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8th grade stuff... colleges and careers... is this crazy?


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We (kids, dh, and I) were talking about careers today (ds took an online quiz that told him to become a pilot and we were laughing about that). And I said I thought maybe next year - 8th grade - was a good year to have to do some loose career thinking. Yes, no? Crazy? One of the things I see on this board occasionally is people who say things like, "ds 13 is planning to become..." and then they name like a super specific career that is not of the doctor/lawyer/firefighter/paleontologist variety, like dental technician or something. And I'm like, wow. That's... interestingly specific and realistic for a preteen. Is this the time to open their minds to this stuff? And if so... how? I seriously doubt my kids would pick actual specific jobs to aim for so narrowly like that, but having those sorts of options in mind seems good. Much better than BalletBoy's "writer or dancer" desire and Mushroom's "I dunno, probably not pilot, maybe an engineer or something" desire.

 

But also... everyone always says that what credits you need for high school depend on where you're looking. We don't have a state school system to aim into. I proposed that maybe by the end of 8th grade that each of the kids pick a few schools that they might maybe want to apply to in four years. It feels bonkers to me in some ways - I had no concept of that stuff in 8th grade. But on the other hand, *I* want something to look toward. And, yes, I know, we want to do things that are general enough to get them into a variety of places. But would that be crazy to do a first round of thinking about what aiming for a college would look like and picking a few options - that, again, could obviously change over the following four years? Do people do that?

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Conversation- yes... curriculum and serious study- no.  I know that some schools are already tracking kids, but I don't think it's a good idea.  I'm for keeping options open.  My oldest is looking at starting CC in 2 years, and I have found that most colleges want the same type of thing- 4 math, 4 english, 3-4 history/SS, and 3-4 science, 2 Foreign language, a fine art and then whatever else interests the student.  You don't need to really focus on those skills yet- give them a good rounded education, and let them decide when they are older.  Khan is great for letting them explore, mine is currently doing the computer programming part in her spare time.  I am not encouraging or discouraging it, I am just letting her decide what she wants to learn. 

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I think my son's aspirations are similar to what Sadie mentioned--pro basketball player, back up plan of video game designer. 

 

We've talked  a little about which colleges actually offer programs to lead towards game design, but I don't know that his interests will continue in that direction as he matures. 

 

So, I think it's a good discussion to have, but I don't think you can pick a specific career goal at this age.  For my son, I purchased a web design/programming book for him to work through on his own when he has free time.  If he's really interested, he'll put in the time and effort.  To me, that is telling in and of itself. 

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My kids are picking subjects based on what they don't mind majoring in. They have no interest in any career that requires biology or history so they will just check the box with sat subject tests for those. One of the majors they are looking at is engineering so calculus and physics would be focus on. They are also looking at business/finance but those will take what engineering take so we do not need to plan for that. If my kids qualify for engineering school, they will qualify for business school.

 

ETA:

We are definitely doing 4 years of English, bio, chem, physics, two foreign languages (as one is heritage and would be done anyway) and 4 years of Math. The rest is flexible depending on interest.

Edited by Arcadia
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My oldest and I talked about this pretty specifically last summer - the summer before 8th grade. We discussed career interests, pay vs. enjoyment, and alternatives if Plan A didn't work. We looked at colleges that she might be interested in based on possible majors. It was very laid back and I made it clear that this in no way tied her down to anything. She enjoyed discussing it, though, and it has become an ongoing conversation.

 

I approached this conversation over iced tea in our back yard. I was ready to back away if I got a negative vibe from her. We just chatted the first time. I asked her if she'd be interested in talking about it again some time and/or looking at a few colleges online. She was interested, so our next conversation was more formal. I put in some research time before that conversation so that we could get into specifics.

 

My 11yo ds caught wind of our discussion and requested that I do the same with him. He didn't want to be left out. :)

 

I find this sort of long term planning fun and motivating. It seems like my kids do too. But like everything, I suppose ymmv.

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I wouldn't be doing that with Eldest since he has, for years wanted a career that meets these requirements:

 

Something:

- To do with money. 

- To do with math. 

- That wouldn't require sitting in front of a computer all day. So a mix of desk work, and dealing with people.

- That wouldn't require moving far from home to find a job, or a long commute. 

 

He is undecided on something specific, but whether he is an accountant, financial manger, or similar - it will require the same line up of courses in high school. 

 

 

 

I will be doing more career talks with Youngest. More of a "These are things that exist", pick something or I will pick for you. My rule is after high school you have to do something that involves getting specialized training/schooling/... 

 

He has narrowed his future career to:

- Not involving math or money.

- Nothing involving driving. (He doesn't like being in a car, and has no interest in driving any kind of vehicle)

- Nothing involving high power lines. 

- And I will say he should never have a job that requires continuously sitting. (ie. Computer person like his father) 

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My DD is one of those super-specific 8th graders, and getting more so (her current plan is to do reptile research and educational outreach, ideally at a private research center or non-profit. Like the Orianne Society, Save the Frogs! Or the GA Sea Turtle center. She plans dual undergrads in Education and Biology, with grad school in Ecology or Biology, focused on herpetology).

