“What do I do with my mentee?”

Spending time with your mentee and completing activities together are the core of creating a successful mentoring relationship. From outdoor adventures to cultural experiences, spending quality time together is what truly helps tamariki grow and feel supported. Below is an extensive list of mentoring activities you may like to complete with your mentee to have fun, to get to know and trust each other, or deepen your mentoring relationship.

Each mentee will have their own interests and likes, which is important to consider when choosing an activity. Your mentee may need time to build trust with you before they try new activities and experiences that expands their horizons. Usually, mentee’s don’t need amazing new activities every week, but someone to connect with, and explore their interests with.

It is as simple as spending time with your mentee for one-hour, once a week, for one-year.

*Some activities require permission slips/permission in advance.

Inside Activity Ideas
  • Activity Books
  • Art gallery
  • Aquarium
  • Badminton
  • Baking/cooking – make a cake, chocolate/lolly making
  • Bead Gallery
  • Board games
  • Boxing
  • Cafe
  • Card games
  • Candle making
  • Ceramic Painting
  • Chipmunks
  • Clay modelling
  • Climbing Wall
  • Crafts – card making, shell or other picture frames, cross stitch, origami
  • Charades
  • Computer games
  • Dancing
  • Darts
  • Designing things
  • Drama, role play, drama
  • Egg blowing
  • Exhibitions
  • Face Painting
  • Fancy dress, dressing up
  • Gym
  • Home management, housework
  • Homework – reading/ spelling
  • Egg blowing
  • Exhibitions
  • Face Painting
  • Fancy dress, dressing up
  • Home management, housework
  • Homework – reading/ spelling
  • Indoor cricket
  • Jump rope
  • Jig Saws / Was Jigs
  • Karaoke
  • Knitting
  • Knot tying
  • Knucklebones
  • Large jigsaws
  • Lego, meccano
  • Library
  • Make-up
  • Make Fish Hooks and Flys
  • Martial arts
  • McDonalds and KFC
  • Model making
  • Memento box
  • Movies
  • Motorbike shop
  • Museum
  • Music – listen/ play musical instrument – guitar drums etc.
  • Nintendo/Play station
  • Painting
  • Photography
  • Picking flowers and arranging
  • Pilates
  • PlayStation
  • Pool
  • Puppet making
  • Reading aloud (Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings etc.)
  • Rock climbing
  • Sewing
  • School Work
  • Shopping
  • Shooting (small bore)
  • Software development
  • Skating
  • Suitable videos (make a list of ones that are)
  • Story-telling
  • Table tennis
  • Teach Computer skills
  • Tenpin Bowling
  • Theatre
  • Videos
  • Visiting Friends/Elderly
  • Waiata, haka, cultural activity
  • Watch the rugby/ netball/ basketball or other sport on TV together
  • Woodwork, Carving, Whittling
  • Writing – Penpal/articles for newsletter/sponsor child etc.
  • Zoo

Outside Activity Ideas

  • Ball games
  • Barbeques
  • Beach – combing, drawing in the sandcastles, collecting shells
  • Berry picking
  • Bike riding – Bike repairing
  • Big tree walk
  • Bird watching
  • BMX track
  • Building
  • Bumpa-boats
  • Boating*
  • Camping*
  • Canoeing/Kayaking*
  • Cardboard down hills
  • Car yards
  • Caving*
  • Cloud watching
  • Collecting shells, rocks, insects, etc.
  • Dodgem cars
  • Dog training
  • Drag racing*
  • Driving / tiki touring
  • Estuary exploring
  • Exploring
  • Farm activities – watch a milking, visit a farm, sheep shearing etc.
  • Feed ducks
  • Fishing, eeling, cockles, floundering.(gathering Kai Moana)
  • 4×4 wheel driving*
  • Firewood collecting
  • Fleamarket / Garage Sales
  • Frisbee
  • Fruit Picking – berries, etc.
  • Gardening – vegie/flower garden project
  • Ginger beer making
  • Glass Blowing Gallery
  • Going to the markets/Fairs, garage sales
  • Go-Karting, Dodgem Cars
  • Golf – mini golf
  • Gold Panning
  • Hangi
  • Harakeke
  • Hydra slide
  • Horseriding
  • Hut making
  • Ice skating
  • Kites ($2 shop)
  • Lizard Hunting
  • Mechanics
  • Mentors/families outing
  • Microscope
  • Mini golf
  • Model boats
  • Motorbiking*
  • Orienteering
  • Paintball*
  • Parks and Gardens
  • Passionfruit collecting
  • Petanque
  • Picnics
  • Play touch rugby, squash, golf, tennis, table tennis, pool, ….with them
  • Playgrounds
  • Rafting*
  • Rock climbing
  • Rollerblading
  • Sailing*
  • Sandcastles
  • Sausage sizzle
  • Skate Board Park
  • Skiing, snow tobogganing, snow activities
  • Shooting – possum, rabbit*
  • Shopping
  • Sitting on a hill, Sliding down a hill
  • Snorkeling
  • Socialise with other children
  • Speedway/Drag racing*
  • SPCA
  • Sport – watch child play sport, or participate
  • Spotlighting
  • Street Hockey
  • Swimming
  • Tadpole hunting
  • Target shooting*
  • Tennis
  • Tramping, bushcraft,
  • Treasure Hunt
  • Tree planting
  • Trip to the snow*
  • Volleyball
  • Walks – bush, beach, walkways
  • Washing Cars
  • Watching sport
  • Water fights
  • Water propelled rockets
  • Window shopping
  • White-baiting*