Tutoring Tuesday & A Word to the Wise...

We have really been enjoying our new unit on relationships in our YESS classes at Shaw Heights this past week. So many mentors were eager to get into this unit in order to have their mentees gain more insight as to why these relationships in particular- mentor and mentee- can really be impactful IF we are considerate about the needs of others. We have been slowly delving into several topics around forming healthy relationships, and this week we reflected back on our lessons on listening, exhibiting an equal effort in relationships, and honesty/trust. Our scholars noted how these characteristics were imperative to forming lasting relationships with their mentor or mentee, and we had a wonderful conversation about the need for direct communication- not just in our classroom, but in every area of our lives.

Building on our discussion of the need for direct communication, we played the "telephone game" as a class in order to see first hand just how convoluted a message can be when relayed from person to person. Many scholars touched on how this game reflected the "rumor mills" or "gossip trains" that run rampant through social circles at school and even beyond, on social media. With this in mind, our scholars each wrote a personal letter to either their mentor or mentee(s), stating their feelings about YESS, their expectations for one another, and some of their fears and worries. While some found it difficult to get started, we soon had every scholar working hard on expressing his or her feelings and desires.

Since the weather has been so warm lately, we headed outside on Friday afternoon to share letters with one another. So many were nervous to hand off their carefully crafted letter as these letters were certainly emotionally charged and held private information that some individuals were hesitant to share. With a little encouragement everyone received and read their letter, and it was great to see so many re-reading and even gushing over the letter he or she had received. There were some beautiful moments of bravery and courage as some mentors really opened up to their mentees, and the gratitude on the faces of some of these mentees was so incredibly genuine.

In other news, our scholars have really begun to benefit from our "Tutoring Tuesday," a time set aside every Tuesday where mentors help mentees get caught up on assignments from other classes, and all scholars have an opportunity to get a handle on their classwork and future tests and quizzes. The mentees have really been able to see just how lucky they are to have the support of YESS and their mentors as the school year continues and assignments become more difficult. We are all growing so much!