Part 1 Introduction: TEDx - Be a great mentor - Mentor Training #1

TEDx - Be a Good Mentor

Being a mentor takes time, planning and encouraging. Mentoring takes a great deal of time. It’s not just taking the time to meet for scheduled, planned times. Mentoring is consistently checking in with the mentee to see if she needs help with anything, if she is ready for the day, has questions or just to take the time to stop by and give a good morning hello with words of encouragement of having a great day. Sometimes, it may take time to find out answers to questions a mentee may have and make yourself available to support when needed. Making time to model lessons or coach through lessons is also needed. Being a good mentor is being able to provide time, planning and encouragement, while making a strong professional and interpersonal relationship. A good mentor will have a plan. It helps both the mentor and mentee to schedule dates to meet ahead of time. Mentors should have the mentee make a list of items she would like to discuss, learn or goals she may have. The mentor should make a list of important items as well, thinking ahead of what a new teacher will need to know or know how to do. New teachers are overwhelmed and they have so much to learn. They need to hear feedback which is encouraging. Mentors need to highlight strengths of mentees first, then focus on areas for growth. They need to know a mentor is a safe place to express themselves with confidentiality and guidance is always available to them. A good mentor will be a good listener, yet offer their opinion and suggestions from their own personal experiences. My first year of teaching, I taught First Grade. My mentor was Mary, who was a Reading Interventionist and had Reading Recovery Certification, just like I am today. I was drawn to Mary because she had such a calm demeanor about her. She was caring, flexible, encouraging and always positive. I looked up to her and felt very comfortable going to her with any questions or concerns I had. She came into my room and modeled lessons, she was available to provide feedback with my lessons. I knew she was there to offer her support and help me as much as possible. I have mentored new teachers in Sweet Home. The qualities I have that make me a good mentor are active listening, honesty, empathy, respect and willingness to help. I strive to develop a relationship with the mentee so she feels comfortable and safe to express herself. I have a total of 32 years of teaching experience. I have enthusiasm to share my knowledge and expertise. I have classroom experience in Kindergarten, First, Second and Fourth Grade. I have a strong background in teaching Reading, Writing, Word Work and Morning Message. I have a Reading Recovery Certification. I have much to offer a new teacher when a mentee is looking for guidance with the curriculum. I am eager to invest my time and share my passion for teaching. In my assignments as a mentor, I haven’t had the need for guidance in doing my Mentoring job. However, as a Mentor being supported is necessary. I may need to change my schedule to accommodate the needs of my mentee by modeling lessons. I will need to be given the time to observe my mentees' lessons, so I can provide praise and constructive feedback for areas of growth. I feel confident that I have and will continue to make a positive impact on a mentee's first year at Sweet Home.

permit07 Over 1 year ago

Part one- Self assessment

Reflect: What from the TedX video caused you to think more deeply about becoming a mentor?

The TedX presenter really made me think a lot about what it takes to be a great mentor. As a social worker, I try to take all of these values very seriously; by both actively listening, taking the time to get to know the people I work with and by offering strength based feedback. This concept made me think deep about being a mentor because I am passionate about this type of work and because I had a great mentor who also provided this type of mentorship to me in my first year.

From the Self-Assessment Inventory, what stands out the most about the questions and your answers?

My mentor was a school counselor and someone who I respect very dearly. He was able to listen to me actively, provide me with great knowledge on the "sweet home way", guide me by reflecting on my strengths as well as things I may need to work on better. He did it in such a great manner that was strength based and positive. He was able to use the concept of "this is a good way to do it, but maybe this is better.." and provided me with an even greater understanding of how to do things differently and in a new way.

Reflect: What do you believe you might need help with as a mentor in our school district?

I think that as a social worker, I can be a great mentor, but the help I may need is that I am still not as veteran as some other people in the district. Being a social worker is still a "newer" role in our district so there may be some questions I may have myself on how to best guide.

mbarnum0711 Over 1 year ago

The text below included my responses for the Self Assessment and Evidence of Learning.

Self Assessment

Karen Bassano and Melissa Campbell had a tremendous impact in growing my teaching craft. The funny thing is neither of Karen or Melissa were assigned to be me as official mentors. In fact, back in 2000 when I began my teaching career at Maplemere there was no mentoring program.

I connected with Karen because she was like me in taking the time to thoughtfully puzzle through things. I never felt rushed with Karen to come up with an answer right away. She was incredibly patient and valued the thinking process.

I connected with Melissa because of her no nonsense approach to managing student behaviors and parent conflicts.

The qualities that will make me a great mentor include: willingness to give as much time needed, and encouraging mentees to overcome obstacles and challenges.

I may need assistance from a Special Ed teacher, Ell teacher, or literacy/math coach to help my mentee with teaching that requires specialized instruction.

Evidence of Learning

The TedX video made me realized that a mentor can not be in a hurry. It's important not to make the mentee feel anxious about time. It takes time to impart the experience learned from mentor to mentee.

The question that stood out most to me was thinking of a mentor who impacted me and what it was about that mentor that made them great. For me the greatest quality a mentor can posses is willingness to give his/her time.

