Thomas

Worthington High School

300 West Dublin - Granville Road
Worthington, OH 43085
(School) 614-450-6200
(Fax) 614-450-6391
www.worthington.k12.oh.us

Jim Gaskill, Principal

Rebecca Chattman, Assistant Principal
Julie King, Assistant Principal
Gene Smith, Assistant Principal
Scott Dorne, Director of Athletics
Pete Bluvol, Dean of Students
Scott Gordon, Dean of Students
Kathy Scott, School Counseling Dept. Chair

16 November 2014
It is with great pleasure that I write this recommendation for Jennifer Stone. In my 25 years as an
educator serving as a high school administrator, world languages department chair, middle school
and high school Spanish and French teacher, and teacher educator at The Ohio State University, I
have had the opportunity to work with and observe many quality educators. Among those hardworking, caring, effective, and talented teachers, I believe Jen to be one of the very, very best.
Jens passion for the Spanish language and language learning creates excitement among our
students. She knows a great deal about regional dialects and the specific vocabulary usage in
different regions and countries. She knows Spanish history, culture, and literature as well as current
events and cultures from many Latin American countries. She is also familiar with pop culture from
Spanish-speaking countries and integrates much of it into her lessons making them relevant and
really interesting (e.g., songs and musicians, information about events such as the Olympics, World
Cup, and news, etc.).
In foreign language learning, the national goals recommend that teachers and students use the
target language during 90% or more of each lesson, but its not an easy feat. In order to be
successful and involve students in meaningful discussion in the target language, the teacher must
plan well. Directions, questions, transitions between activities, and the activities themselves need to
be well prepared in order for students to achieve this goal. In Jens classroom, her students know
when they are permitted to speak English and when they must use Spanish. She makes this a fun
and engaging challenge for them, assigning a red card to any student who speaks English when its
Spanish-only time. She is very conscientious about planning for her students to be successful using
Spanish in meaningful real-world activities.
Several of the more culture-based traditions practiced in our department at Thomas Worthington
High School were introduced to us and organized for/with us by Jen. She is solely responsible for
our very fun Salsa Day each spring where every student learning Spanish has the opportunity to
dance and learn from a professional salsa instructor. Weve developed this into a mini-unit about
popular Latin and Spanish dances. Many students with very little dance experience enjoy this
opportunity so much that they return to dance during class periods outside of their Spanish classes.
Jen has also shared with us many resources, i.e. blogs, photographs, videos, websites, and travel
information, which weve incorporated into our lessons.

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Over the last five years, I have had several opportunities to participate in Jens class as a judge for
fun projects in which her students created new lyrics to current songs to help remember language
rules and projects where they made group videos to practice new language skills in context. When
observing her interact with her students, I am always in awe of her calm and very kind demeanor.
She nearly always uses Spanish, anticipates questions and issues, laughs with her students, and
seems to know them very well. It is evident she values their work and input, and they in turn
demonstrate much respect toward her.
Finally, Jen is most often the go-to person in our department for help with several concerns and
issues. She knows and can use many aspects of technology. She is a problem-solver. She is also
an idea person. When needed, she can provide effective ideas on (and the experience and
knowledge to support) differentiation, formative assessments, real-world performance assessments,
how to effectively teach certain grammar rules and verb tenses, and classroom management. She is
a lovely colleague for always sharing with and supporting others. She will be missed at Thomas
Worthington High School.
Jennifer Stone is an outstanding Spanish teacher. I encourage you to take the opportunity to meet
her and observe her in action. She will undoubtedly be a great addition to your school and foreign
language department.
Im happy to provide more information and/or to answer any questions you may have about Jennifer
Stone. Please dont hesitate to contact me.
Melissa Kentner, PhD
Thomas Worthington High School, Spanish Teacher
The Ohio State University, Foreign and Second Language MEd Program
melissa.kentner@gmail.com
614.893.3367

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