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Mentoring a Young Person

Three short lessons for a volunteer tutor or a family mentor: wait before you help, give the smallest hint first, and praise the strategy rather than the child.

For grown-ups, from what MentorDojo teaches children at Spark & Anvil.

  1. Lesson 1Wait three seconds
  2. Lesson 2The smallest hint first
  3. Lesson 3Praise the strategy
At the table · a mentor and a young person

A fifteen-minute session

You'll need: one piece of their own homework or reading.

  1. Ask them to choose the question they found hardest.
  2. Ask one question about it, then count to three before saying anything else.
  3. If they are stuck, give the smallest hint you can, then the next smallest.
  4. End by naming one strategy they used.

Print the guidebook (all lessons + the table activity) →