Get Involved

If you would like to become a mentor or involve your child into a mentoring program give us a call. There are a number of mentoring programs involved in the Amachi Mentoring Coalition and we can connect you with the one that is right for you.

• Best Friends Mentoring in Dickinson
• Companions for Children in Minot
• Boys and Girls Club of the Red River Valley in Fargo
• Kinship Mentoring in Wahpeton
• RSVP Mentors all across the state
• Grand Forks Y
• Cass-Clay Y in Fargo
• Jamestown Y
• Grand Forks Housing/ Urban Development
• Wells County Mentoring in Harvey
• Mentors and Friends for Youth in Williston
• Say YES! - Bismarck
• Boys and Girls Club of Three Affiliated Tribes in New Town
• Boys and Girls Club of Spirit Lake Nation in Fort Totten

 

Monthly Asset Messages

#5 Caring School Climate: Kids feel that their school supports them, encourages them, and cares about them.

What PARENTS can do:

• Ask your child to name people at school who show they care about students, and write these asset-builders a note of thanks and appreciation.
• Get involved with the school’s parent-teacher organization and bring a positive spirit of cooperation.
• Volunteer at your child’s school by talking to the teacher about ways you could help.

What SCHOOL STAFF can do:

• Be welcoming; smile and greet kids by name when you see them. Get to know students by asking them about their interests, hobbies, passions, and goals.
• Conduct a school-wide survey to get an understanding of the students’ perspective about their school experiences.
• Nurture leadership and school ownership by involving students in classroom rules and creatively addressing concerns identified by the survey.

What YOUTH can do:

• Reach out to other students who seem lonely or isolated from groups. Stand up for kids who are bullied by others, and treat everyone with kindness and respect.
• Get involved in activities! Try out for a sport, join a club or service group, run for student council, or write for your school’s paper. There is something for everyone!
• Like it or not, schools are stronger and more caring when parents are involved! Encourage your parents to come to, and volunteer at, school events.

What the COMMUNITY can do:

• Acknowledge and honor school efforts to provide caring and positive experiences by writing letters of thanks and recognition to the editor, and asking media to feature caring school staff in their stories.
• Vote YES for referendums that lower class sizes, improve facilities, and protect youth.
• Encourage all adults to volunteer in schools and at events hosted in schools, not just parents of students.

What the FAITH COMMUNITY can do:

• Identify school staff within your membership and lift them up in prayer, and the students, as they begin the school year.
• Hold roundtable discussions regarding issues facing students and schools, such as bullying, peer pressure, and drug/alcohol abuse and discuss how the congregation can support the school’s efforts to be caring and healthy.
• Encourage members of all ages to volunteer in schools. Encourage youth leaders to consider partnering with schools for service projects (i.e. picking up litter, painting, making repairs, etc.).

#24 Bonding to School: Young people care about their school.

What PARENTS can do:

• Tell your child about someone who made a difference in your life as a student in school (i.e. a committed teacher, an inspiring coach, any other caring staff person).
• Set up a school bulletin board in where your whole family will see it. Post the school calendar and notices on it, and each week, decide as a family what activities to attend together.
• Establish good communication with your child’s teacher right off the bat! Introduce yourself in person and email notes of praise when you are pleased.

What SCHOOL STAFF can do:

• Make school pride as inclusive as possible by providing opportunities for all students to win or earn school memorabilia.
• Be creative and invite all parents to volunteer through a variety of opportunities for helping out by volunteering time or materials, at school or from home.
• Avoid limiting acts of school spirit to one type of activity. Celebrate all of the strengths in your school by having a monthly Spirit Award featured in your school paper, or by having a contest to write a new school cheer or t-shirt design.

What the COMMUNITY can do:

• Attend school performances, plays, and concerts, and support fund-raising efforts.
• Write a letter of praise to the editor when you attend something well done!
• Invite students who have been on an interesting field trip, or who have worked on an interesting project, to come and talk to your community group about their experience.
• Recognize schools, classrooms, teachers, and/or students when they are doing a great job by asking businesses and community groups to sponsor an award or other display of public recognition.

