Strategies for Successful In-Class mentoring

By Emily Chamberlin, edited by Hannah Ashley
Fall 2006

Mentors haved worked with students on short in-class comprehension exercises, brainstorming research papers, lab report drafting, reflection letters, and many other types of assignments, across the curriculum--in English, Science, Home Arts, Spanish, etc.

When you sign up for a mentor to come to your classroom…

• Sign up in advance.  If you sign up several days ahead of time, you will be able to follow the other suggestions more easily.
• Check to see what mentor will be working at that time.  If you have worked with a mentor before and it has been successful, consider signing up at a time when they will be available again.
• Put your room number on the sign-up sheet.  This will ensure that your mentor makes it to your classroom on time and will not be roaming the halls looking for your room.
• If possible, stop by the Writing Zone before the time you have signed up for.  That way, you can give the mentor a heads up about what they will be doing in the classroom.  You might also consider dropping off a rubric or assignment sheet for the mentor to take a look at.
• If you sign up for multiple sessions in one day, ask the mentor if they will be there all day or if a different mentor will show up for each session.  If possible, ask the same mentor to come for all of the sessions.  You will make it easier to form a relationship with the mentor, and they will feel more comfortable in your classroom.

DURING

• Involve the mentor in your class.  Ask them if they have any suggestions or recommendations for the students’ writing.  Remember, these mentors are not that far removed from the high school setting, and many of the mentors will be teaching their own classrooms in another year or so, so they do have ideas to add.
• Do not force your students to talk to the mentor.  Instead, ask the mentor to walk around the classroom and speak with students individually.  Some students will say that they still don’t need help, but then the mentor can just ask them some questions about their writing, and it will still be possible to encourage the students to look at their writing in a new way.  When students are forced to come to the mentor, it becomes more of a chore than a help.
• Allow enough time for each of the students to get a short amount of time to workshop, either with you or with a Writing Zones mentor.  We want students to get equal chances in the in-class sessions.  Remind students that if they want more one on one time, then they can sign up for a full session to work with a mentor.