The Onward Workbook: Daily Activities to Cultivate Your Emotional Resilience and Thrive

by Elena Aguilar

Overview

An empowering journey that keeps great teachers in the classroom

The Onward Workbook is a collection of tools and strategies that help teachers banish the burnout and cultivate true resilience. Keyed to the framework presented in Onward, this companion piece augments the text with practical exercises, coaching, and step-by-step walkthroughs of beneficial practices. Deep introspection allows you to verbalize your feelings, name your challenges, and identify the tools you have and the tools you need—from there, you’ll explore each of the 12 Key Habits and learn how to put them into practice every day.

In cultivating resilience within yourself and your teaching practice, you improve your health, your outlook, and your relationships while building an environment in which every child succeeds. This workbook takes you on a journey of specific self-discovery that changes your perspective, renews your confidence, and empowers you to make the much-needed changes that allow you to continue inspiring young minds.  

• Dig deeper within to discover what you’re truly made of
• Decode complex emotions, body language, and nonverbal communications
• Challenge your beliefs, build community, and navigate difficult interactions
• Learn more, feel more, play more, and practice effective self-care

Resiliency is an underrated skill—one that can make all the difference in our schools. Challenges will always arise, but it is your response that dictates the outcome. Can you think of a more important lesson for your students? When some 70 percent of teachers quit within their first five years, it is clear that changes must be made. The Onward Workbook equips you to make the changes that you can, and flourish into the future.

While this book can be used by individuals, it is also designed so that groups, teams, departments, or an entire staff can take up the learning together. There are specific suggestions in the workbook for using this with a group, and educators will reap even more reward from discussing the practices and experiences with colleagues. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781119367383
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	05/08/2018
Edition description:	Workbook
Pages:	672
Sales rank:	69,237
Product dimensions:	8.40(w) x 10.70(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

ELENA AGUILAR is the founder and president of Bright Morning Consulting, an educational consulting group that works around the world supporting educators to meet the needs of children. She is the author of The Art of Coaching and The Art of Coaching Teams and has also been a longtime contributor to Edutopia and EdWeek.

