Dear Mentoring Teacher:
Thank you for being willing to mentor a teacher for tomorrow during the coming school year. You have been selected as a good role model for this student intern. The intern will be watching you closely to imitate your teaching methods, professionalism, classroom management, and more.
This is an excellent opportunity for the high school student to shadow you and learn more about the teaching profession. Your intern is interested in elementary education and will be serving as an aide very much like a college student-teacher. Please read the following information carefully and refer back to this notebook throughout the school year.
Job Performance Evaluations:
There is a sample job performance form included in this folder. I will send one as an email attachment four times this year. Please complete it and return as an attachment to me. You will need to rate the intern honest and fair each month according to the categories listed. The job performance grade will be part of their nine weeks grade.
Time Sheets/Absences/Notes:
A plan is in place to have you record their absences and/or tardiness through PowerSchool. Student interns will be given a grade on their time sheets based on their promptness and consistency in attendance. It is important that they attach a note for any days missed to their time sheet to turn in to me.
*Be sure to discuss any requirements for your elementary school concerning sign in/sign out at the office.
The intern will have high school meetings/activities to attend from time to time in the morning. It is his/her responsibility to notify you and provide a note for the absence. These notes should be turned in with the time sheet to me when it is due.
Observations in different grade levels:
Student interns will have the opportunity to observe a different grade level in January of the school year. They will be planned based on a grade level and/or endorsement area of interest to the intern. The observation time will require your student to be absent for a week from your classroom.
All-day Experiences
Students are allowed to remain all day for one day each semester. If the intern is participating in a field trip with your class, he/she must complete a field trip form. When interns stay all day, the “All Day Experience” form must be completed. There are two of these in this notebook and the required signatures are designated. Interns must complete the missed assignments at their high schools.
Intern Group Meetings
Remember that the list for the first semester BSTC meetings is in the front of this notebook. The Teachers for Tomorrow program is a dual enrolled course with LynchburgCollege and we must complete the required coursework for credit. Please support your intern’s attendance of these meetings and let me know if you have any questions.
Portfolios
The student is required to document their internship experience by taking photographs of bulletin boards, group projects, one-on-one assistance, and lessons taught. These photos will be compiled with their evaluations and other assignments into a professional portfolio at the end of the year. Depending upon the needs of your intern, he/she may request a reference letter from you to add to their portfolio.
Dress Code
The interns have been instructed to dress modest, and to appear neat, professional, and wellgroomed at all times. They are to dress in a manner that reflects the maturity of an adult-like, teacher role model. Dress code and modesty may sometimes be a sensitive subject to address. If, at any time, you have a concern regarding their appearance, please notify me and I will delicately handle the situation without jeopardizing the relationship you have nurtured with your intern.
In closing, I would ask that at the completion of this mentoring program, this notebook be given to the intern to return to me. You will also be issued 90 recertification points for the mentoring and supervision of your student intern. Thank you for your open communication, love for learning, and dedication to the teaching profession.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Wendland