Career Challenge Career Exploration Game

Career Challenge is a board game specifically designed to help students explore careers that may be good matches for their talents, interests, and work preferences. Players learn important facts about many careers and are encouraged to explore careers about which they previously had no knowledge or interest. The play of the game is a lot like a quiz show. Players answer questions to progress, and they receive checks as rewards.

There are four decks of cards that the players use to learn about careers. The game comes with two sets of cards in each color. One set is designed for third and fourth graders, and the more difficult cards are designed for fifth and sixth graders.

The four kinds of cards are as follows:

• The Education and Skills cards help players learn about the importance of formal education and specific skills for various careers.
• The What's It Like? cards teach players about what it's like to work in various careers.
• The Good Career cards challenge players to match careers with interests and talents.
• When a player picks a Guess My Career card, the player tries to get other players to guess the career by verbal descriptions and/or acting out the career.

Players learn the importance of a college education for entering many careers, as well as beginning to think about job preferences, such as whether they want to work mainly on their own or with others. During the post-game discussion, players begin to focus on major industry groups and even individual careers that meet the three goals listed above.

SCANS Skills Addressed:

• Foundation Skills: Thinking Skills, Basic Skills
• Workplace Competencies: Systems, Information

Learning Objectives:

• Learn that a good career choice should meet three criteria:
• It's fun to do.
• You're good at it.
• You are earning enough to have a life style that satisfies you.
• Learn important facts and educational requirements for various careers.
• Explore careers not previously known or understood.
• Develop a list of careers into which students can look more closely.