Herff ElementarySchool
996 S Hackberry
San Antonio, TX 78210
Office (210) 533-7500 Fax (210) 533-9500
January 26, 2012
Dear Dr. Feldgus,
With your expertise and personal commitment to young children, I’ve implemented your Kid Writing program at four different elementary campuses and each time I become more and more impressed with the results garnered from my pre-k and kindergarten students. I believe there is a multitude of reasons for this and I wanted to share my thoughts with you.
Enthusiasm and passion for writing seems to emulate from you to my teachers as they sit through your in-service, they return to their classrooms excited and eager to begin the process with their students. My current staff left your training on a Monday, implemented Kid Writing on Tuesday, and by Thursday they voluntarily formed a Kid Writing committee to begin creating alignment in writing between our primary classrooms. This is something I could not have led them to, it was your energy that did it. After their first day of implementation they were lined up at my door to tell me their success stories. Perhaps the best quote I have heard from a teacher following your presentation was, “I’m so mad I didn’t invent Kid Writing, it’s so common sense!” In fact it is and because of that teachers are not threatened by the implementation of something new.
In addition to teachers, I’ve seen firsthand the excitement of young students when they realize they can write as they proudly display their work for all to see. I have heard students ask their teachers, “When can we write?” Teachers proudly brag of these moments. I have a very large population of ELL students and they too, have shown great success. Their language skills escalate along with their writing abilities in part because of the phonetic emphasis of Kid Writing. My favorite Kid Writing story relates to a note I received from a 4-year old pre-k student toward the end of the school year, it read, “Thak you DorKR SmTh!” I have never been so honored to be referred to as ‘dorker’ in my life.
Thank you Dr. Feldgus, for all that you do for children everywhere. I believe that your commitment to the program has helped lend to its success on my campuses. You talk the talk, you walk the walk, and you take no prisoners when it comes to holding high expectations for teachers and students. When I meet with colleagues, I enjoy watching their faces as they read the writing of my youngest learners and say, “How did you do this?” I am very quick to take no credit and pass it all to Kid Writing, my staff, and my students.
Sincerely,
Dr. Traci Smith
Principal