What the FAITH COMMUNITY can do: 

• Encourage adult members to attend special school activities of all types by announcing them in your bulletin or newsletter.

#32 Planning and Decision Making: Kids know how to
plan ahead and make choices.

What PARENTS can do:

• Model planning ahead by having things-to-do lists and calendars visible in your home. Teach children how to make getting prepared ahead of time part of their everyday routine. Help them to break down long-term projects into smaller steps that they can plan one at a time.
• Model good decision making by teaching your kids: 1) how to find the information they’ll need to view the choice from all sides; 2) how to list and weigh the pros and cons, including the potential consequences; and 3) how to commit to their choice once they’ve made it. Allow for mistakes, talk through them as teaching moments without getting angry or doing it for them.  
• Teach children good money management by helping them learn how to build up a savings account, aside from saving up for a special purchase. This helps kids avoid patterns of spending all of their money, and shows them that it is good to always have some money available.

What SCHOOL STAFF can do:

• Teach planning and organizational skills. Example: When you assign papers and projects, assign due dates for each step- choosing a theme, doing research, preparing an outline, writing a first draft, revising, etc.
• After students have learned how to plan and organize a project, include them in planning following projects and activities. Train staff how to help students develop a long-term mindset to carry with them after they graduate.
• Ask students to write or talk about tough choices they have made, asking them to describe what their experience was like, and the reasons behind their choice. Have students role-play making various types of decisions, and then hypothesizing possible outcomes and consequences. Share some of your learning experiences.

What the COMMUNITY can do:

• When youth identify something in the community they’d like to change, mentor them in developing a plan of change and guide them through the process of proposing their plan through the appropriate channels. Whether it gets implemented or not, affirm their efforts.
• Offer opportunities for youth who have done a “bad deed” to redeem themselves. All youth need to be affirmed when they are making good choices, particularly youth who have previously made poor choices.  Be on full alert to catch all kids making good choices, and give them a pat on the back!
• Coordinate workshops throughout the community for parents and adult leaders on how to teach youth planning and decision-making skills. Invite motivational speakers to talk to kids about important choices they have made. 

What the FAITH COMMUNITY can do: 

• Give youth an active role in planning the youth program, and mentor them in creating plans to propose changes they’d like to see.
• Invite youth to help plan special events. Mentor them through the event coordination process to help them see the planning process, time line, and the many different ways that people contribute to make events happen!
• Host workshops for parents and adult leaders on how to teach youth planning and decision-making skills. Invite motivational speakers to talk to kids about important choices they have made. 

 #37 Personal Power: Young people feel like they have
control over “things that happen to me”.

What PARENTS can do:

• Encourage kids to serve others. Kids who believe they can make a difference in the world have a great sense of personal power to carry with them into adulthood.
• Help kids turn a victim mentality into personal power by encouraging them to find solutions when obstacles arise; keep asking “What can you do about this?”
• Teach kids to understand that while they can’t control what other people say and do, they can control what they do and say back. Help them learn how to stop, think, and respond instead of immediately reacting.

What SCHOOL STAFF can do:

• Use real-life stories of people who have overcome adversity, spoken out, or changed the lives of others and emphasize the message of “the power of one”.
• Actively involve students in decision making process within the school and classrooms. Provide a classroom suggestion box, and practice decision making skills as a group when taking each suggestion into account.
• Talk with students about times when they feel powerless and times when they feel powerful. How does each situation feel and what makes the difference? Emphasize each student’s ability to control his or her behavior and responses to others.

What the COMMUNITY can do:

• Model personal power by voting, speaking out about issues that matter to you, and being a problem solver.
• Involve youth in addressing youth issues and policies in the community. Give them useful roles and show that you value their contributions.
• Include problem-solving skills in job training for teen workers. Train adults who work with youth to encourage them and to teach them how to be problem solvers.

