Builing relationships with the students you work with is important. It may be challening at first, but once it is established, the students will feel more comfortable with asking for help. For example, building relationships in the WEC was a bit challenging becuase there is a constant flow of new students. However, once we, the WEC mentors, bonded and became friends, the students who came to the WEC were more comfortable. This is because the fun and welcoming enviroment we created as mentors from our relationship fed into the relationships we built with students who came to the WEC.
-Kira Clark
To build relationships, I would suggest finding topics or interests that you have in common with your students to get them to open up and start talking with you. Once the students see you on a more personal level, not just a strange older student in their classroom, they are way more likely to ask for help and guidance. Talking about your own experiences shows the students that you are trustworthy, which helps strengthen the connections you will make. Making the students feel comfortable enough to start asking you for help is the most important thing you can do as a mentor.
- Ondine Scrimgeour
My advice on how to build relationships is to just be yourself and try to relate as much as you can to the student you are working with. It is really helpful to let them know of your past knowledge on whatever it is you two are doing and that you have been in similar positions as them. Talking to them how you would treat a new friend is also a great start.
- Lauren A
Building relationships with students is a really important part of being a successful mentor. One way that I was successful in doing this was by embracing the fact that I too, am a student. It was difficult at first because I am also in high school and I didn’t want to make it seem like I am “better” or “wiser” than everyone else in the room, instead I positioned myself less as a teacher, and more as an understanding student. There is no efficient way to draw that line because it varies from classroom to classroom, but something that worked for me was starting working one-on-one with a student, and then transitioning into helping the bigger part of the class or bigger groups of students.
- Cassie Jantzen
In order to establish positive, meaningful connections it is essential to get to know students on a personal level. Throughout my experience as a mentor I found that one of the best ways to do this is by asking them how their day is going and if they are excited for anything.
-Ishita G
Building relationships isn't always easy. It takes a little bit of work everyday. I worked to ask kids questions every day and discovering their interests. Once you have discovered their interests they will slowly become excited to see you and work with you every day. Make students feel welcomed and care about what they are telling you. This does not take much effort from your end but it makes all the difference for them.
- Joe Blom
One thing that helped me build relationships was just talk to the students like they are your friends. Have regular conversations about stuff outside of school and eventually they will open up to you. Also ask them a lot of questions so that you can get to know them. Once you know what they are like you can start relating yourself to them and build a connection.
-Lola C
Relationship building is a key aspect of being an effective mentor and establishing meaningful friendships in life. One way that I was able to accomplish this was before class asking what they did over the weekend or being engaged in their favorite hobby that they did. Because my class was extremely quiet being a bunch of 9th graders, I had to think outside of the box and engage in conversations with students to help them trust me more. After being a mentor, the biggest advice I have is just to be confident and start conversations with people.
-Brett Kelzenberg
Relationship building is key to helping the kids opening up and feeling comfortable in asking them questions. For example, ask them what sports they play, what music/tv/movies they like, what they do after school etc... Then you are able to find a connection and you can build a relationship off of your similarities. This makes the student feel more comfortable so you can then shift your focus on helping them academically.
- Jake B
Relationship building is very important to help the kids be able to trust you and want to ask for help from you. One thing that really helped me to break the ice with the kids was on the first day of mentoring, I stood at the front of the class and introduced myself. I think that really helped at the beginning with the kids getting use to me being in the room. At the beginning I just went around simply asking if the kids needed help at the start. Then after awhile they adjusted to me being in the room with them. And then they felt comfortable with asking for help from me.
- Mia Sodt
Relationship building with the students you are mentoring is quite a necessity to having a successful experience in the classroom that you are mentoring. Sometimes it may seem difficult to break through the awkwardness while also maintaining a professional atmosphere. One thing that helped me build relationships with the students was being friendly and outgoing, this was hard at the beginning but after a while really helped building great relationships with the students.
- Garrett Freeland
Relationship building is very key to connecting with the students. Building that trust slowly but surely will help them open up to you so you can help them grow. some kids will connect fast and some slow but take it as fast as they want to go and the relationships will become better and better.
- Fox Knutson
I found that to connect with students and to build relationships, you need to start talking to students in the class and show them that you are willing to help them. Students tend to become more comfortable with you when you can have casual conversation with them. For example, if they call you over to help them, don't just sit there in silence while trying to fix their issue. Ask them questions about their day and what their project is about to build a strong foundation and relationship.
-Maitri Chandrashekar
Building positive relationships with the students you are mentoring is essential to developing trust and helping students reach their full potential. One thing I learned while academic Mentoring is that even though students may be reluctant at first they are grateful for the help. I think that to build connections with the students you are working with you have to show them that they can trust you. You can do this by asking students about their interests and what they enjoy doing or by saying hello and goodbye each day. By making an effort to learn about and interact with the students you are working with, they can see that you care about their success which allows students to open up to being helped. Another way to build relationships and trust is through encouraging students and pointing out when they do well. By encouraging students and focusing on their strengths, you can create a positive relationship where students will see you as someone they trust and someone who believes in them and wants them to succeed. Another important thing to remember when building relationships is to stay humble, so that students feel comfortable approaching you without the fear of being judged by you.
