by schoolcounselingbyheart | May 14, 2014 | career, classroom lessons
Kids have lots of fun at Career Day, and are exposed to a lot of new possibilities, but how can we be sure that they’ve truly understanding the concepts that we want them to learn? More and more in recent years, I’m incorporating ways for kids to demonstrate their learning as part of the units I teach. Sure, it takes additional class time, but it also enriches and deepens their understanding and, when they have the opportunity to share their work with others, that of their classmates. It also helps me assess their learning and the efficacy of my lessons. One example of this is the Career Trading Cards assignment, which serves as a follow-up to Career Day, provides a way to address Common Core writing standards within counseling lessons, and results in some very nifty, personalized thank-you gifts for our Career Day guests. (more…)
by schoolcounselingbyheart | Jan 4, 2014 | career, classroom lessons
I’m so sorry that it took me this long to find time to blog more details about the CareerSmarts unit, but finally, here are the details about the second task, web-based career exploration. CareerSmarts is a student-directed, technology-based unit that I developed for upper elementary students. I’ve heard from a bunch of elementary and middle school counselors who want to use it in their schools – which is so exciting – and I’m glad to share all the information you need to be able to recreate it yourself. (Check out the links for a unit overview, specifics about teaching the unit’s first two lessons on multiple intelligences, coordinating Career Day , Kid-Created Career Trading Cards, and the culminating avatar creation project.) (more…)
by schoolcounselingbyheart | Jul 31, 2013 | career, classroom lessons, Common Core, curriculum, group counseling, technology
Wow! What amazing feedback I’ve gotten after my last post, Creating CareerSmarts! Thank you to everyone for your kind comments and enthusiasm. I’m so glad that other school counselors (and other educators too!) are excited about using the CareerSmarts lessons and that people are finding the info and resources helpful. As promised, here are the lessons about multiple intelligences. They provide a foundation for the CareerSmarts unit, but could also be used on their own for a multiple intelligences mini-unit for classroom or small group use. To find the applicable ASCA and Common Core standards, check here. There’s a lot in this post, but it includes everything you need to be able to teach these lessons yourself. (more…)
by schoolcounselingbyheart | Jul 20, 2013 | career, classroom lessons, Common Core, curriculum, technology
One of the things I am most proud of from last school year is CareerSmarts, a new unit I developed for fourth grade, which I’d love to share with you. CareerSmarts is a student-driven, technology-based unit in which students learn about and connect their multiple intelligences and interests with future education and career possibilities. There’s even a fun gamification aspect – students challenge themselves to move to different levels by exploring multiple careers. While on the CareerSmarts journey, students learn about their own “smarts,” and explore and analyze a variety of careers by (more…)
by schoolcounselingbyheart | Jun 20, 2013 | career, classroom lessons, Common Core
Where will YOU be in 2033? I will most likely be enjoying retirement, but my current 4th graders will be very busy professionals. As the culmination of our CareerSmarts unit, each 4th grader imagined him/herself in a future career, wrote a script, and created an avatar who talked about his/her job. They did amazing work! You can read more about the CareerSmarts unit at Creating CareerSmarts, My Multiple Intelligences: The First Stop on the CareerSmarts Journey, CareerSmarts Task 2: Web-Based Career Exploration, Coordinating Career Day, and Kid-Created Career Trading Cards.
There were a few requirements for the project. First, the students had to choose a job that required at least a bachelor’s degree. In their scripts, they had to relate their career choice to (more…)
by schoolcounselingbyheart | Dec 1, 2012 | career
In an earlier post, Role Models – on Paper!, I shared the fun and informative Career Paper Dolls created by Hannah Holt of Lightbulb Books. Hannah has added more interesting career characters to her collection, and she even included some neuroscientists, which I had requested! (Learning about the brain is a BIG deal at our school!) The newly highlighted careers are neurologist, neurosurgeon, mathematician, post-doc computer programmer, large animal veterinarian, and helicopter pilot. (more…)