 

So, her high school core will include, obviously, a lot of science and math, but also a lot of writing. Since getting a teaching license is useful, she'll do some of the education core while in high school. She will also be doing summer workshops in environmental education designed for teachers, and is working on her first curriculum design project. We have a local center here that teaches grant writing, so I plan to have DD do some of their workshops and short courses, because she is likely to need to write grants for research funding, likely as early as undergraduate level.

 

Having said that, If she wakes up some day in junior year and decides she wants to be a dental hygenist, she will simply be a dental hygienist who knows a lot about snakes :).

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When I was in 8th grade, one of the classes I had actually had us pick 3 jobs/careers that we were interested in to research. (I feel like maybe it was a social studies class, but I'm not really sure now. I think it's the same class where we practiced participating in the stock market and did a mock trial...) At any rate, I don't think it's crazy to look into some things then--whether or not the student is actually able to narrow things down.

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I was super specific at that age too but I don't think that's the norm at all. My kids have their hearts set on becoming YouTube sensations like Pungence and Jen.  :lol: I just smile and nod. We take every opportunity to visit colleges but that's mostly for fun. I want DD to start getting a sense of what she likes WRT location and atmosphere. For academics, she has no clue. Although she's recently discovered robotics and applied technology classes and loves building stuff and making potions so there's hope for some direction. None of that will change her HS course plan though. 4-English, 4-math, 4-science, 4-history, 4-foreign language, electives of her choice.

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In short...GO and HAVE FUN!

 

Walk the grounds, critique the facilities/architecture, observe the students, catch the 'vibe', have an overpriced lunch at an on-campus eatery and drive around the surrounding neighbourhoods.

 

I think the impressions the kids develop about the schools and communities will be far more valuable than pouring over a bunch of 2017 course catalogs. As you said, kids and course offerings can change a lot in 4-6 years time. 

Edited by Sneezyone
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My oldest is the same age as yours. He is a pretty laid back kid. We've had conversations here and there but nothing serious. He seems to be interested in the science/engineering fields, although nothing specific as of now, however, he also loves words/languages and books. I plan to keep his coursework falling into the 5x4 framework and tailor to his interest where I can get away with it.

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We (kids, dh, and I) were talking about careers today (ds took an online quiz that told him to become a pilot and we were laughing about that). And I said I thought maybe next year - 8th grade - was a good year to have to do some loose career thinking. Yes, no? Crazy? One of the things I see on this board occasionally is people who say things like, "ds 13 is planning to become..." and then they name like a super specific career that is not of the doctor/lawyer/firefighter/paleontologist variety, like dental technician or something. And I'm like, wow. That's... interestingly specific and realistic for a preteen. Is this the time to open their minds to this stuff? And if so... how? I seriously doubt my kids would pick actual specific jobs to aim for so narrowly like that, but having those sorts of options in mind seems good. Much better than BalletBoy's "writer or dancer" desire and Mushroom's "I dunno, probably not pilot, maybe an engineer or something" desire.

 

But also... everyone always says that what credits you need for high school depend on where you're looking. We don't have a state school system to aim into. I proposed that maybe by the end of 8th grade that each of the kids pick a few schools that they might maybe want to apply to in four years. It feels bonkers to me in some ways - I had no concept of that stuff in 8th grade. But on the other hand, *I* want something to look toward. And, yes, I know, we want to do things that are general enough to get them into a variety of places. But would that be crazy to do a first round of thinking about what aiming for a college would look like and picking a few options - that, again, could obviously change over the following four years? Do people do that?

In my experience, I think most colleges have a standard "core" of classes they would like to see on a transcript:

4 years of English

4 years of Math

3 years of Social Studies

3-4 years of Science

2-4 years of a Foreign Language

 

By 8th grade, my kids had subjects that they enjoyed much more than others, and they pursued those topics in much more depth than the areas that they were not interested in.  For example, my oldest had a ton of science and math credits on his transcript, while he only had 3 years of a foreign language (and one of those credits was taken in 8th grade) and 4 English credits.  My middle son has a ton of English, Math and Computer Science credits while having only 3 years of foreign language and 4 science credits. 

 

Their transcripts reflected their interests and both had very different college lists when they went through the application process. 

 

From the time my oldest was in elementary school, he thought he knew what career he wanted to pursue.  After really enjoying a class he took his first semester of college, he decided to pursue a different major.  However, both careers are in the STEM area, so switching gears was easy.

 

Good luck to you as you plan out the high school years.

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When I was in 8th grade, one of the classes I had actually had us pick 3 jobs/careers that we were interested in to research. (I feel like maybe it was a social studies class, but I'm not really sure now. I think it's the same class where we practiced participating in the stock market and did a mock trial...) At any rate, I don't think it's crazy to look into some things then--whether or not the student is actually able to narrow things down.

 

I like this idea a lot, Merry. This is sort of what I have in mind.

 

At the school where I used to teach, we required 8th graders to do a mini-internship for a week where they shadowed someone and learned about a job they found interesting, so we may do that as well. Knowing some of those 8th graders... a few of them are in the jobs they shadowed or on a path where they still want to be, but of course, most of them are not.

