
Science Methods course, during the Fall 2015 semester, here at the University of Michigan
School of Education. Through this experience, I came to be impressed with Darcy's propensity
to engage in teaching practice, think through important issues in teaching, and deport herself
professionally.
For the science methods course, Darcy taught two science lessons in her kindergarten student
teaching classroom, and I observed both of these via her video recordings. For example,
Darcy's second lesson focused on displacement. I remember meeting with Darcy during office
hours to discuss this lesson, and she was really working to put to work what she'd learned in our
class in the context of her own classroom, where she knew the children and the norms very
well. How could she do ambitious work with her kindergartners? Two things stand out to me
about this lesson.
First, Darcy's plan was exceptionally detailed in a highly productive way. Sometimes, novices
write a lot of detail, but the detail is somehow superficial or doesn't help to make the lesson plan
any stronger. In Darcy's plan for her lesson on displacement (and her earlier lesson on density),
she anticipated specific ideas children were likely to have about the science content, and then
developed a specific plan for how she would address each anticipated idea. She also developed
her own prediction and observations sheets to scaffold students in these important science
practices, and made a plan for how she would have her kindergartners construct a scientific
explanation about displacement another important science practice. By virtue of her careful
planning, she developed a lesson that had conceptual coherence and flow and worked toward
important science ideas.
Second, Darcy's enactment was lovely to watch. She used a book as a way of launching the
lesson and threaded it through in effective ways throughout the rest of the lesson. She elicited
her students' ideas with sincere interest and enthusiasm for learning about their thinking. She
worked with children in small groups, at centers, to conduct the investigation. And she facilitated
a whole-class sensemaking discussion in which she connected back to specific ideas that
specific children had brought up earlier, and helped her class collectively make a claim about
displacement and support it with evidence from the investigation.
Darcy interacted well with the students in her classroom, and then reflected effectively on her
own teaching. She drew on the videorecording that she had collected of her teaching, and used
specific examples to point to areas of strength in her teaching as well as areas where she
needed to keep working.

610 East University Avenue, Room 4107

Ann Arbor, MI 48109

betsyd@umich.edu

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Darcy also participated well as a student in my class. She was engaged and interested in the
class discussions, gave good feedback to her peers, and supported her groupmates by
challenging their thinking in respectful ways. Darcy was a great student, but what is especially
memorable is the way in which Darcy worked, in every class session, to make connections to
her own teaching.
When I asked Darcy about her student teaching, she first noted that although she did not
originally hope to be placed in a kindergarten classroom, she has come to both enjoy and
appreciate the opportunity to work with younger children. One of the things she is working on is
what I would call teaching the science with integrity. This is one of the key pillars of our teacher
education program; we hope to develop beginning elementary teachers who are what we call
"subject-matter serious", and who are able to effectively engage in teaching practices that let
them teach important content to all children. Darcy is seizing the opportunity in kindergarten to
work on how she can support her students in developing conceptual understandings in ageappropriate ways.
Darcy also told me that she is working hard to integrate science, mathematics, and language
arts, in her science unit that she is developing for student teaching. For example, she intends to
have her children read informational texts and write and publish a class "All about the body"
book. As a science educator I love hearing that my students are able to see the value in
connecting literacy and science! She also shared with me that she is working systematically on
her classroom management skills. Darcy is a teacher who will continue to grow as she gains
experience, because she reflects on her specific experiences and builds on them moving
forward.
Whenever I write a letter like this, I think about whether I would want, or would have wanted, the
individual teaching my daughter (currently in eighth grade). I can say that in Darcy's case, I
would be thrilled, at any level from kindergarten through middle school. Darcy is already a great
teacherknowledgeable, effective, caring, and reflectiveand will only get better as she gains
experience.
In sum, Darcy Hackert will be a great teacher. Her enthusiasm for teaching, growing
understanding of the issues surrounding this difficult job, and positive attitude will help her be an
effective teacher. She will make a great contribution to her school, through her dedication,
insight, and collegiality. I wholeheartedly recommend her to you. Please do not hesitate to
contact me for more information.
Best regards,

Elizabeth A. Davis
Professor, Science Education

610 East University Avenue, Room 4107

Ann Arbor, MI 48109

T: 734.647.0594
betsyd@umich.edu