Developed by: Susan Nalls

Level: K-2

Guess My Job!

 

 

Standards


 

Learning Expectations

This activity will help students acquire competencies which relate to the following standards:
4.0  Career Awareness and Employment Readiness Skills
5.0  Career Information and Career Goals
This activity will help students meet the following learning expectations:
4.2  define work and recognize that people work.
5.2  identify jobs of workers in the community.
5.3  recognize the job tasks of school personnel and community workers.

General Approach

 
The children will define types of jobs , activities that are part of a job, and the tools or equipment used in various jobs through a guessing game and discussion with the counselor/teacher and classmates. 

 

Activity Steps

  • The counselor/teacher asks the students to define "work" in terms of jobs that must be done in the classroom. Examples might include: learning and practicing a lesson, picking up crayons or markers, being a line leader,  emptying the waste basket, etc. The students share verbally as a group.
  • The counselor/teacher leads the following discussion:
    Your job is to be a student and the things you have said are all part of the important work you do in school. The adults in this school are working too. For example, I am a counselor." What are some of the other jobs the adults in this school have?"Help the students use language that is not biased such as cafeteria worker instead of cafeteria lady.
     
  • Students give examples such as Principal, Janitor, Cafeteria Worker, Bus Driver, etc.
  • The counselor/teacher continues with the following discussion:
There are also many different types of jobs outside the school that people do. Parents have jobs and your neighbors have jobs."What are some types of jobs you know about outside of school?"
  • Students give examples such as firefighter, plumber, computer operator, doctor, etc. and the teacher lists them on the board.
  • The counselor/teacher tells the students they are going to play the Guess My Job! game. The counselor/teacher explains:
    A picture of a worker (provided by the counselor/teacher) will be taped to one student's back so he or she cannot see the picture but the rest of the class can see the picture. The other children in the class will give clues to help the student guess the job title of the person in the picture. Clues can include the types of activities the worker might do and  the tools or equipment the worker might use.Remind the children of the importance of raising their hands to be called on to provide a clue. 
  • Demonstrate the game for the children. Select a job picture card without looking, show the children the picture of the worker and ask them to give clues so that you can guess the worker's job title. 
  • The teacher calls individual students to the front of the room and tapes a picture card onto the child's back without allowing the child to see the picture.
  • The teacher asks the student with the picture on their back to turn around in order to show the class the picture, and then the student can face forward again.
  • The counselor/teacher prompts the students as each picture is shown:
    •  
    "Without saying the name of the job, what kind of things might this worker do?" "What are some tools or equipment the worker might use in their job?"
  • The class members provide the clues.
  • The child with the picture on his/her back uses the clues to guess what job the person in the picture does. Once the child guesses correctly, the counselor/teacher selects a new student to play the guessing game. 
  • Have many copies of each of the job pages and as a final activity, ask the children to select and color the sheet that depicts their favorite job. 

Time Required

The entire activity will take 30 - 45 minutes, depending upon the number of children in the classroom.

Resources Needed

  • Copies of pictures for children to color.
  • Crayons, markers or colored pencils.

 

Performance Indicators

  • The children discuss and describe various jobs within the school and community.
  • The children are able to recognize that work has different meanings and that all jobs are important.
  • The children recognize why jobs in the community are needed.
  • The children discuss the tools and activities that are part of different jobs.