1st Edition
Relationships That Work Four Ways to Connect (and Set Boundaries) with Colleagues, Students, and Parents
Teaching is an extremely gratifying profession, but it can also be draining if you don’t have fulfilling relationships and the ability to avoid toxic, negative people. This unique book, written by bestselling author and psychologist Adam Sáenz and child/adolescent therapist Jeremy Dew, shows you how to increase job satisfaction and personal fulfilment by connecting with others. You’ll learn about the relationships you can forge with students, colleagues, and parents to foster a healthy and life-changing learning environment, while also avoiding social and personal stress. In particular, you’ll uncover how to:
- Build bridges to connect with students in a positive manner, making a difference in their lives.
- Interact with colleagues and parents in productive ways.
- Examine and evaluate your professional relationships.
- Build fences to protect yourself from harm or frustration and remain relationally engaged.
- Manage your emotions effectively, and learn how to express and direct them appropriately in the classroom.
Throughout each chapter, you’ll find strategies, reflection questions, and assessment tools to help you apply the book’s concepts. Relationships That Work is an essential read for teachers at all grade levels who want not only to educate but also to guide, nurture, encourage, and form deep, long-lasting bonds.
Introduction: A Tale of Two Campuses
Chapter 1: The Case for Relationships
Great Programming Skills: But Can You Interact With Other Humans?
What Is Normal Versus What Is Healthy
Characteristics of Unhealthy Relationships
We Are Here to Help You
Reflecting: What Am I Doing Here?
Directing: How Do I Manage My Emotions?
Connecting: Can I Build a Bridge?
Protecting: Can I Build a Fence?
The Case of the Teacher Who Exploded
Chapter 2: Reflecting: Why Am I Here?
Jobs, Careers, and Callings
A Bit More About Calling
Meet Martha
Identifying Your Right Why
Identifying My Calling: A Sentence Completion Exercise
Two More Sentences: Creating Your Personal Mission Statement
Sample Sentence Completion Responses
Personal Mission Statement
How Reflecting On Calling Impacts Relationships
Key Point Summary
Chapter 3: Directing: Can I Manage My Emotions?
Emotional Constipation
Experiencing Emotions
Expressing Emotions
Meet Ms. Dunn
The Environment/Feeling/Thought Connection
How Directing Impacts Relationships
Key Point Summary
Chapter 4: Connecting: Can I Build A Bridge?
About Good Bridge Builders
Differences and the Protective Mechanism They Evoke
Do You Feel Like We Do (And See Like We Do?)
Looking Past The Thing About You That Bothers Me
Meet Coach Williams
Connecting and Bridge-Building: A Readiness Assessment
Key Point Summary
Chapter 5: Protecting: Can I Build a Fence?
What is Building a Fence in Relationships?
About the Unskilled Fence Builder
What Is and Is Not Mine?
The Case of the Two Teachers
Protecting and Fence-Building: A Readiness Assessment
Key Point Summary
Chapter 6: Towards Integration
Practice #1: Reflecting on calling
Practice #2: Directing my emotion
Practice #3: Connecting by building bridges across difference
Practice #4: Protecting by building fences
Biography
Adam Sáenz is Founder and Clinical Director of the Oakwood Collaborative, a counseling and assessment center in Bryan, Texas.
Jeremy Dew is a licensed professional counselor who works with children and adolescents.
"In this inspiring gem of a book, Sáenz and Dew provide a powerful reminder that it is educators, more than education, that change lives. The identity checks and practical exercises in each chapter allow teachers to more deeply understand their core calling and examine their motivations for becoming an educator."--Kirsten Baesler, North Dakota State Superintendent
"Every educator repeatedly hears, 'It is all about relationships.' While this is undeniably true, details on how to accomplish this are often lacking. In Relationships that Work, Sáenz and Dew provide guidance that is both specific and inspirational. This resource will help every educator reach students who most need meaningful connections to school."
--Randy Sprick, Ph.D., Director, Safe & Civil Schools
