“As the authors so aptly suggest, good teaching is more a journey than a destination. This book will help both mentors and teachers to navigate this journey successfully.”

Stephen Sroka, Health Education Consultants

Case Western Reserve University

“What a great book to provide for all veteran teachers so that when we are chatting in the lunchroom and ‘new’ teachers share a dilemma, anyone on staff can chime in with advice, backed by research and experience.”

Diane Mierzwik, Teacher and Mentor

Parkview Middle School, Yucaipa, CA

“What Successful Mentors Do is easy to use, linked to best practices and is certain to be an invaluable resource for new and returning mentors.”

Theresa Ford, Developer/Consultant

Educational Testing Service, Downey, CA

Be the best mentor you can be with these state-of-the-art strategies!

The first-day jitters. The first encounter with an angry parent. The first performance review. As a seasoned teacher, you remember each of these “firsts.” But how can you relate your experiences to a new teacher? Find answers to these questions and the research to back them up in this tool-packed guide.

What Successful Mentors Do offers sensible strategies to help mentors help new teachers. Using state-of-the art research as a bas, the authors provide 81 ways to put those “firsts” in perspective for your new teachers. Working from decades of experience, the authors synthesize theory and practice to show mentors how to:

Increase new-teacher retention with the surest methods for classroom success; Encourage teachers in ten essential areas of teaching, from using assessment tools to developing a personal teaching style, and more; Guide teachers in their relationships with colleagues, parents, and administrators; Improve their own mentoring approach and develop a mentoring style; Avoid common mentoring pitfalls

Sometimes life teaches us the lessons we need to grow. Other times, a trusted mentor prepares us for the challenges and guides us to success.

Choosing the Best Strategies for Supporting New Teachers

Choosing the best strategies for supporting new teachers

We cannot hold a torch to light another's path without brightening our own.”

Ben Sweetland

Strategy 1: Don't Underestimate the Rigors of the “Induction” Period for New Teachers

What the Research Says

This study revealed that learning to become a mentor is a conscious process of induction into a different teaching context and does not “emerge” naturally from being a good teacher of children.

The study took place in Israel at a high school where the teacher-mentor worked as a teacher-leader within her English department. An English teacher in her 40s, with 15 years of teaching experience, was assigned a role as a mentor without any formal training. The research focused on one mentor ...

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