Part 2 Mentoring Matters

In what ways can you relate to the information shared?
When reading all 3 articles, I was taken back 10 years to my start in education which was also my start at Sweet Home. I remember those feelings, those experiences and the phases listed (sometimes I still go through those phases, if I'm being honest). It helped me reflect on the formal mentoring I received but also all of the informal supports I have always had throughout the years. The staff at SHMS has always been helpful, caring and I never felt like I had no one to turn to. I remember college professors stating the opposite, very much pushing the "your on your own kid" mentality and making my nerves and anxiety heightened when I was ready to start my career. I never once have experienced that and these articles made me appreciate that much more the true family I have at the middle school. It has always inspired me to want to help future generations of teachers the way I was supported (especially in the FACS profession, as there are so few of us!).

In what ways do you think you can support a new teacher?
Even though I am a department of one, I teach almost the whole entire middle school. Therefore, I know almost ever student and staff member.  I think this is an asset that would help me support a mentee from a different curriculum area or department. I am also very involved and knowledgable of not only classroom and instruction practices, but policies, procedures and extracurriculars of the school district. I think I am friendly, kind, caring and helpful. All of these assets would support a new teacher and I feel I could provide them a safe and trusting relationship for their first year and beyond. 

In what ways as a mentor will you need additional support?
The one area I feel like I need the most support is with finding the balance between "helping" and "hand holding". I feel I naturally am a helper but in my past mentoring experience may have done too much for the mentee/not given enough constructive feedback and when I needed to take a medical leave, they struggled without my support. I have a very mild and non confrontational personality, which is a good thing, but was unsure of myself when I needed to be firm and constructive, as I did not want to be discouraging or hurt the mentee's feelings. More coaching on how to find that "sweet spot" in the relationship would be helpful to me so I can best serve my mentee. 

In what ways can you relate to the information shared?
     I think that even veteran teachers go through parts of the Phases of First-Year Teaching-just in a different way.  I know that I feel excited with the anticipation of meeting my new students and their families every September.  I also can get some jitters trying to anticipate their needs and how I'm going to meet them.  Although veteran teachers usually have familiarity with the curriculum they will be teaching, and a toolbox filled with skills and strategies they can use in their classrooms, Sept-Dec. can still be very overwhelming (Survival Phase).  There's so much to do/set up and it's usually when I get sick!  Because I've had many years of experience & successes under my belt, the Disillusionment Phase is much easier to deal with.  We still get challenges thrown at us, but we're better able to deal with them.  Everyone feels better after Winter Break and we're able to go back to school, eager to start the second half of the year.  The end of the year still brings opportunities to reflect on what went well and what needs to change for next year-that's an on-going process for me.  

Where do you strengths lie?
     I am a very reflective person-always striving to do better for my kids.  I'm still doing this after 29 years of teaching.  As teachers, I feel that we never stop learning and modeling that new learning for the kids.  I'm always trying new ways to reach my struggling learners.  
     I also am a good listener and I take time to really think about something before I give a response.  I also know how hard it is, as a new teacher, to expose your self-doubt and admit your mistakes to experienced teachers.  When I was new, I wanted to come-off confident and for everyone to think I knew what I was doing, when in fact I struggled.  I understand how important it is for a mentor-mentee to have trust in one another or this won't benefit anyone.
    
In what ways do you think you can support a new teacher?
     I feel that I can help facilitate connections with faculty and staff in our building and help the new teacher better understand our school culture.  Because I am a SpEd teacher, I am good at meeting kids where they are and building their skill level, along with their confidence.  I can do this for a new teacher as well.  I hope to help them develop their capacity, competence and self-confidence so they can make their own informed decisions.  


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In what ways can you relate to the information shared? 
The chart explaining the peaks and valleys of a first year is dead on. The chart also shows a road map of when a mentor can step in to assist during the school year. 

In what ways do you think you can support a new teacher. 
I believe making sure that more time is made to be available for a mentee throughout the first two weeks of school.  The presence of a mentor always being available at the beginning of a school year will help bring a sense of comfort to a mentee.  It will help establish the professional arrangement. Moving forward a mentee would understand that they are not alone. 

Where do your strengths lie?
Actively listening and availability to a mentee is a strength. Offering solutions (when asked) to any school related issue(s). Helping a mentee understand the culture and expectations of teaching. When it comes to listening a mentee knows that any concerns shared are confidential. 

• In what ways can you relate to the information shared?I agree with the comments about the various phases. It seems that everyone deals with these. Even experienced teachers will revisit some of these phases. What I do think is that the most successful teachers do take time to reflect on their success/perceived failures and that is what helps them grow into a strong teacher. I think that as a mentor it’s important to step in and provide help, support and guidance in the survival stage as those brand-new teachers can be easily overwhelmed as they are not sure what to expect. Having a classroom of your own is very different from student teaching as your now tasked with behavior management, documentation, setting routines/expectations, and mapping curriculum to create lesson plans for implementation all these aspects can become very time consuming and could easily turn into burnout. Before the year started, I would want to quickly introduce them to their peers within their department. I felt as a new hire getting access early on to materials and resources made it easier to begin lesson planning and syllabus. Those early days can be stressful as there is so much to do but so little time during the workday to handle everything. During the disillusionment phase it would be important to set expectations on what they should do to prepare for open house, parent teacher conference and their first evaluation. My suggestion for the first evaluation would be to review the rubric used and discussing how they can best prepare. At the end of the instructional period before final exams it would be important to meet again and reflect on the year – talking about the successes/failures and areas for improvement to ensure that the mentee is still engaged to continue teaching in the district and to provide time to best prepare for year 2. 

