fbpx

Blog

It’s Like Being Matched with Themself at That Age

March 8, 2011

As Pass It On Phase II is being implemented across the province, young middle school girls are meeting up with their high school mentors.  When asked to respond to 3 questions, 2 mentor supervisors from our most Northern communities involved in the project and 1 from Salt Spring Island responded with the following:

1. What is one thing that surprised you about a match between a mentor and mentee?

The matches naturally made themselves. The mentors and the mentees basically had the same requests for pairings.

Everyone had a clear choice of whom they meshed with and it was fairly easy to match. Some of the mentors have said it is like being matched with themself at that age.

It was difficult for the girls to find the confidence to call their mentee the first time. It really is a huge practice of meeting and connecting with strangers and the resulting  generosity and friendship towards strangers.

2. What is one common concern that arises from the mentors?

Most mentors are unsure of what activities to do with their mentee. I think once they realize that they just have to spend time together in a natural way it will be fine.

Currently their timelines and other commitments like work are a challenge.

It’s hard for them to accept that it may just be an opportunity to meet and spend time with someone outside of their friend circle.

3. What is one creative way mentors and mentees are spending time together?

They have just begun, but one mentor/mentee spent 4 hours together on a Sunday! Next Tuesday the mentors will be taking the mentees on a tour of the high school “girl style” – the best lockers, teachers, washrooms, etc.

One mentor took her mentee up to a local mountain and then had her buddy answer some heartfelt questions. They then put the answers into a time capsule, which they will open together later.

With thanks to Jennifer Quam from McBride, Val Jordan from Prince George,
and Kate Maurice from Salt Spring Island for shepherding along the project
in their communities.

Chris Gay – (Pass It On Coordinator)

Best Books to Read for International Women’s Day

Best Books to Read for International Women’s Day

Leading up to International Women’s Day, we asked Sophia vom Bauer Jackson, service manager at the Salt Spring Island Public Library, to make a list of contemporary female-focused books. This is her Top 5 (fiction and non-fiction) plus some extra recommendations (all...

Healthy Risk Taking is about Growing and Developing

Healthy Risk Taking is about Growing and Developing

Teenagers crave and seek risks. It helps them to develop and grow. We often think of risk-taking as dangerous, but risk-taking is not always negative. Healthy risk-taking – like hiking up a mountain, riding a unicycle, or performing on stage – helps kids build...

Social-Emotional Learning during the Holidays

Social-Emotional Learning during the Holidays

School is almost out, and students will have a well-deserved break from class. However, learning doesn’t have to stop completely as soon as school is out for the year. The holidays are the perfect time to practice kindness and generosity. We've curated five tips to...

Never too Young to Remember December 6

Never too Young to Remember December 6

On December 6th, 1989, the day that fourteen young women at l’École Polytechnique in Montreal were killed by a gunman as a deliberate act of violence against women, Quinn Mulherin (21, she/they*) wasn’t born yet. She learned about the tragedy years later when she...

The Past and the Future of the Core (Inn)

The Past and the Future of the Core (Inn)

Salt Spring Island does not have a lot of facilities to accommodate young people, but we do have The Core (Inn) on McPhilipps Avenue. It is a safe place where island youth can come together to hang out, play music and games, and where snacks and healthy food are...

Book about stereotypes helps kids combat bias

Book about stereotypes helps kids combat bias

Identifying and questioning stereotypes, bias, and prejudice has been part of our educational programs since we started to develop our social-emotional learning framework for kids and youth twenty-five years ago. It turns out that stereotypes start to take form in our...

Name(Required)
Email(Required)
Please let us know what's on your mind. Have a question for us? Ask away.
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.