Dear Ms. Rief,
I would
like to begin this correspondence by thanking you for your presentation at the
conference. I appreciated you making the
trip all the way to Providence from your home in New Hampshire to speak with
those of us in attendance. When I looked
through the available workshops, yours stood out to me immediately. I wanted to find a session which dealt with
literacy and writing, and yours provided both.
I think your idea to combine writing and current media events is
wonderful, and the inclusion of political comics and videos was inspired.
I was once
assigned a project somewhat like the one you spoke about. My teacher did not give me or my peers the
opportunity to pick topics relevant to our beliefs and interests, though. Sadly, I do not feel as if my experience with
this type of project was successful, but it sounds as if it was for your
students. Since you gave students the
opportunity to choose topics which pertain to their lives and personal cares,
you gave them an incentive to do their best because they were personally
invested. I especially appreciated that
you included a writing sample from one of your students. I was surprised and pleased to learn that
this project helped the young lady want
to write. Furthermore, I would like it
if you could pass on a message to her from me.
“Thank you for sharing your beliefs and research on examples of animal
cruelty found in circus companies. I
loved reading your essay, and am happy to have found a kindred spirit on a
topic which is so important to me.
Please keep writing and sharing your heart. Every little bit helps make the world a
better place.”
I would
also like to commend you for your inclusion of political cartoons and video. I enjoyed seeing the graphics and videos your
students created to complement their writing.
I would like to implement this idea in my own classroom for writing
projects one day. It allows students
with different learning styles to interact with the assignment in a fun, constructive
way. This creative aspect of the
assignment allows students to play with various mediums of communication which
thoroughly enhances their learning.
Thank you
again for presenting at the conference. Your
contribution is one I will not soon forget.
Sincerely,
Denise Roberts
Teacher Candidate at Rhode Island College
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