Help Your Child Achieve their
Dreams with a Mentor
Our Sponsor: POWER-GLIDE.COM
According to Homer's tale, when the great king Odysseus departed on his
long voyage he left his wise friend and trusted counselor Athena in
charge. Athena took on the disguise of "Mentor" to serve as the
guardian of the king's household and to teach his son Telemachus about
the world in his absence.
Mentoring is an ancient tradition that has been an enriching way for
children to learn since human beings have walked on earth. Elders,
leaders and other members of a community were all responsible for the
mentoring of the tribes, village, or community of children.
Homeschooling allows parents to tap into this powerful and ancient
educational option because homeschooled children have the time and
freedom to seek out mentors and role models anywhere their interests
lead them and at anytime. The simple fact that they are not restricted
to a classroom provides an opportunity for the exploration of the world
- in the real world - with mentors that can guide them and help them
discover their special talents and interests.
Mentoring Begins at Home
Mentoring begins at home with a child's first role model – you, the
parent. But as your child grows and their interests expand, where they
look for mentors is limitless. A neighbor, a retired grandparent,
community musicians, artists, scientists or executives in the high-rise
buildings downtown are but a few of the individuals who are able to
impart hands-on knowledge to your child. Piano lessons, volunteer work,
entrepreneurial efforts and study groups all can lead to finding
valuable mentor experiences. Not only will your child have the
opportunity to learn first-hand from an individual that has a passion
and specific skill in a given area, mentoring has been linked to higher
academic achievement as well as an increase in a child's self esteem.
Getting Started
Help your child to be flexible, take the initiative, and be responsive
to the mentoring possibilities around them. Here are a couple of
helpful hints:
Help your child to determine what it is they want to know more about
and then make a list of all the people you know who might be able to
mentor them. Be sure to consider the full range of possibilities,
including family, friends, neighbors, teachers, coaches, club leaders,
ministers, and others.
Help your child learn how to approach a possible mentor. It is
important that your child try to speak for his/herself. Depending on
your child's age you may want to help them call on the telephone to
arrange a time to meet and talk in person and/or go with them for the
initial meeting.
Try not to be bound by geographic constraints or discount the
possibilities of developing a virtual mentorship. There are many
individuals who might be willing to offer guidance using email as the
main form of communication.
Mentoring can be just as rewarding for the mentor. It confirms their
chosen path by helping them realize that they have a skill that is
valued by others.
World-class Mentors
Meet Homeschool.com's Jr. Media Team that traveled to France to mentor
and learn about the people, language and culture of France.
Join us for Day One of our five-day "On Location In France" adventure.
Meet Adam, Justin and Mariah, homeschoolers who had the opportunity to
hone their interests and talents with two world-class mentors that just
happened to live in France.
http://www.homeschool.com/articles/france/main/
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Can you imagine toddlers...
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native language before they begin a formal education. This process is
called "natural language acquisition." Natural language acquisition is
the "how to" stage of speaking applying communication encouraged by
actual usage and cultural reinforcements. When a child is sent off to
school or they begin homeschooling, they are no longer taught "how" to
speak. Instead, they are taught "why" they speak and the construction
of speech (grammar rules, sentence structure, vocabulary, and on and
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Traditional schools and other programs often teach second languages
opposite from how we naturally acquired our first language. Instead of
allowing a child to learn the "how" first, they plunge students into
the "why" of the language. The student is then immediately faced with
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For most young children, the traditional "why" methodology results in a
disinterest that can span their entire foreign language experience!
Discover Power-Glide's award-winning French products and get the whole family ready for a French adventure!
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