Students will learn what college is, explore various careers, understand why people attend college, and creatively envision their own future dreams.
Introducing college and career concepts early builds curiosity, goal-setting skills, and lays a foundation for lifelong readiness in a playful, age-appropriate way.
Audience
1st Grade
Time
20 minutes
Approach
Interactive slides, guided discussion, and creative drawing.
Prompt: “Draw what job you’d like to do when you grow up!”
Encourage use of bright colors; circulate to support fine motor or idea generation.
Allow students to share their drawings in a quick gallery walk for positive peer feedback.
Slide Deck
College Quest!
Let’s explore college & careers!
Welcome students! Today we’re going on a “College Quest.” Point to the college building illustration. Ask: “Has anyone heard of college? What do you think happens there?” Use simple language and encourage answers, then explain that college is a place people go after high school to learn more and make friends.
What Is College?
A school people go to after high school to learn new things and make friends.
Introduce the idea of college. Read the definition aloud: “A school people go to after high school to learn new things and make friends.” Point to each phrase as you say it. Show enthusiasm and use visuals to support understanding, especially for ELLs.
Explore Careers
Teachers 👩🏫 Doctors 🩺 Artists 🎨
Show each career icon and name it: teacher, doctor, artist. Ask volunteers: “Who knows what this person does?” Use the career picture cards as a visual aid. Encourage sentence starters: “I like being a teacher because…”
Why Go To College?
• Learn skills • Discover talents • Prepare for jobs
Ask: “Why do people go to college?” Point to each icon as you add reasons: learn skills, discover talents, prepare for jobs. Encourage contributions and reinforce with visuals for students with IEPs/504s.
Draw Your Dream!
What job would you like? Draw it here!
Hand out the Dream Cloud Worksheet. Prompt: “Draw the job you’d like to do when you grow up!” Circulate to support fine motor or idea generation, offering sentence starters as needed.
Great Job!
Keep dreaming big and learning!
Wrap up by praising creativity: “Great job, everyone! Keep dreaming big and learning new things.” Invite any final comments or questions before closing.
