The "Why?"

Hello! As this is my first post, I felt an introduction was necessary.

My name is Chloe Croteau. I am 22 years old, and this is my third year as a third grade paraprofessional. I am working towards obtaining certification as an elementary teacher, as well as a special education teacher. I am technically a junior in this online college world!

Okay, now to the "why?". That is a question I had when I saw blogging was mandatory in this class. I have posted a couple blog posts for other class projects, but never consistently. Although I am excited to watch my progress through the eight weeks, and maybe beyond, it felt overwhelming at first. So after panicking about more work, I decided to take a look at this article titled 9 Reasons Why Teachers Should Blog. I will admit, it made me feel a little better about this course assignment.

The first thing I read about was how this is a way for more than one person (the teacher) to see my hard work. It's true, we work for hours on projects and essays for one teacher to see it, give us a grade, and move on from it. It feels a bit underwhelming and lonely sometimes being in online classes. Yes, we respond to each others discussion posts, but thats honestly it. This is a way for us to communicate with each other that doesn't involve, "Great post, I agree with the points you made!".

Next, this gives me a moment and a chance to reflect on what I am learning about. Usually, I feel that I am on autopilot. Read the required readings, post in the discussion forum, complete the assignment, repeat. This gives me a chance to get my thoughts out and possibly gain a deeper understanding on what I am learning about.

Lastly, I love that this can be a place to brag about student work! I feel so proud of all my students each and everyday and I am excited to brag about small wins, big wins, all the wins!

I look forward to continuing this blog, see you next week!

Link to article: https://www.edutopia.org/discussion/9-reasons-why-teachers-should-blog