This week kicked off my career unit with 5th and 6th grade students. Two very good and free resources for career exploration are Drive of Your Life and Paws in Jobland. In 5th grade, students are using the Job Finder on Paws In Jobland to complete career interest inventories. Upon completion, they can travel through "Jobland" to view potential careers. The program is very easy to use and I like the audio feature, since some students have difficulty reading. I would recommend having headphones available, so you don't have 20+ computers with sound. Students can also search careers alphabetically or take a career quiz.
.
In 6th grade, students are using the Drive of Your Life site for career exploration. Students can register so their personal information is saved each time they use the site. This is a great feature, because I plan on using the program over several class periods. Students start by completing an interest inventory and personality assessment. At the end of the first set of questions, students have the opportunity to start building their own customized car. After each additional set of questions, they get to customize a portion of their car. Eventually, students are able to pick the frame, color, wheels, decals, lighting, and steering wheel options. When students are done answering questions, they also have the option to print their personality profile, which gives them their top three characteristics based on how they answered the questions. In the next section of the site, students are given a list of careers, which they can sort alphabetically, by education level, or income, that may be a good match based on their responses to questions. Students can click on a variety of careers to learn more. They must select at least five careers that interest them before moving to the final section of the site where they can drive. While driving, students take various ramps to learn more specific information about the careers on their preferred list
. In 6th grade, students are using the Drive of Your Life site for career exploration. Students can register so their personal information is saved each time they use the site. This is a great feature, because I plan on using the program over several class periods. Students start by completing an interest inventory and personality assessment. At the end of the first set of questions, students have the opportunity to start building their own customized car. After each additional set of questions, they get to customize a portion of their car. Eventually, students are able to pick the frame, color, wheels, decals, lighting, and steering wheel options. When students are done answering questions, they also have the option to print their personality profile, which gives them their top three characteristics based on how they answered the questions. In the next section of the site, students are given a list of careers, which they can sort alphabetically, by education level, or income, that may be a good match based on their responses to questions. Students can click on a variety of careers to learn more. They must select at least five careers that interest them before moving to the final section of the site where they can drive. While driving, students take various ramps to learn more specific information about the careers on their preferred list
