November 2011 – School on Wheels Career Month
School on Wheels provided four weeks of activities dedicated to helping all students in Kindergarten through 12th grade discover how their interests can align with careers and lead them to a successful and fulfilling future. We asked that all tutors spent part of their tutoring sessions in November working on the activities listed. Students entered the Career Contests in the last week and three students won a Dell refurbished laptop!
Below are our three winners and you can scroll down to see the activities and lesson plans which can be used throughout the year.
Career Month Winning Entries
(From left to right) Alondra, tutored by Anita Shabandari in Region 6. Emonnie, tutored by Magaly Granados in Region 2. Leo, tutored by Tracy Coffman in Region 1
We separated the activities into, online/print or hands on. Depending on your tutoring location you may or may not have internet. Hopefully we have provided career activities for all tutoring situations.
Week 1: Introduction; Career Interests and Assessments
Career assessment is the first step in making decisions about the kind of career you want. Career assessment is an introspective activity that will help all School on Wheels students to think about their interests, skills, abilities, and values and how they relate to careers.
Elementary School – Print: Complete with your student “My Talents” worksheet from Page 6 of the packet, or choose another activity that best meets the needs of your student.
http://www.pheaa.org/partner-access/k12-counselors/pdf/publications/exercise_mind.pdf. From the Pennsylvania Dept. of Education.
Elementary School – Online: Paws in Jobland – Go online: http://paws.bridges.com/cfnc1.htm Click on Job FinderGuide with your student in answering 26 easy questions to find out what jobs or careers might interest him/her.
Middle School/High School – Print: Complete with your student “What are My Career Interests” on Pages 3-7. http://www.ade.az.gov/cte/Counselors/CareerEdGuide.pdf From the Arizona Department of Education.
Middle School / High School – Online: California Career Zone – Go online: http://www.cacareerzone.org/assessments
- If you only have a few minutes, help your student do the Quick Assessment to explore jobs that best match his/her personality.
- If you have at least 30 minutes, do the Interest Profiler with your student. This will him/her decide what kinds of occupations and jobs to explore based on interests.
- If you have more than 30 minutes, do both the Interest Profiler and Work Importance Profiler to find jobs that reflect what your student values.
Week 1 Discussion Questions: What are some things you should look for in a job? Why are these things important to you? What does “job satisfaction” mean to you?
*Make sure to explain to your student that the careers they find through assessments are only suggestions, and that interests usually change over time. It is not necessary, nor realistic, to know exactly what you will do for a career at this age. It is also common for adults to change jobs multiple times in their lifetime.
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Week 2: Career Exploration
Help your student begin to explore the many jobs and career fields that exist in the world of work.
Elementary School – Print: Careers are Everywhere: http://www.cdr.state.tx.us/shared/CareersAreEverywhere.asp Choose and print some activities to do from the “Careers are Everywhere” activity workbook. From the Texas Workforce Commission.
Elementary School – Online: Paws in Jobland – Go online: http://paws.bridges.com/cfnc1.htm click on ABC search. Explore different jobs and listen to people demonstrate what they do in those jobs.
Middle School/High School – Print: Exploring Career Clusters : http://www.iseek.org/iseek/static/pathways.pdf Print out and discuss some of the different career clusters with your student. From the Minnesota Department of Education.
Middle School / High School – Online: California Career Zone, Career Clusters: http://www.cacareerzone.org/clusters. Help your student pick 3 Career Clusters he/she might be interested in and explore jobs in those clusters.
Elementary, Middle, and High School – Hands On: Materials Required: Magazines or printed pictures, Paper, Glue, Pens/Pencils
Gather a large number of old magazines or print out pictures from the web. Give students a plain sheet of paper and ask them to write the word “Careers” at the top of the page. Ask them to look through the magazines and cut out photos of people performing different jobs. Glue these to the paper and include as many different types of jobs as they can find. Under each photo, ask students to write the name of the job the photo represents. Have any older students write what kind of skills and education are required for the job.
Please take a picture of your collage and send it to your Regional Coordinator!
Week 2 Discussion Questions: Describe a few jobs/careers that you didn’t know about before today. List 2 jobs/careers you want to find more information about.
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Week 3: Making Connections
No matter what grade students are in, it is important for them to start asking questions about different jobs. Ask your student to think about some jobs in which he/she might be interested. This week, School on Wheels tutors will fill out a survey with their students to help them get in touch with someone in a career that interests them.
Elementary, Middle, and High School: Career Interview, Fill out the Career Interview Questions on Survey Monkey
*Tutors should bring a hard copy of the survey as a backup in case there is no internet access at your tutoring location.
Questions posted to the survey will be used to match the student up with a person in a related career who will answer those questions. You, the tutor, will act as a liaison and receive an email with answers to the questions which you can then talk about with your student. Please do not share the career mentor’s email directly with the student. For any questions, contact Education and Training Coordinator Natasha Bayus through email at nbayus[a]schoolonwheels.org.
Optional Activity for High School: Writing a Resume. Help your student begin to draft a resume using resources at the Purdue Online Writing Lab. Resume Workshop: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/719/01/
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Week 4: Imagining Your Future
Explore with your student the concept of happiness and success through your job.
Elementary School: Picture Your Career Contest. Ask your student to think about the following:
What do you imagine your future to look like?
Students should draw pictures of what they might want to do for their job, and write down some key words to describe their job and future.
Submit your student’s picture to your Regional Coordinator by 12/15/11.
The student who receives first prize will be awarded a Dell Refurbished Laptop and school supplies prize package!
Middle School / High School: Career Essay Contest. Ask your student to think about the following:
What do you imagine your future to look like? What is your dream career, and what steps will you take to have that career?
Students should write a 1-2 page essay answering these questions.
Submit your student’s essay to your Regional Coordinator by 12/15/11.
There will be a 1st prize awarded in 2 age categories: Grades 6-9, and Grades 10-12. Students will receive a Dell Refurbished Laptop and school supplies prize package!
Career Month Reflection
To conclude Career Month, please have your student answer the following questions on a piece of paper, and submit a copy to your Regional Coordinator.
After participating in the School on Wheels Career Month,
- I learned…
- I want…
- I can…
- I will…
If you helped your student ask questions to a Career Mentor, please follow up with Education and Training Coordinator Natasha Bayus (natashabayus[a]schoolonwheels.org) if you do not receive a response to the questions, or if you have any additional questions.
November 2011 – School on Wheels Career Month
School on Wheels provided four weeks of activities dedicated to helping all students in Kindergarten through 12th grade discover how their interests can align with careers and lead them to a successful and fulfilling future. We asked that all tutors spent part of their tutoring sessions in November working on the activities listed. Students entered the Career Contests in the last week and three students won a Dell refurbished laptop!