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In short...GO and HAVE FUN!

 

Walk the grounds, critique the facilities/architecture, observe the students, catch the 'vibe', have an overpriced lunch at an on-campus eatery and drive around the surrounding neighbourhoods.

 

I think the impressions the kids develop about the schools and communities will be far more valuable than pouring over a bunch of 2017 course catalogs. As you said, kids and course offerings can change a lot in 4-6 years time. 

 

Yeah, I guess... that seems like a good idea... but it seems like a lot of people are saying no, do the standard thing and don't do this until later?

 

I'm really not trying to overspecialize my kids. But also, I know that when we get to high school, we're going to play around a lot with our humanities and social studies credits and possibly a little with our science ones. Right now, we definitely do school that's very much based on what the kids want to learn about and then I do writing and reading across the curriculum. Math is its own thing. I'd like to continue that to some extent in high school. Obviously there are boxes to check, and we'll check them, but I think I'd feel better seeing a set of specific boxes, even if they don't end up going for those schools. And I guess having the mindset of "everything next year will 'count' toward getting into college" doesn't feel like a bad one to introduce. But, of course, I don't want to push too hard or make them anxious.

 

ETA: And, to be clear, I know what the "standard" set of credits are. But also that those are minimums, that most ps students will have a lot more credits than that, etc.

Edited by Farrar
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Yeah, I guess... that seems like a good idea... but it seems like a lot of people are saying no, do the standard thing and don't do this until later?

 

I'm really not trying to overspecialize my kids. But also, I know that when we get to high school, we're going to play around a lot with our humanities and social studies credits and possibly a little with our science ones. Right now, we definitely do school that's very much based on what the kids want to learn about and then I do writing and reading across the curriculum. Math is its own thing. I'd like to continue that to some extent in high school. Obviously there are boxes to check, and we'll check them, but I think I'd feel better seeing a set of specific boxes, even if they don't end up going for those schools. And I guess having the mindset of "everything next year will 'count' toward getting into college" doesn't feel like a bad one to introduce. But, of course, I don't want to push too hard or make them anxious.

 

ETA: And, to be clear, I know what the "standard" set of credits are. But also that those are minimums, that most ps students will have a lot more credits than that, etc.

 

In general, planning* to do 5x4 keeps your options open for every school. You could spend the four math classes on applied math at a vo-tech campus, for example, or get through calc. I figure, based on how well DD does with those 5x4 classes (at least one math and one language will be 8th grade for her) and how she chooses to use her electives (maybe add more of those core course, maybe something else),THAT will determine which tier of colleges (or post-secondary schools to be more inclusive) she applies to and which programs she is interested in. The time we spend looking around now will just help us narrow that down even further to urban/rural, public/private, big/small, etc. Also, yes, there are adults looking at us like we're crazy for running around college campuses collecting mugs and sweatshirts. Ask us if we care? My kids leave there intrigued and motivated, knowing there's an end goal. That's what I'm after. 

 

 

*obv plans can change 

Edited by Sneezyone
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Yeah, I guess... that seems like a good idea... but it seems like a lot of people are saying no, do the standard thing and don't do this until later?

 

I'm really not trying to overspecialize my kids. But also, I know that when we get to high school, we're going to play around a lot with our humanities and social studies credits and possibly a little with our science ones. Right now, we definitely do school that's very much based on what the kids want to learn about and then I do writing and reading across the curriculum. Math is its own thing. I'd like to continue that to some extent in high school. Obviously there are boxes to check, and we'll check them, but I think I'd feel better seeing a set of specific boxes, even if they don't end up going for those schools. And I guess having the mindset of "everything next year will 'count' toward getting into college" doesn't feel like a bad one to introduce. But, of course, I don't want to push too hard or make them anxious.

 

ETA: And, to be clear, I know what the "standard" set of credits are. But also that those are minimums, that most ps students will have a lot more credits than that, etc.

My thought is to tweak the standards to his interest but when he just doesn't care (because he is laid back) we'll just do the expected. I think the thing is that as we hit high school it hits home we are also the guidance counselor. I've started looking at requirements for colleges I think that will be a fit for ds (and some that are more rigorous so we don't close those doors). We've talked about options for careers. I'm strongly considering vo-tech for him as the local one has some choices I think he would like. I think iit would be a good way to try it out different careers (and get some hands on experience) without risk. On the other hand, we might end up doing a ton of DE, he has some EF deficits so I don't feel like he will be an early college kid but who knows how he will change over these next few years.

 

For the most part, I think it is just a continuation of the conversations we've been having, getting a bit more in depth as we go. Showing them the options out there, researching to make sure we understand all this stuff we have to know and keeping them on track, while following their lead. if they don't want to specialize I see no harm in being general, sometimes it is a matter of time and maturity.

Edited by soror
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Our kids explore subjects they enjoy, not careers that they want to pursue. We take those subjects wherever they want to take them.

