Mentoring Tips

Mentors help keep students in school.
Students who meet regularly with mentors are 52% less likely than their peers to skip a day of school and 37% less likely to skip a class (Public/Private Ventures study of Big Brothers Big Sisters).
Youth who meet regularly with mentors are 46% less likely than their peers to start using illegal drugs and 27% less likely to start drinking (Public/Private Ventures study of Big Brothers Big Sisters).
Mentors help with homework and can improve academic skills.
Mentors help improve a young person's self-esteem.
Mentors provide support for students trying to think through new challenges.
About 40% of teenager's waking hours are spent without companionship or supervision. Mentors provide teens with a safe and valuable place to spend free time.
Mentors teach young people how to relate well to all kinds of people and help them strengthen their communication skills.

(National Mentoring Partnership: www.mentoring.org)

HOW CAN I BE A GOOD MENTOR?

Put your student first.
Be a friend, not a buddy.
Approach your student on a basis of mutual respect.
Take time to get to know your student. Ask questions that show a personal interest in him or her. Use questions that cannot be answered with a “yes” or “no.”
Try to have a positive influence on your student.
Communicate by transmitting attitudes and feelings; be yourself.
Arrange the physical setting to be close to the student.
Do not interrupt the student when he or she is speaking.
Give the student time to think.
Ask such questions as, “What does this mean to you?” or “How did you feel about that?” when discussing and emotional topic.
Observe and interpret nonverbal cues. Also be alert to changes in the rate of speech, the volume of speech, or the tone of voice.
Don’t give lectures on ways to behave.
Share common experiences with your student, but maintain the conversation’s focus on him or her.
Do not make false promises or reassure the student that things will be all right.
Do not make moralistic judgments.
Be sincere in your praise of the student.

(Teammmates Mentoring Program: Training Manual, 1998)