Table of Contents

Preface xvii

Introduction 1

Put On Your Hiking Boots 1

Hopes and Goals 2

Current Challenges 3

What’s in Your Toolbox? 4

Create a Treasure Chest, or Just a Pocket 5

1 Know Yourself 7

Know Yourself: Resilience Self-Assessment 8

How Well Do I Know Myself? 10

The Wise Words of Martha Graham 13

Whom Do You Know Who Knows Who They Are? 14

I Am 15

Purpose: Why I’m Doing This 16

Myers-Briggs Personality Types: Part 1 17

Myers-Briggs Personality Types: Part 2 21

Pablo Neruda and Purpose 23

What Motivates Me When I Speak? 24

Core Values 25

Purpose: My Legacy 28

Crafting a Mission Statement 30

I Am a Leopard, or a 33

Aptitudes and Interests 34

Aptitudes: An Inquiry Experience 40

Spiritual and Mental Ancestors 45

The Paths We’ve Taken 46

Values: At School 48

Sociopolitical Identities 50

Signature Strengths 52

Make a Values Jar 53

Astrology, Enneagrams, and More! 54

Behavioral Change: In the Past 55

Who Am I? Who Do I Want to Be? 57

Behavioral Change: Reflections on Past Experiences 59

Behavioral Change: Identifying Grain Size 62

Making Plans for Behavioral Change 64

Aligning Values to Actions 67

A Letter to Vulnerability 69

Artistic Depictions of Vulnerability 70

Destination Postcard: Self-Knowledge 71

Chapter Reflection 72

2 Understand Emotions 75

Understand Emotions: Resilience Self-Assessment 76

KWL: Emotions 78

Beliefs About Feelings 79

Examining Coping Mechanisms 81

Movie Time! 82

The Cultural Construction of Emotions 84

The Core Emotions 86

Naming Emotions 88

Exploring the Intensity of Emotions 89

Anger: Meditations and Reflections 92

Get to Know an Emotion Cycle 94

A Day of Observing Your Emotions 97

Relaxing Your Body: The Body Scan 98

Where Emotions Live in Your Body 99

Muscle Relaxation 100

Nonverbal Communication: The Interviews 101

The Biography of My Emotions 102

Reflecting on Regrets 103

Invite Your Emotions to Tea 104

Lessons About Strong Emotions 105

Thanking Your Emotions 107

Thanks, but No Thanks 109

Exploring Moments of Emotional Intensity 112

How to Breathe 114

RAIN: Dealing with Uncomfortable Emotions 116

Noticing Physical Cues 118

Assessing Your Stress 119

Quick Calm: Grounding 120

Recognizing Cognitive Distortions 121

A Letter to Anger 124

Artistic Depictions of Anger 125

Destination Postcard: Understand Emotions 126

Chapter Reflection 127

3 Tell Empowering Stories 129

Tell Empowering Stories: Resilience Self-Assessment 130

Three Good Things 132

Intention Setting 136

Start a New Habit 140

Reflect on Thoughts 141

What Einstein Says About Stories 149

Exploring the Impact of Cognitive Distortions 150

Catch That Distorted Thought 154

Visually Depicting a Life Story 156

Affirmations 158

Authoring Your Life 159

Take Apart That Thought 160

Try This Thought 164

Optimism: Choices 165

Challenge That Thought 166

Interrupting Distorted Thoughts 172

Problematic Core Beliefs 174

Rilke on Love 178

Challenge That Core Belief 179

“The Optimism of Uncertainty” 181

River and Rut Stories 182

The Life-Defining Moments 184

“Want To” and “Get To” 187

The Untold Story 188

Memory, Mood, and Story-Crafting 189

“The Danger of a Single Story” 190

Using Empathy to Expand Stories 191

Examining Organizational Stories 193

Love 194

The Pessimism-Optimism Scale 197

Think Like an Optimist 199

A Letter to Love 200

Artistic Depictions of Love 201

Destination Postcard: Tell Empowering Stories 202

Chapter Reflection 203

4 Build Community 205

Build Community: Resilience Self-Assessment 206

Community Mapping 208

Planning for Professional Community Building 209

Develop Cultural Competence: A Plan 211

Trust: Reflecting on Experience and Assumptions 213

Relational Trust: Among Staff 216

How to Build Trust 220

Body Language: Reflecting on Myself 224

Body Language: Reflecting on Others 227

Body Language: Fake It Till You Become It 229

Body Language: Rewiring Your Brain 230

What Does Community Mean to You? 232

Sixty Ways to Build Community at School 235

How to Address Conflict 239

Neighborhood Exploration 240

An Anthropologist in the Lunchroom 241

Research Community Outside of School 242

A Corsage of Community 244

Building Your Social Network 245

Storytelling 247

Listening to Your Own Listening 248

Expansive Listening 250