 

In terms of thinking about college, it depends on your philosophy. We don't plan high school around a specific college or elite academic admissions. We find colleges that fit our kids, not the other way around. What they study (within the general framework of core courses) and at what level they study subjects is driven completely by ability, not a college.

 

ETA: If they wanted to apply to a specific college (not happening here ;) ), then the framework would change bc some hoops exist that they might need to jump through. They would also need to know what they needed to be competitive for admissions.

Edited by 8FillTheHeart
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Our kids explore subjects they enjoy, not careers that they want to pursue. We take those subjects wherever they want to take them.

 

In terms of thinking about college, it depends on your philosophy. We don't plan high school around a specific college or elite academic admissions. We find colleges that fit our kids, not the other way around. What they study (within the general framework of core courses) and at what level they study subjects is driven completely by ability, not a college.

 

ETA: If they wanted to apply to a specific college (not happening here ;) ), then the framework would change bc some hoops exist that they might need to jump through. They would also need to know what they needed to be competitive for admissions.

I like your way of phrasing, exploring subjects, not careers. 

 

I'm not planning on a specific college but being new at this it was helpful to see some admission requirements so I would know what is generally expected. We are not aiming for super competitive, as we don't have the funds and my oldest at least is not the type of kid that would thrive in that environment but we are taking it one year a time.

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I've been slowly introducing possible majors and options to DD because what she really wants to major in isn't offered in the US yet. Since she's not yet keen on leaving the country for it, I've been researching on my own looking into alternatives. Right now she really likes the idea of building her own major with some very specific options. That's a slight difference from when she was convinced it wasn't worth it to go to college (and I support that choice too but her given career choice has a high chance of injury so I think she needs an alternative plan). 

 

She's also 2e so I worry about her performance on SAT and ACT if we can't get time extension accommodations. But, other bits of her are quite unique so she would likely be an interesting candidate beyond her test scores. 

 

Edited by deerforest
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Because my son was involved in scouting, he found the merit badges and service projects a good way to explore interests and see what careers people had made with strong interests. It starts as a rising sixth grader and was very helpful.

Edited by Heigh Ho
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We talk about it, but plans definitely do change.  My oldest seemed to be destined for an engineering career but now that it's getting close, he's unsure.

A couple of resources that are good:  DK Careers (I keep this one next to the couch and the boys flip through it) and Do What You Are (based on Myers Briggs personality types).

I think that it's hard to know all the options when you're young, so it's good to spend time discussing it.  We also talk about the practical positives and negatives of choices (for example, if one of my boys knows they'd like to have a family with a stay at home mom, we'd point out that a career in basket weaving probably wouldn't support them, and it might be a better hobby or side hustle, and they might want to focus their college education on something that would allow them to support a family on one income).

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My initial thought w/r/t middle and high school was just a touch more exposure here and there about colleges THEN career choices.

 

Two things have happened since: 

 

One, DD has attended/will attend an Expanding Your Horizons conference, which is basically showing middle-school girls STEM careers via a series of activities within the conference (engineering, vet stuff, biology, etc.). 

 

Two, we attended the biennial How to Homeschool High School conference held by the Parent Partnership earlier this spring.  We found out DD would be able to dual enroll for as many as 3 classes/semester starting her freshman year (and have it paid for by the Partnership too).  But, more importantly, she found out there is a pre-medical/science/etc. Career and Technical Training program she can apply for in junior year (which would basically have her all set and ready to go into some kind of science-based field, not necessarily medical but it is set up for kids who will skip college and go straight into something medical-support-ish), and she so wants to do that.  Not because she wants to skip college, but because she thinks it will prepare her better for college and grad school.

 

Both things opened her eyes to paths she can start pursuing in just a year's time.  She has NO idea what she "wants" to be, other than she said "I really can't see myself working in an office.  But a lab, though...."

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I'm really not trying to overspecialize my kids. But also, I know that when we get to high school, we're going to play around a lot with our humanities and social studies credits and possibly a little with our science ones.

My friend's public school daughter who wants to be an artist started her portfolio and after school DE drawing class in 8th. Maybe check out requirements for dance?

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Lots of middle school level career exploration material out there, so no, not crazy.

 

I do think that a small amount of students know from early on what they want to do as a career -- as early as middle school, and a few, even younger. But most students need the exposure of different subjects and extracurriculars throughout high school to even start getting a feel for what even is out there. And they need time to grow up, get some experiences under their belts, and figure it out.

 

Even the majority of high school graduates do NOT know what they want to do for a career, so that is very much more the norm. And well over half of college students *radically* switch college majors halfway through college, so clearly, even young-20s are not settled as far a career either.

 

As far as college credits, really, as long as you hit the basic academic credits to have the required credits for college admission to the majority of colleges, you can use your elective credits for exploring interests, which might lead to exposure to a future career interest. Also make room in your high school schedule for extracurriculars, which is another great way to explore interests and possibility stumble over something that might end up as a career interest.

