Today I am so happy to welcome Katie, Julia, and Paige to share a series of career exploration lessons for elementary school. These ladies are grad students in my home state and I am thrilled for them to share their work with you. I love seeing our next generation of school counselors ready to make a difference. Amazing work!
Hi! We are Katie James, Julia Jefferson, and Paige Alven, school counselors-in-training at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. As we began our practical experiences at elementary schools this semester, we saw gender stereotypes playing out in the classroom. Many girls wanting to be nurses and ballerinas, and many boys wanting to be police officers and construction workers. Additionally, no students seemed to know about counseling as a profession. When making lesson plans, we searched for resources such as videos, coloring pages, and storybooks that provided examples of gender diversity in career fields. We noticed there was a lack of female representation in career exploration materials for traditionally male-dominated fields and vice-versa. Research has shown that the way in which a child experiences gender-role norms and stereotypes influences how they experience the world, interact with others, and view their future. With children learning about and experiencing gender stereotypes beginning in preschool, we became determined to create resources for elementary school counselors that celebrate both interest and skill no matter the gender.
By providing examples that defy traditional gender roles, the counseling lessons can help challenge gender biases and stereotyping and therefore increase academic and career readiness in all fields for all genders. The lessons align with ASCA Mindsets and Behaviors including increasing the sense of belonging in the school environment and using student’s abilities to their fullest to achieve high-quality results and outcomes. Through the use of counseling lessons in conjunction with academic worksheets, career games, and data, the goal of this campaign is to cultivate gender positivity surrounding career development for school-age children and provide resources that feature counseling as a career option.
We created a career exploration toolkit with a variety of relevant resources for school staff including a lesson plan unit on career development and gender positivity that explores career interests, strengths, understanding, and goal setting. Other resources provided in the drive include an example math and literacy worksheet using gender-neutral or gender non-conforming questions involving career choices, in-class games, research and additional references, and poster graphics. Additionally, the Career Bingo game and coloring sheets include representation for counseling as a profession. By embracing this school-wide initiative, teachers, administrators, and other school staff can play a supportive role in each student’s holistic development.
We created a career exploration toolkit with a variety of relevant resources for school staff including a lesson plan unit on career development and gender positivity that explores career interests, strengths, understanding, and goal setting. Other resources provided in the drive include an example math and literacy worksheet using gender-neutral or gender non-conforming questions involving career choices, in-class games, research and additional references, and poster graphics. Additionally, the Career Bingo game and coloring sheets include representation for counseling as a profession. By embracing this school-wide initiative, teachers, administrators, and other school staff can play a supportive role in each student’s holistic development.
Thank you Katie, Julia, and Paige for sharing your work! Y'all this is 57 pages of lessons, resources, and materials for you. They have done a great job and I know that others will want to use these great tools. I am so impressed with their work and commitment to school counseling. What do you do for career exploration in your school?
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