tobinharris.com

I've just started my first private mentoring gig, and I must say it's great fun :) However, it would be good to get any tips from anyone who's done this before.

As a bit of background, the student is a guy in my local area who's company I've consulted for for the last few years.

The format of the mentoring we've decided on so far is this:

• 1-2 hours a week of lecturing + hands-on use of .NET (meeting at my office or home).
• Written notes each week published to online intranet (Google Sites)
• Recorded audio of each session uploaded also
• Solution files uploaded to intranet too
• Homework assignments each week
• Longer term coursework includes ASP.NET Web solution + more meaty problem (write your own database server)

I'm covering the following subjects:

• Understanding the problem (conceptual modelling, UML, Use Cases)
• Unit Testing and Test Driven Development
• Good Principles of Sofware Development (cohesion, coupling, DRY, repeatability, OCP)
• Using Object Oriention to structure maintainable software
• Data Access techniques (pros and cons or ORM/DataSets etc)
• Data modelling and process modelling
• Leveraging C# (LINQ, delegates, Lambda, Generics)
• Introducing Design Patterns

We're on week 3 now, and we both feel it's going well. Would be cool to hear about anyone else who's doing this kind of thing.