Teach Happier This School Year: 40 Weeks of Inspiration and Reflection

by Suzanne Dailey

Overview

Being happy both at home and at work means we're not just cheerier, but more clear-eyed and effective at what we do. But happiness takes practice and ongoing contemplation.

In this inventive new book—part professional development resource, part personal journal—educator, author, and podcaster Suzanne Dailey contends that small shifts bring big gifts: that is, small positive changes, practiced over time, will help you feel more balanced, content, and aligned. To help you on this path, Dailey provides 40 readings and reflections, aligned to the weeks of the school year and designed to ensure that you glean joy and insight from every moment inside and outside the classroom.

In these pages, you'll find

* Reflection activities for assessing the health of your relationships—not only with coworkers and students, but also with family and friends.
* Inspiring stories about educators who have sought and found ways to improve their practice by following the tenets of positive psychology.
* Weekly goals for shifting your thinking and developing more positive habits of mind.
* "Report cards" for assessing your progress on the book's challenges and goals.
* Minilessons you can use to share your new learning with students and influence classroom culture and community.

Steeped in the teachings of positive psychology and fired up with a passion for teaching, Dailey mines both her own experiences and the insights of psychological thought leaders to provide this indispensable resource for educators at all levels.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781416631668
Publisher:	ASCD
Publication date:	01/05/2023
Pages:	219
Sales rank:	87,210
Product dimensions:	8.90(w) x 5.90(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Suzanne Dailey has been an educator for 20 years and is an instructional coach in the Central Bucks School District, the third-largest school district in Pennsylvania, where she teaches model lessons, facilitates professional development sessions, and mentors teachers. Suzanne holds National Board Certification and is a fellow of the National Writing Project. She is dedicated to nurturing and developing the whole child and teacher and presents these topics both in person and virtually at the local, state, and national levels. Suzanne also presents sessions to corporations outside the education field on such topics as positive psychology, motivation, and leadership; hosts the weekly podcast Teach Happier; and writes a monthly blog (www.teachbetter.com/tag/teach-happier-series).

Table of Contents

Welcome to the Teach Happier Community! xi

How to Use This Journal xv

Before You Begin Week 1 1

Marking Period 1 9

1 Your Legacy Begins This Week 11

2 You Will Be Remembered for the Way You Love 14

3 Work/Life Satisfaction 19

4 Rational Optimism 22

5 Happiness Is a Discipline 26

6 The Importance of You 31

7 Sideline Conversations 34

8 Want to Be Happier? Start Here 37

9 Be a Part of Your Own Rescue 44

10 Wake Up for Bedtime 49

Report Card 1 52

Marking Period 2 57

11 Finding the Magic 59

12 What's Your Weekend Wish? 63

13 What Could Go Right? 68

14 December Is the New August 72

15 Grown-Ups Need to Have Fun 76

16 Plan Happier 80

17 Just Say No 83

18 Even If….. 87

19 Do Less, Better 91

20 Good Enough Go 94

Report Card 2 98

Marking Period 3 103

21 Yes, Thank You 105

22 Tackle Teacher To-Dos 109

23 What's Next? 113

24 'Tis the Season 116

25 Align Your Stars 120

26 Find the Good Old Days Today 123

27 Extravagant Kindness 127

28 Vacation Mode … Today! 132

29 Who Are Your People? 135

30 Keep Your Eyes on Your Own Paper 140

Report Card 3 143

Marking Period 4 149

31 The Fourth Quarter Is Yours 151

32 Extreme Phone Makeover 155

33 Rest Happier 159

34 Be Here 164

35 MYOB 167

36 Minutes and Moments 171

37 It's Grow Time 174

38 Choose Your Hard 177

39 Summer Stillness 182

40 Be Like Beverly 185

Report Card 4 190

Conclusion: Ending the School Year 194

Acknowledgments 202

Appendix: Collegial Conversations 205

Bibliography 208

Index 212

About the Author 215

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

The greatest advantage we can cultivate in the modern world is a positive and connected brain. And the better we get at research, the more we are learning how seemingly small changes to our mindset or behavior make massive and quantifiable impacts not only to our own mindset and outcomes, but to the entire ecosystem around us at home, work, or school. We can now measure a ripple effect to people three or four degrees from the original positive habit, which means our actions and mindset impact people we never even meet. Suzanne Dailey, a champion of this positive research, shows you clearly and practically how to make a daily practice of shifting our mindset and our culture to raise well-being, connection, and purpose.

—Shawn Achor, New York Times bestselling author of Big Potential and The Happiness Advantage

More than ever, we as educators need a book that lifts our spirits and fills our hearts with joy, while at the same time giving us realistic, job-embedded ideas to try at work each day. Teach Happier This School Year is that book. Suzanne Dailey has masterfully woven together two decades of experience in the classroom with her passion for positive psychology and helping others. Through sharing stories that everyone in education can relate to, she invites us to make small shifts in our thinking, words, and actions that will help us to find more happiness in both our professional and our personal lives. Make yourself a priority this year and join the Teach Happier community!

—Rob Dunlop, author of STRIVE for Happiness in Education

If Suzanne Dailey is writing a book, I can tell you it's moving to the top of my reading list! Teach Happier This School Year has brought me so much joy as I explored the small shifts that infuse joy into our lives at school and at home. There has never been a timelier topic for educators to commit themselves to. Whether you are looking for a quick read or a deep dive to influence a huge life shift, this book is perfect for you to begin taking actionable steps toward success.

—Rae Hughart, Teach Better Team

Teach Happier This School Year comes along at just the right time to get us back on track when it comes to our personal well-being. This reflective journal is filled with practical stories, anecdotes, tools, and minilessons that will challenge you to make small but powerful shifts in your thinking and behavior throughout the school year and highlight your happiest moments.

—Jimmy Casas, leadership coach, educator, author, and speaker

Teach Happier This School Year is the book I didn't even know I needed in my life. Happiness is such an important part of our lives, yet it so often takes a back seat to other things we have going on. Suzanne does an amazing job not just writing about being happy, but providing tools, resources, and actionable ways for educators to find that happiness. Happiness isn't one more thing you need to work on, it is the thing we need to be focusing on. I just love how Suzanne tells stories, provides quotes from educators and leaders around the world, and lays it out where, for me, there is absolutely nothing to refute about what we should all be doing.

—Adam Welcome, educator, author, speaker, and podcaster