Another idea could be to try to get your dodge higher. (DEX + Gear)
At normal difficulty, this might not be entirely worthwhile over other methods such as stacking a bit more Vitality to have more survivability overall.
At higher difficulties, Dodge can be a great alternative to resorting to 1H+Shield.
I play a monk as my main so far without stacking resists (which I really must start doing) at lvl 60 inferno.
Like I said, stacking particular resist, or solely focusing on the dodge stat may only give you minor returns at lower levels so it is best to stack DEX as high as possible with VIT as a secondary on EVERY piece of gear, even at the expense of Magic/Gold find (which can sometimes suck, but I'd rather spend 30 minutes alive farming for loot vs. dead 25 minutes and up 5 minutes with great magic find!!)
Good Luck!
*EDIT
Also, depending on what skills you use, you may be poorly optimized to survive, instead focusing on DPS alone.
If you are confident, use Elective Mode to truly unlock the full potential of your monk and have multiple defensive skills on your bar (or when you are ready/able, offensive!!)