Mentoring Newsletter
A guide to working with mentees at your school site
October 19th - November 1st, 2020:
Hello, BPS mentors.
I hope you are staying healthy! I have been in a lot of classrooms lately and have seen some amazing teaching going on -- teachers really rising to the challenges of e-learning, hybrid, and brick-and-mortar instruction with students coming in and out due to quarantining. It's awesome to see because it is truly tough out there right now.
If you are looking for additional support on blended-learning, one of our partners, Grand Canyon University, is offering FREE courses with immediate takeaways you use in the classroom. Please look for the flyer below and share with your mentees. Not all courses are listed on the flyer either. Check it out.
I have also taken part in team and mentor meetings that are full of ideas and strategies being shared by new teachers and veterans. The positive dynamics in the meetings are worth a closer look because I have watched many of our skillful mentors guide the meetings toward specific instructional and learning goal discussions while allowing feelings and views to be heard. This is not an easy skill -- especially when many teachers are feeling overwhelmed and a few edging toward burnout. How do these mentors keep the discussions on track and not allow the talk to go down a rabbit hole? The mentor listens first, then goes down the path of problem-solving alongside their colleague.
Key observed points :
· The mentor physically and mentally tuning in when the new teacher says she/he was struggling
· The mentor listening carefully
· The mentor asking open-ended questions that guide the new teacher toward the core issue
· The mentor not telling the new teacher what to do
· Instead, the mentor partnering with the new teacher in finding solutions
· And the mentor helping the new teacher think of any additional resources that could help in the situation
These positive interactions have allowed the new teachers to walk out of meetings feeling encouraged and empowered. This is so important during this phase of a new teacher's year and in the times we are living. Sometimes, just having an empathetic ear is what is needed.
In this edition, I'm asking you to focus on a few areas that you judge to be the most important:
1. Personal: Monitor new teachers for fatigue and disillusionment. Refer to the first year phases graph below. Check in with your mentees and truly listen to how they are doing. Encourage a teacher who is feeling exhausted to take some time for themselves. This may mean using a personal day to re-energize. Share that it is OK to utilize this option and that they should not feel guilty.
2. Professional: Ensure your mentees are feeling informed and ready for the first round of formal observations.
3. Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment: Introduce new teachers to the cumulative records and the student data on their students. Most new teachers will not have had the chance to access the cumulative records yet or understand the importance of that data.
4. Organizational Systems: Discuss time management both at school and during the after-school hours.
5. Students: Discuss concerns about students who are struggling and identify interventions that might work. Also, make sure you discuss student behaviors around Halloween and what they can expect the Monday after Halloween if there has been a lot of candy and hoopla.
6. Colleagues: Arrange a meeting of classroom teachers and the ESE teachers who support the learning of ESE students in the classroom. Design an agenda that helps the two get to know each other on a personal level and for each to better know how to make connections between the two programs for the learners.
7. School Systems: Discuss the school holiday policies with an emphasis on how Halloween is handled.
8. Parents and Community: Do a room tour and help your new teacher see the classroom through the eyes of administrators coming in for observations. Ensure that learning standards and student work dominate.
*Special Educators: Review the first few IEPs prepared by the new teachers and provide feedback on accuracy and completeness of document.
Thank you. You mean more to your new teachers than you will ever know! 💚
-Bridget Reed
reed.bridget@brevardschools.org
Breakdown and suggestions taken from Paula Rutherford's Just Ask Publications