Mentor texts are any text that a teacher uses to specifically show students certain reading and writing techniques. When teaching students to read critically, you can use mentor texts to show them similarities in story structure, help them make real-life connections with the written material and draw conclusions from what they are reading. When teaching students writing strategies, you can use a mentor text as a sort of template, allowing them to see real examples of specific genres that they are expected to write within.
Picture books are books, generally for young children, that have pictures that go along with the words written on the pages. These books are often the first thing a child learns how to read. The pictures in these books often help children when they reach trouble words by showing images pertaining to the more difficult words. Because of the age group picture books tend to be aimed at, they are often used as mentor texts for younger students. Not all picture books are inherently mentor texts, however. Teachers often search for picture books with the proper characteristics to use as mentor texts.
When using picture books as mentor texts for reading comprehension, teachers often steer younger students in the right direction with a series of questions. Simple questions like why, who, where, what and when are useful for basic comprehension, but more in-depth questions must be asked once students show that they understand the action of the book. Asking students what certain things mean in the book or about characters' motives and fostering discussion about these topics can help teach reading comprehension, as can asking students to speculate on what will happen next. Remember that if a book is meant to be used as a mentor text, it must be readily available for all of the students.
Picture books can also be used as mentor texts for writing projects. Teachers often take on projects that have their students making their own picture books, and having a template to work with can be very helpful. In this case, teachers should pay more attention to the form of the book and how to create something similar. Again, leading the students with questions about the way the book is set up can help them better grasp the form and function of picture books.