Listening: The Interviews 252

Am I in a Toxic Culture? 253

What to Say When People Don’t Talk Nicely About Kids or Their Families 257

How to Ask Questions 260

A Letter to Fear 262

Artistic Depictions of Fear 263

Destination Postcard: Community 264

Chapter Reflection 265

5 Be Here Now 267

Be Here Now: Resilience Self-Assessment 268

The Raisin Meditation 270

The Joy Collage 272

Right Here, Right Now 273

Blowing Bubbles 274

Morning Messages 275

Mindfulness on Yard Duty 276

Mindful Eating 277

The Myth of Multitasking 278

Mindful Walking 280

Tagore on Joy 281

Ice Cube Meditation 282

A Tree in a Storm 283

Project Silliness 284

Identify a Choice Point 285

Treasure Chest of the Ordinary 286

Mindful Breathing 287

The “Not-Right-Now” Shelf 289

Sixty Seconds 291

Meet Your Telomeres 292

The Zen of Coloring 293

Do Something Already 294

Walk a Labyrinth 295

Soaking In the Satisfaction 296

Project Humor 297

Drawing Your Breath 300

Kale Is Not Required 302

A Letter to Joy 303

Artistic Depictions of Joy 304

Destination Postcard: Be Here Now 305

Chapter Reflection 306

6 Take Care of Yourself 309

Take Care of Yourself: Resilience Self-Assessment 310

Listening to Your Body 312

What’s My Gap? 313

Dream 315

Self-Care Origin Stories 316

When You Are in Self-Care Crisis 317

Tracking Exhaustion 318

Keep a Food Diary 319

Reflecting on Martyrdom 321

If Your Body Could Talk 322

Inside World and Outside World 324

Try Something New 326

Charting Your Self-Care Story 329

Reduce Your Sugar Intake 330

Planning for Better Sleep 333

How to Get More Exercise 337

Movie Time! 338

Self-Esteem Reflection 339

How Do I Perceive Myself? 341

The Best Homemade Chai 343

How Do Others Experience Me? 344

Exploring Self-Confidence 345

Fake It Until You Make It 348

Healthy Eating Reminders 350

Loving Your Adrenals 352

Who Needs to Yell at You? 355

Reflecting on Perfectionism 357

A Week of Self-Care 358

Sixty-Five Ways to Care for Yourself 361

A Letter to Perfectionism 364

Artistic Depictions of Perfectionism 365

Destination Postcard: Self-Care 366

Chapter Reflection 367

7 Focus on the Bright Spots 369

Focus on the Bright Spots: Resilience Self-Assessment 370

Find the Bright Spots 372

Savor the Little Moments 374

Share What You Savor 378

Feel the Feelings 379

Energy Check-In 380

Stop and Smell the Roses 383

Tuning in to the Positive 384

Create a Remember-lutions Jar 385

The Words of Others 386

Joyful Anticipation 388

Repurpose Your Pain 389

Joyful Recollection 390

THINK Before You Speak 391

Don’t Worry, Be Happy 392

The Joy of Making Lists 393

Reflecting on Sadness 395

Five Years in the Future 396

Learning to Settle Your Mind 397

Light a Candle 398

Gaining Perspective on Difficult Events 399

Uncovering Silver Linings 401

Watch Your Thoughts, Again 403

Photographing What Matters 405

In Search of Ordinary Good 406

Reflecting on the Search for Ordinary Good 407

A Letter to Sadness 408

Artistic Depictions of Sadness 409

Destination Postcard: Focusing on Bright Spots 410

Chapter Reflection 411

8 Cultivate Compassion 413

Cultivate Compassion: Resilience Self-Assessment 414

New Year’s Activities 416

Make Those Resolutions Stick 417

Lovingkindness Meditation 418

An Intention for Today 420

Acknowledging Your Teachers 421

Six Ways to Forgive Someone 422

Bridging Differences 426

It’s Not Personal 428

How to Apologize 429

The Self-Compassion Break 431

How Would You Treat a Friend? 432

Self-Compassion Letter 434

Exploring Cynicism 435

The Quest for Good 436

Just Like Me 437

The Fly on the Wall 438

Your Future Self Speaks to You 440

Learning from Envy 442

Recognizing Bids for Attention 443

The Self-Compassion Journal 445

Cultivating Compassion for Difficult People 448

“The Awesome Anthem” 449

Nonviolent Communication 450

Nonverbal Communication of Compassion 453

The People Who Support Me 454

Four Minutes of Eye Contact 455

Thirty-Six Questions to Fall in Love with Someone 456

Eat Together 459

A Meditation to Boost Equanimity 460

Preventing Empathic Fatigue 461

A Letter to Envy 462

Artistic Depictions of Envy 463

Destination Postcard: Compassion 464

Chapter Reflection 465

9 Be a Learner 467

Be a Learner: Resilience Self-Assessment 468

How Writing Helps You Learn 470

