OK, I'm doing mentoring.. any tips?

In case you don't know what mentoring is it's kinda like a tutor to a smal child (for me, a 3rd grader), but mostly a friend to a child who is having issues at home, or is anti-social, ect. Any tips? And is there anything that can help the child to come more out of his/her shell? I'm getting them a journal so they can write some entries down in case they are getting abused. On the first page, I'm putting some this to get to know them better, like bday, so I can get them a present, and favorite things, least favorite things, ect. Any other ideas ot tips?