Lesson One – No Shave November
It’s that time of year again…it’s No Shave November. There is one basic rule for No Shave November and that is to let your beard grow all month and DO NOT SHAVE. I will be participating in this glorious event and I would like to everyone to enjoy in this celebration of facial hair.
Lesson Two – I’m So Done With Politics
Despite the fact that I am a social studies teacher and should enjoy elections and the commentary that goes along with it…election tie tends to make me a little bit grumpy. The truth is I get so tired of all the negative aspects that are related to politics and elections to the point that I’m just exhausted after they are over. I can’t stand the negative attack ads, the well placed figures in the commercials that are suppose to make me relate to the candidate (like children or good ole’ country boys), and the reaction people after their chosen political party wins or loses an election. So let me say one more time, I’m soooo done with politics.
Lesson Three: Don’t Be “That Guy”
This lesson was taken from a previous lessons learned back in 2009…but it still delivers a great message.
“This sucks I’m not doing it at all”….this was on the back of an assignment that I gave to my students today. Needless to say I was thrilled with the discovery of this creative “piece of literature”. When I first found this I wanted to be upset, but after thinking about it for a while I realized I needed to hold those feelings back. The way I see it is that it is my job as a teacher to make sure that the work we do in class isn’t pointless…..in other words make sure it doesn’t suck. Many teachers would take this as an opportunity to give a lecture on character and having the a correct attitude in class. A lecture is the last thing these kids need, they receive plenty of those on a daily basis. Instead I see this as a teachable moment.
One of my favorite sayings, in regards to classroom discipline, is “we never scold, we just rehearse”. So that’s what I’ll do. I constantly preach to my students that we gotta stay positive and by letting my anger get the best of me would go completely against my own principles. Instead we will use this as a learning opportunity, I need to make things more relevant and I will ask my students to not be “that guy” who brings everyone else down and stay positive.
Mr. McClung