Ask a Question 471

Super-You 472

The Million-Dollar Question: What Can I Learn? 473

Action Research: What and Why 474

Mini Inquiry Cycle 476

Lessons on Learning from Merlin 477

Get Rid of Uncomfortable Clothes 478

Get Rid of Some More Things 479

Piggyback Behaviors 480

Parker Palmer’s Words on Learning 481

Whom Do I Want as a Mentor? 482

How to Find a Mentor 483

How to Receive Feedback 484

How to Give Feedback 485

The One-Sentence Journal 487

Indicators of a Learning Organization 488

The Power of Yet: A Musical Interlude 491

Expanding Your Learning Community 492

Cultivating Curiosity: The Art of Noticing 493

Growing Brains 494

Cultivating Curiosity by Knowing More 495

Three Kinds of Curiosity 496

Cultivating Curiosity: Backwards 498

Beliefs and Assumptions About Time 499

Tracking My Time 500

What Else Could This Mean? 501

A Letter to Shame 502

Artistic Depictions of Shame 503

Destination Postcard: Being a Learner 504

Chapter Reflection 505

10 Play and Create 507

Play and Create: Resilience Self-Assessment 508

Your Play Personality 510

Six Ways to Water Your Creativity 511

The Closet in My Classroom 513

Create a Logo 514

Thank You, Courage 516

Sisu, Ikigai, and Gigil 517

How to Be Courageous 520

Street Interviews 521

Create Your Alter Ego 522

Play Hide-and-Seek 523

Create a Monster 524

Nondominant Hand Monsters 526

The Four-Minute Diary 528

Making the Familiar Strange 529

Discovering Creativity in Your Community 530

A Play List 531

Elevate the Ordinary 532

Map Your Day 533

Create a Community Sketchbook 534

Ai Weiwei’s Shoes 535

Create Your Cheerleading Squad 536

Ice Cube Street Art 538

A Collage of Student Voices 539

Banksyfy Yourself 540

Transforming the Ordinary 541

A Family Tree of Courage 542

On Creative Resilience and Resistance 543

A Letter to Courage 544

Artistic Depictions of Flow 545

Destination Postcard: Play and Create 546

Chapter Reflection 547

11 Ride the Waves of Change 549

Ride the Waves of Change: Resilience Self-Assessment 550

Make a Vision Board 552

The Roots of Our Attitude Toward Change 553

Face Your Fears 554

Reflecting on Hope and Change 555

Which Changes Do You Desire? 556

Reflecting on Perseverance 557

“Maybe,” Said the Farmer 558

The Monster in the Closet 560

Honoring What You’ve Lost 561

Keep a Promise to Yourself 563

Detachment Meditation 564

Reflecting on Energy 565

Transformation and Decay 566

Metaphors for Patience 567

How the Light Gets In 568

Silence 569

Scream and Yell 570

Patience 571

Accepting Fragility 572

It’s All Right to Cry 573

Strengthening Your Intuition 574

Inspiration to Fight the Good Fight 576

Tackle Your Complaints 577

How to Worry Less 580

Plan for Change: Observe Others 581

Crisis and Opportunity 582

Dragonflies 583

Your Own Change Management Model 584

A Letter to Patience 585

Artistic Depictions of Patience 586

Destination Postcard: Riding the Waves of Change 587

Chapter Reflection 588

12 Celebrate and Appreciate 591

Celebrate and Appreciate: Resilience Self-Assessment 592

Gratitude Journals 594

A Visual Gratitude Journal 595

Everyone I’m Grateful For 596

A Flurry of Appreciations 597

Honoring the Ancestors 599

Deep Gratitude 600

The Power of the Positive Phone Call Home 601

Exploring Attitudes Around Celebration 603

Talk About People Behind Their Backs 604

One Little Thought: My Life Is Very Blessed 605

The Heartbreak of Teaching 606

A Gratitude Letter 607

What Sets Your Soul on Fire? 608

Enlisting an Accountability Buddy 610

Time Traveling to Deliver Appreciations 611

Today, I Am Grateful For 612

What’s at Risk? 613

Awe Boosts Your Immune System 614

Strengthen a Friendship 615

The Awe Narrative 616

Movie Time! 617

Live as If You Liked Yourself 618

Thank You, Elbows 619

Capture Awe in Nature 620

My Yearbook Page 621

I Would Like to Be More Grateful For 622

An Awe Walk 623

Look Around You 624

A Letter to Awe and Wonder 625

Artistic Depictions of Awe 626

Destination Postcard: Trust 627

Chapter Reflection 628

Conclusion 629

Reflecting on a Year of Cultivating Resilience 630

Symbols and Metaphors for Dispositions 631

Choosing Dispositions 637

Create a Poster 638

Now What? 639

Appendix: Resources for Further Learning 641

About the Author 650