Teaching Assistants are working with many students and adults on a daily basis. They deal with social-emotional needs of students while balancing the values and needs of the educators they work with. The role of teaching assistants needs to take into account the well-being of so many. Strategies for building relationships and identifying factors that contribute to our ability to function in the 21st century include a knowledge of who we are and how we learn. Emotional resilience and social skills are also foundational to learning. Relationship building and the pivotal role that teaching assistants have with fellow teachers and students will be explored as you understand ways nurture yourself first, and those we work with.