 

4 credits = English

4 credits = Math (Alg. 1, Geometry, Alg. 2, + many colleges want a 4th math that requires Alg. 2 as a pre-requisite)

3-4 credits = Science (4 if interested in STEM fields)

3-4 credits = Social Studies (4 if interested in Humanities fields_

2-4 credits = Foreign Language

1 credit = Fine Arts

4-8+ credits = Electives

 

That's only 4 "required" classes per year, which leaves you 1-2 credits each year of high school for exploring interests. AND, you can design many of your "required" academic credits (esp. English, Science, and Social Studies) to further explore interests. So lots of flexibility.

 

 

You and DSs might have fun seeing if there are any public school career day opportunities you can participate in, or travel to a nearby state and go to a homeschool event. And although it's not general career exploration, in another year or two, you might also enjoy checking out a local college fair for high schoolers -- lots of tables with reps from lots of colleges who are happy to just chat with you.

 

What Color is Your Parachute for Teens might be a starting point for a book.

 

Our homeschool group, for the past 18 years, has put on an annual one-day seminar for homeschool youth and parents to choose from a variety of speakers from the community sharing about different careers. It also includes sessions on groups/activities that the teens can get involved in, some hands-on sessions, etc. Do you have enough local homeschoolers of similar late middle school/early high school age that you could plan a similar event?

 

About a half a dozen times I've led an "intro to career exploration" session at that all-day seminar, having the kids do a quick interest inventory test and then I share some basic info on career exploration and direct them to some websites where the students can have fun doing some online exploration.

 

The two websites I especially like have lots of information about a lot of different occupations; many have short videos with people explaining what the different occupations entail. Both sites allow you to search occupations directly, but they also have a search engine to allow you to explore by your top 3 of the 6 interest areas (which is called a "Holland code").

 

CA Career Zone - explore by job family; explore career videosinterest profiler (find your "Holland code")

NY Career Zone - search engine by top 3 interest areas ("Holland code"); occupation search

 

 

All that to say, even if you DO career exploration (we did) or exposure to subjects and extracurriculars to explore interests (we did), your students may STILL not start getting a career path figured out until into their 20s (again, that's us! see my signature ;) ). And that is really NOT uncommon. A good friend has 3 DSs, and the older two are late 20s and just now getting career figured out, and the youngest is 21 and working an entry level job for now while he figures out where he wants to go. :) BEST of luck! Warmly, Lori D.

Edited by Lori D.
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I don't think that I am a good person with enough knowledge to give anything insightful to this. I have no idea what the future holds. We think talk about what they want to study in college and job possibilities at this age. But it is just talk at this time. I did want to mention one thing we started this year is a career journal from Thinking Tree called How to Make Money. It has workbook pages and coloring pages of different careers and questions to fill out. My girls have been using these on field trips. We will stop to interview people we meet and fill these out. It gives them an idea about jobs they are interested in. One homeschool board that I am a part of had an online career day which was cool. The kids got to interview members about their jobs, and my girls used their workbooks to interview them. I just plan to have this ongoing through middle school and high school to give them different things to think about when thinking about what they might like to do.

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My friend's public school daughter who wants to be an artist started her portfolio and after school DE drawing class in 8th. Maybe check out requirements for dance?

 

I don't really have to worry about this. This is out of my hands almost entirely. If (and it's a big if) he makes it all the way through at his pre-professional school, they do college and audition counseling. A couple of years ago, both the boys who graduated high school while in their program received dance scholarships to university. I seriously doubt this is in ds's future, but... did I mention how out of this I am? I have no clue. Like, ds and his friends sometimes mildly make fun of the graduate who dances part time with a small professional ballet who was homeschooled and returns to get paid to do their Nutcracker (they need an older male who can do all those lifts - the teenage boys can't do it so they hire 1-2 male dancers for Nutcracker every year). I'm like, DUDE! That is your future, IF you're LUCKY.

Edited by Farrar
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We do some fun career/personality type tests in 8th that help them see their strengths and interests in light of what types of careers might be a good fit for them.

It has helped me get their buy-in and input about high school courses if we use that info to help shape what their 4 years might look like.

e.g. "Oh you like making movies and want to be a famous Hollywood director? Maybe we could do a fun film making class and that could count as one of your fine arts electives that colleges are looking for on your transcript." It's also been good for them to see the big picture of what we're going for during the high school years and they are good at helping me see out of the box ways of getting those credits in.

After doing some of those career/personality tests I have them research several careers they are interested in to see how much money they make, where they are typically employed, etc so they get an idea of what life would actually be like with that occupation as well.

For instance, my oldest DS (who is insanely gifted just generally but especially in math and STEM) wanted for the longest time to be a cab driver or an over the road trucker. Seriously ... he figured he'd have lots of time to think and philosophize and invent and theorize that way ... And when he did some research he discovered *on his own without my discouragement* that that might not be the life he was looking for after all lol

 

Disclaimer: not trying to diss cabbies or truckers at all... we have a few in the family and it's good honest work. But that is *not* the kind of job that this intellectual ponderer of mathematical theories is cut out for, kwim?

