Students helping students: Bierbaum Elementary’s mentor program
Posted on 01/27/2020
Bierbaum Elementary School's new student mentor program is helping older students hone their leadership skills while assisting younger students with social-emotional and academic learning.
The program partners fourth- and fifth-grade students who have volunteered to work with kindergarten through third-grade students.
"They work together learning about each other. They draw and play games together and work on some of those social-emotional needs," Assistant Principal Meagan Ochoa said. "Other students just need a little extra attention in writing or reading, so our fourth- and fifth-grade student provide that."
Ochoa developed the idea for the mentor program while observing an older student interacting with a younger student in her office.
"I noticed that a lot of our students in the primary grades need a little extra attention whether it's social-emotional or academic that we can’t always give them," Ochoa said. "For our fourth- and fifth-grade students, it really provides some leadership opportunities, and they feel like they're making a difference in their school."
The program has received positive feedback from teachers and students since its inception in September. Bierbaum staff hope to expand the program and recently supplied backpacks stuffed with books, drawing items, games and more to assist the mentors in doing their job.
Watch the video to learn more about the program.