Introduction

8/21/07

Hello, and welcome to the Career Connections Blog.  The information provided is an overview of the class and should provide enough information to answer "FAQ's" for parents and provide reminders of expectations for students. 

Career Connections Information for 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th Grades

Room 708

Durham Middle School

Jay Asher, Instructor

Career Connections – 9 Weeks outline:

First 3 weeks essential question:  How does understanding personalities lead to job satisfaction?

1^st week – Orientation to Class, Pre-Test, Various personality inventories administered.  Introduce

“Holland” personality types (Realistic, Investigator, Conventional, Artistic, Enterprising, Social).

2^nd week – Use of Text “Applying Life Skills” and associated work book, Begin with chapter 4.

3^rd week – Continue with book and work book covering chapter 5 and 6.

Second 3 weeks essential question:  How does understanding various jobs lead to wise career choices?

4^th week -  Speakers/presenters on Mondays and Wednesdays.  Tuesdays and Thursdays are for reflection writing assignments from the previous day.  Fridays are for miscellaneous related activities.

5^th week – same as 4^th week with different speakers/presenters

6^th week – same as 4^th week with different speakers/presenters.  At the end of the week students will have received presentations from 6 different speakers, each representing one of the Holland personality types.

Final 3 weeks essential question:  What can you do to better understand your career opportunities?

7^th week – Intro to final project, 2 days online or media research during class, 2 days prep for project.

8^th week – Project presentations at 5 per day

9^th week – Remaining presentations, post test, miscellaneous activities.

Grading:

Class work completion = 50%

Observable Participation = 30%

Tests = 10%

Final Project = 10%

Tests will mostly be based on vocabulary and concepts introduced from the Holland personalities and the book.

Final Projects: 

Final projects should be related to a career of interest to the student.

6^th Grade – focusing on creative design, students will create a visual marketing tool such as a poster, sign, miniature billboard, store front to attract the attention of a person seeking a job, or a person seeking a product or person with a particular skill.  Ex. a billboard advertising the need for skilled computer technicians, or a store front advertising custom cabinetry. Students should be prepared to present the project orally and visually, and be able to answer questions about the career.

7^th Grade – focusing on the student’s language arts abilities, students will create a “pretend” resume of themselves as if to be applying for a job of interest to them.  Language arts skills and attention to detail are required for this project.  Students should be able explain to the class how they are qualified for the particular job, with the resume in the hands of the class teacher, and answer questions about the job and their qualifications.

8^th Grade – focusing on the student’s technical ability to communicate graphically and orally, students should prepare a power point presentation as an aid to recruit others to their career.  Students are expected to be knowledgeable and passionate about their career of choice.

End.