 

Sent from my Z988 using Tapatalk

Edited by Momto5inIN
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In my experience, I think most colleges have a standard "core" of classes they would like to see on a transcript:

4 years of English

4 years of Math

3 years of Social Studies

3-4 years of Science

2-4 years of a Foreign Language

 

By 8th grade, my kids had subjects that they enjoyed much more than others, and they pursued those topics in much more depth than the areas that they were not interested in.  For example, my oldest had a ton of science and math credits on his transcript, while he only had 3 years of a foreign language (and one of those credits was taken in 8th grade) and 4 English credits.  My middle son has a ton of English, Math and Computer Science credits while having only 3 years of foreign language and 4 science credits. 

 

Their transcripts reflected their interests and both had very different college lists when they went through the application process. 

 

From the time my oldest was in elementary school, he thought he knew what career he wanted to pursue.  After really enjoying a class he took his first semester of college, he decided to pursue a different major.  However, both careers are in the STEM area, so switching gears was easy.

 

Good luck to you as you plan out the high school years.

 

This makes the most sense to me.  There are basic things colleges want to see on transcripts.  Beyond that, at this age, it's more of seeing how a young teen is leaning towards humanities or STEM.  And be prepared for change.  For those kids with super specific career goals, I'd love to know how many actually end up doing that.  I've known a few.  My FIL knew when he was quite young he would be a veterinarian. There are all kinds of reasons why he made that choice, growing up on a dairy farm and seeing how the vet was a respected person, he was the second son and wouldn't inherit the farm, he was very focused and clearly suited for academic work etc etc. He did achieve that goal. A grand daughter of his, OTOH, was talking the same way from early childhood, but is now in high school and is doesn't appear to be academically focused enough to achieve that goal. Might she? I guess we'll see how she does in the next couple years. As the parent of a teenager, I can attest that a LOT changes between 15 and 17.

 

In 8th grade, when asked about career paths my DS1 would only say 'not math' :lol:  He's fine in math and is taking AP math  and science classes in public high school, but he doesn't love it.  Fair enough. As of now he is at the end of his junior year and actually does have a rather specific career goal after college, but it's not something that is really studied in high school. Right now he just needs to do well enough to get into a decent college that has what he wants. So, less about his focus of studies and more about the getting in. And who knows what happens when he does get in. So many people end up changing their minds during college or after.  I have a nephew who graduated from one of the top engineering colleges in the country. He attended as a ROTC student and graduated with honors. Now that he's about to leave the military he's leaving engineering to get an MBA.  I would have thought this kid was a born engineer, it's all he ever wanted but now that he's in his mid 20s he's decided to do something else.

 

 

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When I was about 30yo, it hit me that there were a whole lot of cool jobs people had that weren't even on my radar. I didn't know how many occupations there were, or how varied. I had a bad case of the woulda coulda shouldas.

 

I think it's reasonable to get those possibilities on a kid's radar starting in middle school. I wouldn't ask an 8th grader to firmly decide on a career at 13, but I do think career exploration is something that should begin pretty early so a student can consider the wide realm of options.

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I do think that a small amount of students know from early on what they want to do as a career -- as early as middle school, and a few, even younger. But most students need the exposure of different subjects and extracurriculars throughout high school to even start getting a feel for what even is out there. And they need time to grow up, get some experiences under their belts, and figure it out.

When I discussed my DS12 with a guidance counselor a few days ago about him wanting to be a generalist and not interested in competitive sports, the counselor suggested he use what would be competitive sports time to do volunteer work, part time jobs and internships so that he can gain experience and satisfy some of his social needs. He is supposedly an introvert but behaves like an extrovert.

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I feel as if I often post the opposite of the majority, so here it is again. Everyone, feel free to disagree!

 

We talk with our kids all the time about these subjects starting when they are quite young--far before middle school. We talk to our kids about what subjects they are especially good at and what specific talents they have. We ask them what areas of school they enjoy the most. We suggest possible paths of study or careers that would match their talents and interests. In other words, we try to guide them into areas where they have natural apptitide and help them imagine careers that may be suitable.

 

My 6th and 8th graders have a fairly clear idea where they may go to college and what they may major in. They enjoy thinking and dreaming about their future plans. Of course, plans may change, but that is fine. If they shoot for difficult colleges and high goals, they will be set up to apply for many other options if they change their minds.

Edited by Mrs Twain
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We do some fun career/personality type tests in 8th that help them see their strengths and interests in light of what types of careers might be a good fit for them.

It has helped me get their buy-in and input about high school courses if we use that info to help shape what their 4 years might look like.

e.g. "Oh you like making movies and want to be a famous Hollywood director? Maybe we could do a fun film making class and that could count as one of your fine arts electives that colleges are looking for on your transcript." It's also been good for them to see the big picture of what we're going for during the high school years and they are good at helping me see out of the box ways of getting those credits in.

After doing some of those career/personality tests I have them research several careers they are interested in to see how much money they make, where they are typically employed, etc so they get an idea of what life would actually be like with that occupation as well.

For instance, my oldest DS (who is insanely gifted just generally but especially in math and STEM) wanted for the longest time to be a cab driver or an over the road trucker. Seriously ... he figured he'd have lots of time to think and philosophize and invent and theorize that way ... And when he did some research he discovered *on his own without my discouragement* that that might not be the life he was looking for after all lol

 

Disclaimer: not trying to diss cabbies or truckers at all... we have a few in the family and it's good honest work. But that is *not* the kind of job that this intellectual ponderer of mathematical theories is cut out for, kwim?