I believe I may need help from Debbie Crist to impart the health care benefits to my mentee. For example, there is funding provided for contacts or glasses. The mentee will need to know the steps to take to receive this benefit.

veronicatruskey Over 1 year ago

Mentoring has great impact

Reflect: What from the TedX video caused you to think more deeply about becoming a mentor?“If you are going to impact a lot of people, you are going to have to spend a lot of time”. In this time period we do have a lot of access to people through technology, but face to face time is so important. I think face to face time is so important. I also like the idea of making a plan prior to meeting, like discussing a specific topic from an article or experience. Furthermore this plan should be based on what the mentee wants to learn. When I was in my first year at Sweet Home my mentor was a first grade teacher. She was lovely, and very helpful to learning the “Sweet Home way” but she did not have much expertise in my field.
Reflect: From the Self-Assessment Inventory, what stands out the most about the questions and your answers? Think of a person who had a positive and enduring impact on your personal or professional life, someone worthy of being called your mentor.

What about them did you connect with?

My mentor was kind and non judgemental. She was also always available to talk when needed, and willing to go over whatever I thought relevant.

What qualities do you have to become a great mentor for a new teacher in our district?

I think I am approachable and flexible. I am always willing to talk, and have a positive disposition. I am dedicated to my job and am always willing to reflect and talk about best practice.

Are there areas that you can anticipate needing guidance or support?

I would love an outline of dates and things to know, for example by December the mentee should understand the grading systems/report cards.

Reflect: What do you believe you might need help with as a mentor in our school district?
I think a a clear must do vs. may do list would be helpful (must complete x amount of hours, may take a mentoring day).

melissa-erikson Over 1 year ago

Part One: Self assessment

The idea that starting with the mentees goals and what they want to accomplish instead of what the mentor wants to teach them stuck out to me because it allows the mentee to see value in the partnership. Though there is a great deal that can be learned from those that come before you, when you set your own goals, knowing your strengths and areas for improvement, it makes the learning more meaningful. I think it also gives the mentee confidence in knowing that there are things that they already do very well, and can hone in on those behaviors, habits, and skills, and strengthen other areas of teaching with those.

In thinking about who I would consider great mentors in my own life, it was definitely the time they took to touch base with me. The Ted speaker spoke much about the time it takes to be a good mentor, and this is crucial to any relationship. Especially in cases where someone is brand new and doesn't know many people, or needs to learn and adapt to a new environment, having someone who is there to check in, answer questions, clarify concerns, and simply share a laugh with can ease that stress and anxiety that comes with new territory.

As a mentor in the district, I think the support of allowing the time for mentees and mentors to meet is crucial to this relationship.

heatherpaolucci Over 1 year ago

Kari Mantione: Part 1 Be a great mentor

Reflect: What from the TedX video caused you to think more deeply about becoming a mentor?
From the video I thought more about how much time spent with a mentee is crucial to their development as an educator. The video shared that developing a plan that is beneficial to the needs of your mentee will allow them to have the most success under your mentorship. Those two ideas have prepared me to think about how to best support a future mentee by setting aside valuable time to meet with them and also develop a plan for the year to meet and follow through with that plan.

Reflect: From the Self-Assessment Inventory, what stands out the most about the questions and your answers?
Something that stands out to me the most is thinking about someone who has paved the way for me and what it was that brought a connection to that person. There have been countless educators that have impacted me but a few that I've made real, long lasting connections with. That inspires me to not only pave the way for future teachers in our district, but also make those long lasting connections with them.

What do you believe you might need help with as a mentor in our school district?
I am still learning myself each and every day. I can see myself struggling with confidence in areas that I may not be as familiar with. Such as information that goes beyond curriculum and instruction. If there is something I am unsure of and my mentee needs assistance, I will provide her with the necessary information and direct them to someone that can help the situation.

kmantione Over 1 year ago

Part 1: Be a great mentor

1. The video had me reflecting on the time, the planning and the encouraging it takes to be a great mentor. It is a great reminder that as an experienced teacher in both daily curriculum and SweetHome's strategic plan, the mentor has the power to assist in building our district's future. I believe the encouraging of choices and behaviors is the most powerful tool a mentor can use. We want to mold those choices and behaviors and encouraging and building trust from the mentee, a mentor can then make suggestions and help guide those choices based on our years of experience and based upon our past struggles and studies.
2. I believe a great mentor should possess the qualities of listening, encouraging and being able to gently guide a new hire. The mentee's look to the mentor to help become a better teacher, but they also want to feel like they are doing well with how they are starting off. A good mentor will find the good and the positive and will provide informed guidance to help a new teacher navigate various challenges that rise up along the way.
3. A challenge that usually arises is finding time to meet and to practice some of the new ideas or teachings. The shortage of subs/coverage usually makes it difficult to sit together and reflect on a lesson and plan for next steps.

mollyd Over 1 year ago

Evidence: Part 1 Introduction: TEDx - Be a great mentor

miausb14 Over 1 year ago

Part 1

Reflect: What from the TedX video caused you to think more deeply about becoming a mentor?

