To Whom It May Concern:

This letter is in regards to Sydney Ellsworth and the successful completion of her student
teaching experience in Westminster Colleges MAT program here at Glendale Middle School in
the Salt Lake School District. I worked as Sydneys mentor teacher during this student teaching
experience and have nothing but the highest praise for her professionalism, respect for the job
and her excellent classroom control and lesson planning. Sydney has consistently demonstrated
the abilities of a veteran teacher who genuinely cares for the kids she works with.
Throughout the student teaching experience Sydney generated meaningful age and ability
leveled assignments that resonated with the students and generated real learning. Sydney used
multiple approaches to deliver the content to reach as many learning styles as possible. Sydney
also utilized technology in fun and academically appropriate ways that engaged students and
created lasting leaning experiences.
Sydneys classroom rapport and management are also excellent. With a student body that speaks
over 30 different languages at home, has a high transient rate and is over 90% free and reduced
lunch (a major indicator of children in poverty) Glendale Middle is not the easiest job at times.
Sydney, however, embraced this diversity and made her students feel that their teacher genuinely
cared for them (several students took to coming to her room for lunch). Enough can not be said
of the importance of student/teacher rapport in the middle-school grades and Sydney made that
an integral part of her teacher personality. Throughout her placement here at Glendale Sydney
had few if any negative interactions with students. This demonstrates not only her management
skills and her compassion for students but also her excellent lesson plans which are the best
means possible for keeping a classroom under control.
Having watched Sydney go about the job of teaching has been a wonderful opportunity for me as
well. Sydney has done several excellent lessons that are going to be integrated into my teaching
well into the future. Sydney created a classroom that was warm and inviting and fostered
learning among a group of kids that can, at times, be a bit of a handful. At no point did she seem
overwhelmed or exasperated and kept the energy level high throughout the course of this student
teaching experience.
Teaching is a job that can carry an enormous amount of emotional weight and rightfully so. Kids
this age are emotional tinder boxes and Sydney recognized this and made accommodations for
the kids and for herself to lessen the impact this can have on learning.
All told this was an excellent experience for my students as well as myself. Sydney stepped into
the classroom took control and did a masterful job. I could think of no school that would not be
better with Sydney Ellsworth on their faculty.

Randy Coombs M.Ed.

Glendale Middle School