What the FAITH COMMUNITY can do: 

• Provide youth with many opportunities to serve others. Let them know that they have the power to make a difference in the lives of others, in their community, and in the world!
• Partner with youth by serving side-by-side with them! Teach youth that everyone is valuable and can make a difference; regardless of their age, talents, or income.
• Give youth a say in planning activities for the youth program. Provide diverse options for involvement so they can choose what speaks to them.

#38 Self-Esteem: Kids feel good about themselves!

What PARENTS can do:

• Tell your children every day that you love them. Respect your child by listening to him or her and by talking through problems without yelling.
• Celebrate each child’s uniqueness. Help them to discover their strengths explore ways to use them.
• When your child makes a mistake, teach accountability while separating the deed from the doer. The choice or mistake may have been bad, but the child is not.

What SCHOOL STAFF can do:

• Use grading as an opportunity to affirm strengths by grading honestly while adding positive comments.
• Take students seriously. Ask for their opinions; listen to their comments and suggestions; and affirm their abilities and achievements.
• Teach students how to accept and respond to constructive criticism. Help them learn how to weigh and incorporate offered advice, and not to internalize it.

What the COMMUNITY can do:

• Take time to acknowledge young people in your community by saying hello when you see them. Let your attitude and behavior show that you value them and enjoy talking to them.
• Offer classes and workshops for young people on developing and strengthening self-esteem. Topics might include positive self-talk, learning from mistakes, accepting compliments, and asking for what they need.
• Include young people in planning community events and celebrate their accomplishments afterwards. Mentor them along the way.

What the FAITH COMMUNITY can do: 

• Accept and affirm all young people for who they are. Recognize individual talents, abilities, and accomplishments.
• Hold workshops and seminars for parents on building self-esteem in their children.
• Feature a short highlight on various individual youth members in your monthly newsletter, affirming that young members are valued and lifting up how they contribute to the congregation.

Search Institute and Dr. Peter Benson identified and defined the 40 Developmental Assets that are the building blocks of strong, healthy, and caring youth and adults. The following messages are based on the 40 Assets model. For more information on the Search Institute, call 1-800-888-7828 or look them up online at www.search-institute.org.

You can also find out more information about the 40 Developmental Assets and Metro Youth Partnership on our website at www.rsvpmorthdakota.org/metroyouth.html or call 701-531-5553.

Developmental Assets: Modeling Empowerment

Empowerment is a subset of the external assets. Empowerment is about young people feeling valued for who they are and being given opportunities to shine. It's also about feeling safe, because it's tough to be your best if you feel scared. Remember that mentees are equal contributors to the mentoring process.
The four Developmental Assets encompassed in Empowerment are (1) community values youth, (2) youth as resources, (3) service to others and (4) safety.
Ways to Model Empowerment:

• Ask your mentee to help you type up a list of emergency contact numbers. Talk about how the fire department or a poison control center can help people feel safe.
• Tell your mentee about other volunteer work you do in the community. Research ways your mentee can also get involved in the community. Ask your mentee about the various ways they help their neighbors and friends, every bit helps.
• Find ways in the community where youth are given useful roles. For example, teens coaching younger children in sports or teens volunteering at a summer camp to help children with their activities.
• Set a goal with your mentee for yourself and give your mentee the job of coaching you and checking in on your progress.

Each of these examples shows your mentee that they have an important and valuable role to play.

More information is available from the Search Institute at their website: http://www.search-institute.org/developmental-assets

 

Upcoming Events

Companions for Children 5-Person Scramble golf Tournament Friday July 8, 2011 at Star City Golf Course in Velva, ND. $25,000 Hole-in-One Contest, Door Prizes. $60 per person includes 18 hole golf fee, cart rental, and steak supper. Music and Bonfire to follow tournament. Call 701-838-5784 to register or become a tournament sponsor. Proceeds benefit Companions for Children Mentoring Program.

Volunteers needed in Minot
Minot Mouseketeers
A place to organize support, activities, fun and everything else for Minot's smallest flood victims.

Shepherd's Field at the Crossroads is giving children affected by the flood in Minot, ages 10-high school, free camp until the second week in August.

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