Weekly Training Resource
This week’s training resource is a 26 minute episode of the Code Switch podcast titled “What does it mean to inherit whiteness?”
How does this help me in my mentoring relationship? “In Baynard Woods’ new memoir, Inheritance: An Autobiography of Whiteness, Woods reflects on how growing up white in South Carolina impacted his life. He argues that it is crucial for white people in the U.S. to reckon with their personal histories.”
Don’t forget to fill out the response form after completing each training.
Challenge for the Week
For October, the challenges will center around the theme of Character Education. This week’s challenge is to teach your mentee about caring. Caring involves being compassionate, empathetic, and considerate of others without the expectation of receiving anything in return. You may have noticed that many students spend a lot of time in front of screens these days. This is problematic because the internet allows and encourages individuals to be compassionless and too much screen time can damage developing brains. To counteract this, start by asking your mentee 1.) What does it mean to put yourself in someone else’s shoes? 2.) How empathetic are you? 3.) How can you better show empathy toward others? Then practice showing empathy as you discuss different situations in your mentee’s life, things you see while you’re spending time together or stories you hear in the community or in the world.
Tip of the Week
Maintaining equity helps people who have experienced trauma to feel supported. Below are some tips on maintaining equity.
- Embrace curiosity and self-reflection through the practice of cultural humility: lifelong learning, recognition of power imbalances, and institutional accountability
- Consider the frequent connection between trauma and the various forms of oppression and racism (historical, institutional, interpersonal)
- Recognize that everyone has bias (as a result of our experiences culture) that is often unconscious or implicit.
- Recognize that the presence or absence of privilege plays a role in how your mentee and their family experience schools/community.
We love seeing photos of you and your mentee spending time together! Please share them with us via your coach or using the hashtag #intentionalmentoringmadison
Mentor Coaching Group Meeting Dates
VAL: Monday, October 24th 6:30 – 7:30pm val@intentionalmentoringmadison.org
RYAN: Monday, November 7th 5:30 – 6:30pm Ryan@intentionalmentoringmadison.org
Upcoming Events to Note
- Fitchburg Library Book Sale – Oct 20-22
- Lakeview Library Book Sale – Oct 22
- There are a lot of cool and FREE events at the Dream Bank on E. Washington St.. Check out the AmFam Dream Bank site for more info and to register.
- Free Library Events/Activities: Fitchburg Events Calendar Madison Events Calendar
- For Orchard Ridge events check Orchard Ridge Calendar
- For Toki events check Toki Calendar
- For Sennett events check Sennett Calendar
- For Cherokee events check Cherokee Calendar
- For Blackhawk events check Blackhawk Calendar
- For Memorial HS events check Memorial HS Calendar
- For West HS events check West HS Calendar
- For La Follette HS events check La Follette Calendar
If you have a change in personal information (phone/address/email) please respond to this email or notify your mentor coach ASAP.
All the best,
Intentional Mentoring