 

Sent from my Z988 using Tapatalk

 

Can I ask what career tests you did? I sort of like the idea of doing one or two to generate conversation... but I have to admit that then I run up against things like... I know that there's zero science behind the Myers-Briggs and many are based on that or other pseudo-psych things. And then I get a bit turned off. But I'm thinking maybe there are some that are more exploratory?

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I think some of this for me is that no one ever talked to me in any serious way about careers and jobs and I kind of wish someone had. It was always just, keep going in education, that will fall into place. I strongly believe that it's a mistake to go to college without some sort of goal. And the goal can absolutely change. But... there has to be a vision. I went to college because I was supposed to. And sure, eventually, I found my way into a career... but I did it without having a chance to explore the whole notion of career. It seems like it should have been something that I was being guided to think about. And hopefully in a low pressure way... but still, to think about.

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One way to go about this informally is through reading. The Scientists in Field series describes all sorts of unusual careers that most kids have probably never heard of before. Those are some that come to mind immediately. Biographies, brief stories about famous people, etc are another possible source.

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Can I ask what career tests you did? I sort of like the idea of doing one or two to generate conversation... but I have to admit that then I run up against things like... I know that there's zero science behind the Myers-Briggs and many are based on that or other pseudo-psych things. And then I get a bit turned off. But I'm thinking maybe there are some that are more exploratory?

We've used The Complete Career, College, and High School Guide for Homeschoolers by Jill Dixon. It's ... OK. It's cheap! 😀 It's got a "here are some work good at home jobs for girls" flavor to it that I wasn't crazy about, but I just photocopy the test sheets for my kids and they never see that part of the book and I pretend it isn't there. 🙄 The tests aren't super scientific but we approach them not so much as "this will tell you important things about yourself" but more as "this might help you articulate things about yourself that you already know". It was fun to get them thinking about what they might be suited for and to help them start thinking about a future beyond "I like Lego's, maybe I can be a Lego designer" 🙄

 

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I think some of this for me is that no one ever talked to me in any serious way about careers and jobs and I kind of wish someone had.

My junior college (11 and 12th grade, non-US) had career guidance and social etiquette as compulsory seminars.

 

The book Lori linked upthread "What Color is Your Parachute for Teens" is useful for the quizzes and the entire book as a starting point. My library has it.

 

My kids and I tried the Holland codes and we get all over the shop answers but it was still fun. My kids and I get inconsistent answers for Meyer Briggs too. My husband is the only "specialist" in our extended family and he is the one who can get consistent answers in quizzes of these sort. The rest of us are jack of all trades and happy being so.

Edited by Arcadia
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I think some of this for me is that no one ever talked to me in any serious way about careers and jobs and I kind of wish someone had. It was always just, keep going in education, that will fall into place....I went to college because I was supposed to. And sure, eventually, I found my way into a career... but I did it without having a chance to explore the whole notion of career. It seems like it should have been something that I was being guided to think about. And hopefully in a low pressure way... but still, to think about.

Like you, Farrar, and many others upthread, of course we've probably all discussed life after homeschooling with our kids, including college, in some kind of generalized way.  And certainly I did not think I would be having the particular and very specific school ==>career discussion in the spring of my kid's 7th grade year. 

 

Maybe it's just me with my wee sample size of one child, but the specificity, two years ahead of time, has been clarifying for her.  After our homeschool high school/DE conference, we looked at the course offerings for the community college.  I had meant to show her things like the basic lab science classes she'd most likely take but it was awfully fun discussing with her the whole concept of what "humanities" classes were.  Her eyes practically popped out of her head when she saw The History of Film offered!  ("You mean I could take that as an English credit?")  And it occurred to me that--duh--maybe I should not expect a 7th grader to know the exact kinds of classes that are required for high school and college.  She hadn't been asking the questions because she hadn't been exposed to how it all works, other than in the vaguest way ("live in a dorm and eat bad food and drink beer on weekends" = "college" and "take classes that 'count' and study for tests that 'count'" = "high school").

 

So as far as career stuff goes, yes, please, let's keep it as low-pressure as we can for a bit because it is really early for our 7th graders, goodness knows.  But yeah our kids should be getting first-hand exposure of the possibilities that are out there via job shadowing/what color is your parachuting/ as well as honest discussions of "adulting" things like how to set up a monthly budget, what's involved in signing a lease/buying a car, etc. that will happen to them no matter where they go after life in our houses.  There is a lot to consider.  And a lot of it is happening just naturally as our kids become more outward-focused with adolescence.

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Can y'all share some more resources on what careers are out there?

 

I still feel like I really just don't have any idea myself about all the different careers and what they look like day-to-day and year-to-year. Is there any sort of Big Book of Jobs kind of thing?

