Blog | Teaching Well

February 5, 2017

We Could All Use a Little Self-Compassion…

I’m sure we have all heard a flight attendant tell us at the beginning of a flight that if the oxygen masks fall from the compartment, put the mask on yourself before helping someone else put his/hers on. The obvious lesson is you won’t be much help to others if you can’t breathe, so take care of you first and then worry about others. Albeit trite, these important instructions extend in usefulness way beyond the flight scenario. As educators, we have an enormous capacity to...

January 29, 2017

in Holistic Health, Positive Psychology, Well-being

by Danielle Nuhfer

January Happiness Project Update

The overall update for this month’s Happiness Project: I now have a new after work habit and tackling one nagging task per week at both home and work is a great plan, and weekly tidying is the way to go for me! January’s focus was on creating some happiness in both my home in work environment. My goal for the beginning of the year was to start slowly, declutter, and get some of those nagging and lingering tasks off my plate. The idea is that this...

January 22, 2017

in Mindfulness, Well-being

by Danielle Nuhfer

Are my scripts running my classroom?

Our scripts can cunningly impact the way we work with our students. A script is a conditioned emotional reaction to a trigger created in response to a past, emotional experience. According to Tish Jennings in Mindfulness for Teachers, “a script is stored in your database of emotional memories that influence how you think, feel, and behave.” By recognizing and recording our emotions, we may be able to identify when our scripts are running the show. Regular mindfulness practice may help us to respond to our...