Careers Units for Kids – Wanna Be’s Review

 Unit study resources  No Responses »
Feb 282010
 

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” is a question most children love to answer. Those answers change many times through the years.  When I came across a sale for the Wanna Be series from The Old Schoolhouse, which are unit studies about different careers, I grabbed my debit card and ordered.  We love unit studies and I had nothing for careers in yet.  The series covers the following ten careers:

  • Firefighter
  • Veterinarian
  • Chef
  • Military
  • Doctor
  • Police Officer
  • Missionary
  • Farmer
  • Artist (upcoming release)
  • Pilot (upcoming release)

While these units are written for ages 4 – 10, even my husband and I learned a lot as we used our first two units.  I love that these units are written from a Christian homeschool perspective. I love reading how families make these careers work in their life.  The information for high school homeschoolers is wonderful, giving them direction on how to prepare for that career, while the end of unit activities have fun games and activities for younger kids.

What’s inside a unit?

  • Information pages about the career, with information for preschoolers through high schoolers.
  • Crossword puzzles
  • Coloring pages
  • Handwriting Practice
  • Vocabulary
  • Copywork
  • Applied math problems – relating to the career.
  • Word Search
  • Creative Writing Prompts
  • Quiz
  • Fill in the Story
  • Experiments
  • End of Unit Activities – games, memory verses, and ideas for great themed parties.
  • Great resource lists that are internet linked.

Our first adventure centered around a police officer’s job as peace keeper and law enforcer with When I Grow Up, I Want to Be a Police Officer. Each day we read a few pages from the e-book as a family and did activities.  I used the library list to gather books for our unit study basket, which we explored throughout the week.  You can find the ones we chose HERE.  We found out the tools of the trade, training needed for the job, and even some of the science behind fingerprinting.

My oldest wrote a story called The Jewelry Thief (read it HERE ) in response to one of the writing prompts in the unit.  She really enjoyed learning about how police use clues to solve a crime.  We finished up our unit with a trip to our local police department.

Our next Wanna Be adventure took two weeks using When I Grow Up, I Want to Be a Firefighter. We were able to compare many things we had learned about becoming a police officer with the path to becoming a firefighter.  Again, the library list and end of unit activities gave me plenty of ways to include my younger children.  Our second field trip in a month led us to Fire Station 3, where we saw up close and personal many of the things we had learned about during the unit.

The Wanna Be series is a great fit for our unit study family. Each title is a complete unit study.  I do not have to find books at the library unless I want to.  Many creative ideas are included for some themed games and activities perfect for my younger crowd, while the information is meaty enough that we will reuse these when the kids are older.  My children are already debating which career we will learn about next – I hope they choose chef!

Written by Tristan, mom to 5, homeschooling through unit studies with a side of lapbooks.  You can visit her at her blog, Our Busy Homeschool.

{Disclaimer because the FTC says I have to:  I bought these books with my own money, and yes, we really used them.  All opinions presented herein are my own.}

Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH)

 High School  5 Responses »
Oct 142009
 
sprite reading OOH

Sprite reading the OOH

The Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH) is a publication of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.  Are you wondering how in the world a boring statistical book made it onto a homeschool review site? Keep reading.

The OOH is not boring, and it’s very helpful for middle school and high school homeschool students and their parents. My daughter is only ten but I’ve already bought a copy (from Amazon for $10) for our home library. Actually, you can access the OOH without spending a dime. For younger children, visit this version.

The primary use of the OOH is to guide students as they consider future career paths. It’s called an outlook because the BLS projects which jobs will be in greater or lesser demand in the next ten years.  But besides looking at employment growth, the OOH is an incomparable reference on careers.

What other volume could answer all of these questions:

  • How much education do I need to be a court reporter?
  • Where do most psychologists work?
  • Does a loan officer need a license or certificate?
  • What job opportunities are available to chemists?
  • Can you learn to be a computer software engineer solely through on the job training?
  • Where can I write for more information about being an aircraft mechanic?
  • What exactly does a mathematician do?
  • Will the next ten years see an increase in the need for building inspectors?
  • How many hours a week does a power plant operator typically work?
  • What’s the average salary of a graphic designer?

researching RN job

The OOH can answer these types of questions because it’s amazingly comprehensive. And thankfully, the 890 page book has a detailed index to make research easier.

So the burning question is really how can the OOH be used in homeschool?

1.  A Reference About Jobs

OOHTeens and tweens will enjoy browsing the OOH to learn about potential job fields. I promise you that your child will find jobs he didn’t even know existed!  Jobs are organized by type, and each job features a list of related occupations. This is really helpful for the child who is interested in a general field but knows little about the specific jobs within that field. There’s more to education than being a school teacher and more to medicine that being a doctor or nurse. The OOH will show all the facets of a field.

Some of your child’s more romantic notions of a particular job may be dashed as she reads about the long years of education or long working hours. But that realism is needed when preparing for a future career.

2.  Research Projects

researching and taking notesBecause of the depth of information available, the OOH can serve as the basis of a challenging research project. A student will have to read carefully to identify key facts and then summarize them in her own words. (Or if your child is like mine, she simply enjoys browsing the OOH and making notes just for fun!)

Look at this lesson for a printable notetaking page (DOC) especially for the OOH.

3.  A Guide for Mom

If your child is leaning towards a specific field, you can use the OOH to learn which academic subjects are emphasized in training for that career. Then  you can design your high school curriculum accordingly.

4.  Academic Tie-ins

To expose your child to various careers, consult the OOH as it is relevant.
Here are some examples:

  • You are studying a famous Greek mathematician. Look up what a modern mathematician does.
  • You are studying chemistry. Research a chemist’s job.
  • You just learned about the respiratory system. Find out the differences between a respiratory therapist and a respiratory nurse.
  • You are working on American geography. Read what a cartographer does.