Mentoring in Scholar Phase

YLA Communities are centered around the Scholar School and Scholar Phase of learning. 

Mentoring in Scholar Phase is the most rewarding experience you will ever have with youth! 

TEACHING  VS MENTORING: Mentoring is more than just sharing information, it is developing a relationship with someone to a point that you know where they are, you can see their genius and their potential for greatness. Then you love them, teach them, guide them and nurture them towards that potential.  The good news is, you only need to be ONE STEP AHEAD of someone in order to mentor them along their own path. 

Every person has something they know or something they are passionate about that they can share.  At YLA we invite mentors to come share their talents, knowledge and passion with our youth. You do not need to be a “teacher” or “expert” in a field to help inspire youth to learn and grow. 

All learning experiences have value! The topic is only the vehicle to unlock the learning potential and genius of another person. 

At YLA, we do want to help our youth develop Scholar Skills such as

Reading & Writing

How to Think & Reason

Public Speaking & Presentation

Discussion & Problem Solving

But alongside scholarly skills we also want them to develop strong moral characters. Mentors help youth answer questions like: 

Who am I? What is my mission? What does God need me to do? How can I make a difference? What skills will help me become who I am meant to be? In what way can I serve my fellow men? What talents have I been given and how can I use them to bless the world? 

Project based learning is the best way to learn lots of skills all at once in a meaningful way. 

Example: Shakespeare Project

Skills-hard work, time management, memorizing, teamwork, communication, writing, reading, discussion, public speaking, presentation, acting

Knowledge-language arts, history, Shakespeare works, poetry, theater etiquette, acting

Character Development- I can do hard things, I have talents and I can develop new talents, I can work with others, I have purpose, I can resolve conflict, I can communicate well

Any topic can be turned into a meaningful Scholar Project! If you are not sure how to do that we would love to help you. There are also great resources that others have put together that you can take and use. 

Leadership Education Mentoring Institute (LEMI) has written fabulous Scholar Project Curriculum and they have great training options for new mentors too. Check them out HERE

Curriculum Square is another great place to find classes and projects other homeschool parents have put together. See them HERE

Great Mentors are the backbone of a great scholar phase and they are a critical asset at YLA! We hope you will consider mentoring and inviting others you know to come and share.