A couple of things that made me think more deeply about becoming a mentor is the amount of time that this will take. Understanding that things won't happen overnight and that this is more of a lifelong journey where I will learn alongside the new teacher. Another takeaway was encouragement. This will remind me to make sure that I praise their choices and behavior that they make.

Reflect: From the Self-Assessment Inventory, what stands out the most about the questions and your answers?

What stands out most from the questions and answers from the self assessment was that the quality that helped make someone a great mentor was that they took what I needed and spent quality time developing it. They also took it very step and by step and tried not to fuel stress. They encouraged me that what I was doing was great and kept building me up instead of trying to change me. Great mentors I have had were also very open minded.

Reflect: What do you believe you might need help with as a mentor in our school district?

I'm not too sure what help I might need as a mentor. I think there might be challenges with how to guide them at times when dealing with challenging social situations where you might feel the need to protect them and not want to overstep.

lindsay-gimlin Over 1 year ago

Being a Good Mentor Reflection

1) What from the TedX video caused you to think more deeply about becoming a mentor?
Being a mentor is valuable and powerful, especially in Sweet Home. The role of a mentor allows you to pass on your knowledge and experiences to the next new group of teachers. After watching the video, spending a lot of time with the mentee stuck out to me the most in the importance of being a great mentor. It is so important to spend face to face time with the mentee to build relationships with each other. When spending a lot of time together, it gives us both the opportunity to communicate, learn and share experiences. As a mentor, it is crucial to be a part of various experiences with your mentee. Like the video stated investing time with each other, allows you to build a solid relationship with each other.

2) From the Self-Assessment Inventory, what stands out the most about the questions and your answers?
After reflecting on the self assessment inventory, I am the teacher I am today because of the veteran teachers that stood beside me and helped me to grow. Everyone around me during my first years were committed, positive and encouraging. I am a very passionate, knowledgeable and approachable individual which gives me the qualities to become a great mentor for Sweet Home.

3) What do you believe you might need help with as a mentor in our school district?
As a mentor in our school district it would be beneficial to have “assignments” or goals for us at the mentor to use as a guideline for the mentee. Like the video said it is important to come up with a plan for the mentee based on their goals, so having a plan for us as the mentor would be beneficial.

julia-taboni Over 1 year ago

MENTOR BADGE #1 - Reflection

1. I was impressed by the focus the speaker gave to investing time in the mentee. For teachers, this can be intimidating, because time is our scarcest resource. Yet, I know that the most impactful professional relationship I have had was with the teacher I shared a room with - we spent hours of each day watching one another teach, and free periods planning or reflecting on our lessons. Because of this, I appreciate the speaker's suggestion to invite the mentee into my life. Regular shared planning and lesson reflection promises to be most beneficial to mentee and mentor alike.

2. In completing the self-assessment inventory, I realize how important listening is to being a good mentor. Mentors need to listen to the goals of the mentee and help develop a plan to meet them. Mentors need to listen to the mentee's self-reflections and concerns and help the mentee address them. Mentors need to listen for the mentee's successes, highlight them, and compliment the mentee, so that the mentee repeats them.

3. As a mentor, I find it most difficult to give corrective feedback. I believe that each teacher is most effective when their teaching reflects their personality. Because of this, I am sometimes reluctant to point out a method that I believe is better. However, I appreciate the speaker's phrasing "this is a good way of doing it, but here is a better way..." This phrasing will be useful to me.

c_ramsperger Over 1 year ago

Ashlee Lipka- Part 1 TEDx Reflection

The video provided a lot of good inspiration for someone becoming a mentor. What stood out to me was the emphasis on spending the time to be there for your mentor and the time to build the relationship so there is a good foundation to work from. When thinking abut myself as a mentor, I still frequently spend time with previous student teachers-on the phone, by email or in person- even with them being years into their own teaching. We built a relationship and they trust that I will still be there when they need support, advice or to bounce ideas off. Making sure as a mentor that you have the time to commit and spend with your mentee, especially in the beginning stages, is so important. Recognizing that despite having a "schedule", there may be on the fly times your mentee needs you is also important. Spending time to build that trust so you can help them grow and succeed is a must.

When doing the self assessment, I found thinking back to my influential mentors, that the biggest thing that I connected with was knowing that people were caring and relatable. I was fresh out of college when I started and very insecure due to my age an inexperience. Mentors that showed me that they could be down to earth, relatable and caring without making me feel judged or "less than" gave me a safe space to confront some of those insecurities and grow as a teacher. I think as a mentor, I have the ability to provide that same caring and safe space for new teachers and spend the time building that trust and comfort level.

As a mentor for Sweet Home, I think it will be important to have thoughtful assignments and to be given the time before the school year starts to reach out to my mentee and make them feel welcome/start building that relationship. I also would want clear expectations and guidelines for my role and responsibilities. I'm sure these would already be considerations if I was picked to be a mentor.

ash61492 Over 1 year ago

Part 1 Introduction: TEDx - Be a great mentor

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