Your 6th grade Reading Classroom Coaching coordinators, Chris and Hannah, put together a great handout for the April volunteer and mentor coffee talk. Check it out below!

Meet them at their level – put yourself in their shoes

• Get to know their interests and hobbies.  Some students have a different background than yours; respecting it is key. Crossing cultural barriers takes effort, but if you want to bridge distances it is important to remain patient and keep an open mind.

Be objective

• Don’t take student behavior personally
• Be aware of your reaction/response to the students

Don’t be afraid to laugh and admit mistakes—have a sense of humor!

• Model that it’s ok to make mistakes
• Utilize your sense of humor

Respect/Trust

• Remember that to get respect, you have to give it
• Building trust takes time and patience

Listen

• Try to listen more than you talk
• Accept that a student’s feelings are valid

Be consistent

• It is much harder to relate to your students if you miss multiple classes
• Be consistent week to week with group guidelines for behavior
• Being inconsistent will cause you to lose students’ respect and attention

We hope you’ll join APIE staff, your teachers, and fellow volunteers and mentors for the end-of-year happy hour TODAY at Contigo Austin!