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Peer Mentoring

  • August 28, 2024
  • Posted by: Caitlin McCallum
  • Category: Wow Story
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Wow Wednesday Stories from the Classroom over a bunch of watermelon slices

This year I began working with an elementary student who was struggling with social skills. The student was very intelligent but had difficulty talking with classmates, playing with others at recess, and being able to use social skills to make friends. We spent a lot of time working on these social skills. I paired the student with an older student who was very kind, enjoyed STEM activities, and was very creative and good at problem solving. The two of them started doing STEM projects together to challenge the student academically. What started as 1 peer mentor, soon became 4 peer mentors. My older students who were working with me at the same time became very interested in the mentoring and asked to be able to help the student. I watched with amazement as the child worked with the other students. It was a little awkward at first, but he engaged with the older children.

As weeks passed and more STEM activities were completed, the student was learning the older students names, addressing them by name, and becoming more social with them. During this time, the students’ classmates started to become interested in what was happening in my room and wanted to be part of the learning. One of the STEM projects the student worked on was making a projector and creating a slideshow. He learned about circuits and animation. Since the student’s classroom was interested in what was happening in my class, I had him bring the projector into his class and show them what he made and explain what he learned.  He was able to stand at the back of the room while I held the projector and explain how it worked to his classmates. This was a huge step for him and a big WOW moment for me as a teacher. Outside at recess that week, I witnessed him running with classmates and laughing and having fun! Another WOW moment!

The next step was to bring some of his classmates with him to do a project.  He chose three students. Each of the students worked with one of the older students to complete a bridge building project that would hold weight. The students were able to share what they did and discuss how they could improve their method to build a stronger structure. Having his classmates with him did seem to cause some anxiety, but he was able to complete the task. In the meantime, students in his class were always asking when they could come and be a part of the activities.

My goal is to help the student to be more comfortable with using his social skills to talk with others and make lasting friendships. This will take time, but he has already been making progress. He had a major part in his class’s chapel skit ( in front of the entire school) where he had to talk and walk with 2 other classmates. He did an amazing job! He was also the mystery person in his classroom and was able to present information about himself to the class. I was impressed with how many students raised their hands to ask questions during Q & A time. They were interested in what he had to say and asked questions that he replied to! Earlier in the year, if a classmate asked him a question he might give a 1 word answer, but he was now replying in sentences to the questions.  It’s amazing how peer mentors can contribute to the success of peer-mediation interventions with a student struggling with social skills.

~ written by JoAnn Burke, LSEM Teacher at Trinity Lutheran School in Monroe, MI