BACKGROUND Benefits of the active involvement of patients in educating health professionals are well-recognized but little is known about how patient educators facilitate student learning. METHODS This exploratory qualitative study investigated the teaching practices and experiences that prepared patient educators for their roles in a longitudinal interprofessional Health Mentors program. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eleven experienced health mentors. Responses were coded and analyzed for themes related to teaching goals, methods, and prior experiences. RESULTS Mentors used a rich variety of teaching methods to teach patient-centeredness and interprofessionalism, categorized as: telling my story, stimulating reflection, sharing perspectives, and problem-solving. As educators they drew on a variety of prior experiences with teaching, facilitation or public speaking and long-term interactions with the health-care system. CONCLUSIONS Patient educators use diverse teaching methods, drawing on both individualistic and social perspectives on learning. A peer-support model of training and support would help maintain the authenticity of patients as educators. The study highlights inadequacies of current learning theories to explain how patients help students learn.