The Essential 55 Chapters 44-55

Reaching the 55th rule was absolutely a great way to end Ron Clark's book. Mr. Clark does not only want to discipline his students, he also wants them to enjoy the beauty of life and "be the best person [they] can be"(p.158). The last rules of his wonderful 55, Mr. Clark focuses on building a good character out of his students. They are to "always be honest" no matter how much the truth might affect other people or themselves(p.152). Children tend to lie a bit more than normal, when they are young consequences will not have that much of a negative effect, but as they grow older lying can cause a lot to be lost. And as Mr. Clark advices "in life there should be no regrets" what so ever, therefore avoiding lies that can have tragic outcomes can be the key factor to living a life with no regrets(p.144). I believe that Mr. Clark has introduced the value of life at a decent age where his students are able to understand the concept of enjoying life and have time to put it into practice.
In the society that we live in today criticism is always present but as individuals we should all "stand up for what [we] believe in" and do what makes us happy!(p.137) The best way to be happy with ourselves is to accept that "we are only human" and we "are going to make mistakes", no living human is perfect(p.146). The best educator teaches the human being not the subject. I absolutely enjoyed reading The Essential 55, as a future educator I will definitely incorporate some of Mr. Clark's rules into my own class.
http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/104136/chapters/The-Power-of-an-Effective-Teacher-and-Why-We-Should-Assess-It.aspx

The Essential 55 Chapters 33-43

After reading all chapters up to 43 I have come to develop respect for Mr. Clark. Not only does Mr. Clark imply rules for his classroom and the fulfilling of his requirements as a teacher, he also implies rules that benefit the life of his students. He teaches his students to have respect for others as well as for their surroundings; Mr. Clark let's his students know that "sometimes respect for others may not seem like it is going to have an impact, however kind actions are appreciated and recognized by others"(p.115). Respect for others is super simple to do, it can be practiced by "making sure to remember the name of the person you have been introduced to and when leaving shake their hand and repeat their names"(p.105); remembering someones name demonstrates that interest for the other person is involved. Interest can also be shown by complementing someone, whether it be by completing them on something they do or have. Complementing is very important because "people are always self-conscious" and complements help people "feel at ease" and enjoy themselves(p.116).
One crucial thing that children don't practice, especially young children, is showing gratitude. When someone "does not forget to thank other people, people never forget to include that person"(p.122). People like to know that they are not just working for someone without receiving anything in return and that definitely does not mean to buy a gift for that person, a simple and easy reward can be a kind "thank you". "Once they've been told, they're halfway there", children are used to being told what to do, so as teachers why not add a little bit of rules that deal with manners, all that is left to do is application of such rules(p.112).
http://www.cyh.com/HealthTopics/HealthTopicDetailsKids.aspx?p=335&np=287&id=2526