Blog Post #9

Mr. Joe McClung. What I've Learned This Year.

May 27, 2009

This was Mr. McClung first year as an elementary teacher. He wrote in his blog, to tell all those who read, about the experiences he has had and all the useful things that he has learned in his first year of teaching. The very first thing we read on his post states "An important decision I made this year is: Stay Positive". I thought that was an awesome piece of advice he learned and started off to share with us.

He talks about how it is important to know how to read the crowd. He basically says that it is so important to always keep the students in mind. It is so easy to get caught up in trying to be the perfect teacher with the perfect lesson that you lose track of the most important thing the students. He says that we must always remember who we are trying to help, and why we do what we do.

Another part I thought that was interesting and important was to always listen to your students. He talks about how for some students you may be the only one who does listen to them. I think that this section in his post was so beneficial to me. Students look up to their teachers and they should never forget that. Teachers should always be willing to help their students with any problem they face. They should let the students know that they are always there to help. I think that anyone can simply learn new things by just listening to their students.

June 23, 2011
This was the most recent year Mr. McClung finished up. He has started many new and exciting tasks in his year three. He is now a head coach and is teaching computer applications. He says that many things have changed for him in his professional career, so there is plenty of new things he has learned.

One thing he talks about is getting excited about change. He talks about going to professional development sessions and how he really enjoys the new materials that are being thrown at them. He says that he likes to be optimistic and knowing that these new things will work. However, in this recent year he has begun to notice others who seem to care less about any of the new information that is being given to them. He notices that these people are very different from himself. He tells us readers to not let others get you down. He says that if your excited then be excited. I thought that this part in his post was important. There will always be other people who have different views as you do. They will disagree with the subject matter 100% while you agree with in 100%. Even now in school we encounter people are just are different from you. I felt that Mr. McClung taught me a very valuable lesson. A lesson that I will always remember. He taught me to never let others bring you down.

I really enjoyed reading about Mr. McClung's teaching experiences. He seems like he is doing a really good job being a teacher. I thought that the things he shared will become useful for me in years to come! Thank you Mr. McClung!