By Angela Duckworth

The best way to develop a deeper relationship with your students is to think about who your mentors have been and how they’ve supported you.

Here’s something I wrote recently for Character Lab as a Tip of the Week:
Think of a mentor you’ve never properly thanked. Write them a letter expressing what they mean to you and, if you have the courage, read it to them aloud.

This was the task I recently assigned as homework in the undergraduate class I teach. Some of my students wrote gratitude letters to their mom or dad. Others thanked a coach or former boss. As in past years, the majority of students chose to thank a former teacher.