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Preparing for Take Our Kids to Work Day

2014 marks the 20th anniversary of Take Our Kids To Work day in Canada, the signature national program of The Learning Partnership. On Wednesday, November 5^th, grade 9 students (or equivalent) will visit workplaces across Canada (hosted by parents, friends, relatives and volunteers) to help them connect school, the world of work, and their own futures. Although the days might be called something different in Canada and America, and they may fall on two separate dates, the concepts are the same.

Here are some suggestions to make this year's Take Our Kids to Work day even more beneficial for more kids.

Libraries/Workforce:

• If you are a library or a workforce organization, host a workshop or a series of workshops that bring parents and their children together using Career Cruising. Have them do the Matchmaker interest assessment together to see what careers are of interest to the child, then have them explore their top careers of interest in more detail. Finally, have them brainstorm a list of family, friends or others in their network who can host them on the day to explore one of those careers.

K-12:

• Prepare for Take Our Kids to Work day with The Learning Partnership’s free interactive digital learning experiences for students, parents, employers, teachers and administrators. These educational resources offer activities, videos and tips to get the most out of the Take Our Kids to Work experience.
• Using your Career Cruising Career Advisor Management System (CAMS), message all your grade 9 students, teachers and parents encouraging their participation in Take Our Kids to Work Day.
• Encourage academic teachers to spend some time in the days leading up to November 5th discussing careers that relate to their subject of teaching. They can project Career Cruising on the white board, click on Careers, select School Subjects, click on their subject (i.e., Math), then discuss as many of the careers that appear as possible, asking students, How do you think Math applies to this career?
• Have students review and update their Individual Pathway Plans (My Plan) in their Career Cruising ePortfolios. Encourage them re-do Matchmaker if they haven't recently, and look into all Careers that appeal to them. Then explore one of those careers on Take Your Kids to Work Day.
• Encourage students, teachers and parents to brainstorm who they know in a career of special interest to each student who might host the student for Take Our Kids to Work Day.