• In what ways do you think you can support a new teacher?
Initially it will be through introducing them the to school building, school culture, showing them where to locate policies and procedures and providing key contacts. As we get into the school year I can share strategies and teaching skills that will make a mentee teacher more effective and confident. I have been a “new” teacher in more than one district I can share resources that they’ll need to succeed in our district. I’m happy to be a mentor that listens without judgement about what their concerns are and when appropriate provide feedback or guidance as they may have situations that require additional emotional support whether it be reassurance or encouragement. If it was a mentee within a similar content area I would find ways to collaborate on lessons/projects/curriculum and share my existing resources. 

• Where do your strengths lie?
I would use this question to reflect on what I can do yo best support my mentee. I would bring my knowledge and experiences to provide valuable insight for a new teacher. I have patience that allows me to pace the information I'm sharing as not to overwhelm the mentee while still using my communication skills to ensure what I'm providing clear ideas, feedback and instructions. I have a positive attitude that will help mentees and peers remain positive (even in a difficult situation). I'm a teacher that regularly reflects on my teaching experiences to seek improvement in student understanding and engagement. Lastly, I want to see mentee succeed and I'm willing to support them beyond their first year with our district. 

• In what ways as a mentor will you need additional support?I would like access to guides and resources that can help me better manage my mentoring relationship. I would also like the ability to connect with other mentors so that we can share experiences and strategies for dealing with any challenges that may occur during the school year. 

The ideas presented are ideas every good teacher thinks about, considers and contemplates every year, no matter how long they've been teaching.  I can support a new teacher by being “honest and helpful, never hurtful and insensitive."  It is important for teachers new to the building/district to understand that they don’t need, nor are they expected, to know everything right away. Mentors have a responsibility to build trust with their interns so that they can learn and grow in a comfortable and supportive environment.  My strengths include being being a supportive and earnest listener and being willing to do whatever is necessary to help the intern succeed.  The article, Why New Teachers Need Mentors, states that the mentor should be a confidant, an observer and a confidence builder.   The first year of mentoring is just the beginning, like a dot on a very long timeline.  If tended to and carefully cared for, the intern- mentor relationship should last for many many years. 

The articles all connect around the list of benefits to both teachers in the partnership. The benefit to the newer teacher will be to acclimate them to the building, level, subject. I of course will be reminded on several best practices and certainly will in turn work out some of my tendencies in the classroom that could be improved. The different phases discussed in the second article are not strangers for the experienced teachers as well. We all progress through the year and hit a point where we need to change it up, even if it is working well enough.

In what ways can you relate to the information shared?

• Although my first year at SH was 7 years ago, these articles brought me right back to my experiences learning the district.  My mentor provided some of the support listed in the articles.  My mentor supported me by identifying the knowledge gaps with district procedures and knowing who to contact with questions as mentioned in "5 Reasons You Need a Teacher Mentorship Program".  She also introduced me to her teacher friends at the school which was an entirely different group of teachers than the ones I worked with on a daily basis.  This is similar to the Mentor as Confidence Builder section of the article "Why New Teachers Need Mentors".

In what ways do you think you can support a new teacher?

• There are several ways mentioned in the articles that I feel I can support a teacher new to the district.  First, I feel knowledgeable on the district initiatives, procedures and personnel and can help a mentee learn how to navigate our district.  I also stay current on my content area pedagogy and have done research in improving pedagogical practice of inservice teachers by building their agency in the classroom.  I feel this can translate to aiding a mentee in refining their teaching in the classroom.  As mentioned in the role of "mentor as observer" my research comes with an instructional framework, the TRU Framework, which focuses on creating a classroom that maximizes a powerful learning environment. 

Where do your strengths lie? 

• I am focused on the big picture, goal oriented, a problem solver while also being empathetic.  These qualities can help guide the year-long trajectory of a mentor-mentee relationship based on trust, growth and improvement.

Something that I took away from the article is helping them discover the growth mindset and being open to new ideas and suggestions.  New teachers can be like a sponge with all these fun and new ideas they want to implement and that can be inspiring to the veteran teachers.  I find it that way.  Someone new coming in with ideas and good energy are contagious and make you want to strive to do better.  It is hard being the new fish in the big pond, especially here at the MS where we have a lot of staff spread out all over.  It really can take a year plus to meet everyone and remember who they are.  With that said, it is so helpful to have a connection from the beginning that can help you navigate the building, how the building is run, policies, and feeling connected.  I do feel that is one of the most important part of being a mentor.  

I found the phases chart to be interesting.  I wouldn't say that is just for new teachers, I think that at some point in the school year, all teachers go through those at some capacity.  It might not be for as long, when in the "slump", but we all go through situations and periods of time.  Having experience in these phases, that is what makes us helpful to new teachers because we can keep up encouragement and offer suggestions when they are in the "slump" of the phases.  Coming in as a new teacher, there is always that reality check of "what they thought it was" versus "what it is really like".  I think that is pretty common with every job.  We are excited and really optimistic and when reality hits, it can sometimes be discouraging, but the positive and the good always circle back.

• In what ways can you relate to the information shared? 

Reading these articles reminded me of my first few years of teaching, especially the 2nd article with the different phases of the year.  In some ways even experience teachers go through similar phases through out the year.  It reminded me of the times that I was given advice from other veteran teachers that I still follow today

• In what ways do you think you can support a new teacher. 

Now that I have been teaching for a while, I can remember what it was like being a new teacher and offer suggestions to new teachers, but also lend a supporting ear when they are struggling

• Where do your strengths lie? 

Knowledge and experience gained from a persistence to achieve excellence.   Also I listen more than I speak