 

And my guys are just starting middle school next year, but yeah - I want them to have a lot of exposure to all the different possibilities. Also - for my older on the spectrum - I am not sure traditional college is a possibility, so I'd also like to figure out what types of jobs might fit his particular autistic strengths and weaknesses. He can be academically strong in certain areas, but he'd need the social aspect to fit as well.

 

So, uh, nope, OP, I don't think 8th is too young. We're slowly starting in 5th and 6th. (Not high-pressure). :thumbup:

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Can y'all share some more resources on what careers are out there?

 

I still feel like I really just don't have any idea myself about all the different careers and what they look like day-to-day and year-to-year. Is there any sort of Big Book of Jobs kind of thing?

 

And my guys are just starting middle school next year, but yeah - I want them to have a lot of exposure to all the different possibilities. Also - for my older on the spectrum - I am not sure traditional college is a possibility, so I'd also like to figure out what types of jobs might fit his particular autistic strengths and weaknesses. He can be academically strong in certain areas, but he'd need the social aspect to fit as well.

 

So, uh, nope, OP, I don't think 8th is too young. We're slowly starting in 5th and 6th. (Not high-pressure). :thumbup:

 

For your younger ages, you might start with the free website Jobs List at Kids.gov. A print resource for the grade 6+ crowd is DK's Careers.

 

If you want actual curriculum for gr. 6-8, you might check out Glencoe's Exploring Careers text and student workbook. (I am seeing it cheaper as used at Amazon.) Glencoe's materials are based on Career Clusters, which is focuses on and groups occupations by educational requirements -- 16 "clusters" of related career fields, with 70 "pathways" amongst those 16 clusters, and then hundreds of "crosswalks" (individual jobs) in those pathways.

 

The free Career Zone sites I linked in my post above (and here again: NY Career Zone, CA Career Zone) have info -- even some short videos -- on a lot of occupations. You can also browse occupations through the free US Bureau of Labor's Occupational Outlook Handbook. The way that site is laid out, you can read about one occupation, and then click on the link to similar or related occupations. The Career Profiles website also lists many occupations for exploration. 

 

Also from the US Bureau of Labor is the print resource The Big Book of Jobs

Edited by Lori D.
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Is there a reason he couldn't become a pilot?

 

He isn't actually interested would probably be the number one hindrance. ;)

 

Even more practically, I have the impression that a great number of pilots get their start in the Air Force... and I do not see the military in this child's future at all.

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I saw this article this morning and it made me think of this thread. The future career market for these younger kids might look quite different than what we are used to thinking about.

 

http://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/digital-mckinsey/our-insights/where-machines-could-replace-humans-and-where-they-cant-yet

I guess I should keep my girls in their Robotics class.

 

My oldest will be in 7th grade next year and I've been thinking about this also. Mostly I'm spending more time researching everything and poking around on the high school board. I like the idea of exploring subjects and picking the right school vs picking a school and aiming at that. Even if your Ds picks a career there's no guarantee he will want that career in another 4 years. Many kids change majors in college so even by college not all kids know. My oldesest is not a very motivated kid so I will probably spend more time giving her some sort of direction but my younger dd wants to be an engineer and is loving robotics so we will probably stick to that.

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I have a friend who does this for her kids in 8th grade so they can better plan high school.  I choose to do a college and careers class in 9th grade as an elective.  I do this to get the kids to start thinking about what they might be interested in and to be able to see the variety of careers out there.  Does this mean I think that they will figure out what they want to do in 9th grade, no.  The key is to get them to start thinking and then also to start thinking about the college application process.  If there is a particular college they might be interested in then it is good to know as early as possible if they have any special requirements for admission.

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He isn't actually interested would probably be the number one hindrance. ;)

 

Even more practically, I have the impression that a great number of pilots get their start in the Air Force... and I do not see the military in this child's future at all.

Civil Air Patrol as a youth member. There is no obligation to join the military.

http://www.gocivilairpatrol.com/how_to_join/youth_faq/

 

My DS11 asked me this morning which jobs has the highest financial security (least likelihood of layoffs) and pays a livable wage. I told him nursing is a possibility and he said "So I see which location has the most shortage of nurse, move there and get a degree in nursing and start work? Then after a few years I specialize?" My mom was a NICU RN.

Edited by Arcadia
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I showed my DD the parachute book for teens and she said, "Why would I need that? Some quizzes aren't going to tell me what I want to do." So, I got her to tell me definitively and she said something to do with education, aerial, and massage therapy. She said she is absolutely certain and wants to design her own major. It gives me more to work with yet with more defined boundaries.

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can I give a shout out to deep thinkers in *just* blue collar jobs. Sometimes, having a physical job that doesn't require a lot of brain power can allow the worker more thinking space. It can be a very satisfying way to live.

 

as you were...

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I just don't think our kids will have any one job. This generation will do a number of things. I don't know how one prepares a child for that.

Mine is set on a very specific thing he wants to do. I'm drawing up plans for his little house in my back yard as we speak...😂

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yes, I agree about the pay/conditions. Some jobs are really undervalued.

 

Dh is like this, an incredibly deep thinker. He intentionally doesn't seek jobs with high thought loads, because his priorities are different. And he believes in the noble/edifying nature of hard, physical work.

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