BEING A GREAT MENTOR TEACHER
4 STEPS TO COMPLETE COMMUNICATION
by Karen Davis
2023
Starting a mentor-intern relationship can be daunting when you’re not sure what to say and do. Approach your intern with the same respect you would show for a colleague. Not only is your intern learning how to be a great teacher from you, they are learning to model your behavior as well. The old “treat others the way you wish to be treated” works well in this situation.
The following steps will help you build a foundation of great communication skills with your intern. Communication is an important part of being a great mentor teacher.
- Will we text? Email? Landline phone?
There will be times, due to sickness, weather, or district decisions, when the start to a school day is delayed or even cancelled. Know how to contact each other from the beginning so you are both prepared.
I would tell my intern I was an early-bird, not a night-owl. This helped immensely because we both knew when our questions would more than likely be addressed.
Your method of communication should work for both of you. Choose whichever makes you feel the most comfortable and effective. You call the shots on this one.
- When to Talk
Most interns are given the advice of shadowing their mentor completely, from the time they walk in the classroom until whenever they leave the building.
Although good professional advice for the intern, punctuality is important, I suggest constructing a schedule that works for you.
I always explained that I needed some alone-time in my classroom at the beginning of the day, you may need that quiet time of reflection after dismissal. Like everything else in teaching, we were always flexible, but communicating those expectations up-front really supported a positive experience for both of us.
Be sure to cover when certain discussions are best held. Otherwise, you might discover you have someone whispering to you all day. We used before school to tighten up our daily lesson-plans, planning time for weekly planning, after dismissal for reflection, and lunchtime for sharing any classroom management or student engagement observations and reflections. You can switch these around to suit your own personalities and preferences, but once you master the tempo of this schedule, you should find your weekend time is minimal, if any!
- Professional Dispositions
Discuss with your intern the need to treat this internship like the longest job interview ever. Professional dress, attendance, and respect should be considered. They will need to understand the importance of a clean social-media profile as they develop their public persona. Saying these things to future professionals may seem trivial, but knowing they have been addressed can save you both awkward moments in the future.
This is the best time to discuss district policies for school safety, student safety, sexual harassment, and any other topics that Human Resources deems necessary. Interns can see or hear things from students without your knowledge, so it is important for them to know the proper protocol. Use your school handbook as a guide so you don’t miss anything!
- Technology Policies & Procedures
Many schools are now using technology in the classroom. Be sure your intern is aware of your district’s policies and procedures when it comes to the tech your intern will be using. Care and use of student hardware and necessary information for any software used in the classroom can be as in-depth or perfunctory as you see fit for your particular situation.
Discuss the rules for student – and teacher – use of tech during class and free time. Be sure your intern is modeling the behavior you want, like not being on your cell phone in the classroom. Even just a quick Google during a lesson can look like watching videos to your students.
Lesson-planning and observations will also need to be communicated. These 2 are the bulk of the experience with your intern and will be covered in a separate post.
Starting with respect, kindness, and some clearly-defined boundaries and expectations will have a positive effect on your mentoring experience.
Once you and your intern have developed a rapport and covered the basics of how and when you communicate, along with any district parameters for your classroom and students, you can both feel confident and secure in tackling lesson-planning and observations next.
I’ve got you covered on everything you need to be a great mentor teacher.