-Katie Allen
Advice I have on building relationships with the students you work with is to come off as a friend. Building friendships allow for you to not only get to know who they are as person, but they are more comfortable asking for help. I always find it so much easier to ask a friend before I go ask the teacher for help. After all, we are just a fellow student who may not know all the answers, so coming off as someone less intimidating helps your peers open up to you more.
-Jordyn Freadhoff
One key to building relationships is learning names first. When you know a student’s name, they feel more seen and respected as an individual. I suggest asking your teacher for a roster list or just writing down names as you learn them, and trying to learn names and faces as soon as possible. Try to interact with each student casually at least once before you help them academically, so they warm up to you and see you as an accessible resource.
- Katherine Chen
To build relationships with students, you need to compliment them and work with them at their pace giving them advice throughout to gain their trust. Then when they are doing activities, guide them with the first 1 or 2 questions for examples, and then watch them do a few questions on their own. If they are doing the task right, compliment them and assure them that you are there if they need any help. One thing to keep in mind is don't talk when the teacher is giving directions to the students. Also, build a friendly relationship with the teacher and be willing to do what she asks you to do. Don't give too much information away to the students, as then the student may seem much smarter than they actually are, which teachers may not like. Just behave as if you are helping a fair amount and stay friendly with everyone.
- Arreh Jain
In my experience as an academic mentor, I found that the best way to build relationships with the students is to put yourself at their level. By this I mean approaching the students as a fellow student rather than a teacher. From my own experience and what I have heard from the students I have worked with, asking for help from a teacher can be nerve racking and thoughts like "what if they think I'm stupid" or "what if this will affect my grade" or "is this a dumb question" often make them hesitant to ask. As an academic mentor you have a unique opportunity to show students that you are in the same boat as them, for me I was often relearning a lot of the material so it was easy for me to say things like "I'm not sure, let's figure it out together" working with the students to find an answer, rather than judging students or just spitting out answers. Interactions like these allow students to ask you questions that they might be nervous to ask the teachers, and why building the foundation is so important.
- Mathias Stoffel
Advice I can give on how to build relationships with students is try to build a friendship with them first. It will be hard to find something in common between you and every student, but I promise that you will be able to make a connection the more you show interest in building a relationship with them. I would ask about their hobbies, interests, or what they did over the weekend. Talking about what they do outside of school often helped them to open up more. But, most importantly, know that it will take time. Especially depending on each student, their personalities and comfortability with the class material. I noticed those who were having a harder time picking up the material were more reluctant to ask for help or ask questions because they were afraid to be seen as not knowing what they were doing and stand out. By building a close relationship with these types of students I was able to get them to trust me and even though they were nervous, they were able to ask questions and learn. All students are going to be reluctant to open up to you at first, you’re an upperclassman, and seen as a supervisor to them, but you must make it clear that you are there to help and support them as a friend as well as a mentor.
- Grace Nye
Students are not normally very open around new people. Sometimes they avoid you, ignore you, or approach you with caution. A good way to overcome this is to make students feel comfortable in anyway that you can, whether that is finding a common interest, or laughing at their jokes, this will help your students break out of their shells. Once you have done this, students will be more willing to approach you and ask questions, which will allow you to help more and be a more effective mentor.
-Owen Dehm
As a mentor, you will often find yourself being the conversation starter and the initiator, especially when it comes to schoolwork. However, this also applies to building relationships. In order to build an awesome, fun, environment with your students, you have to make the first steps, even if it's a little awkward. Personally, I love to talk about music, videogames, and so many other things with the students around me, when appropriate. Relating to them and showing them that you are also interested in the same things as them, while also maintaining a healthy, professional environment will work wonders for you.
-Nick Haseman
Building relationships and becoming close with students is essential to being an academic mentor. It helps students become comfortable and willing to ask questions. Asking them "what are you doing after school today?" or "What do you like to do for fun?" can make a huge difference.
-Ella Smith
Building relationships is key for students being willing to accept your help. When students feel more comfortable, they are more open to listening.
-Larissa Zukor
I found that you need to often find the line between being relatable, but also knowing what you're doing. If you know everything, your students might come to you for answers but it will be hard to create lasting relationships because they haven't seen you struggle. But on the other hand, you do have to keep in mind that you are there to help the students learn, so knowing what you're doing but also letting them know that you are a student and have struggles just like them can help quite a lot.
-Aadi Gawade
My advice for building relationships with the students would be to also get to know them more personally on topics outside of school. By getting to know them on a more personal level it creates a better opportunity for the student to feel comfortable sharing with you. By asking them simple questions about their day or their weekend can create an environment for the student to open up and connect.
-Semara Lee