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Teacher guide · Extended option
Career Fair Project
Five connected steps that turn career research into a public explanation.
Core route: Plan for 7 to 10 class periods plus the Expo. This is a complete project, not five unrelated technology assignments. Research feeds the website, the website feeds the booth, and the booth gives the work a real audience.
Purpose and learning progression
Students are not pretending to choose a permanent future. They are learning how to investigate one possibility, separate current evidence from guesses, design information for a visitor, and explain that information out loud.
Research
Read career profiles, compare current sources, label pay and outlook with a source and year, and name one realistic training route.
Visual communication
Turn the research into a one-page site, poster, and handout that share a hierarchy and can be understood quickly.
Public explanation
Give a short pitch, answer questions honestly, and say where you would look when you do not know an answer.
Suggested pacing
| Step | Student work | Suggested time | Do not move on until |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Choose | Three-career shortlist and one commitment | 1 period | The student can explain why the choice fits. |
| 2 · Research | Research organizer and source log | 1 to 2 periods | Every published fact has a source. |
| 3 · Explain | One public information page | 1 to 2 periods | The link opens for another viewer. |
| 4 · Invite | Poster and matching handout | 1 to 2 periods | The headline reads from six feet away. |
| 5 · Present | Booth, pitch, questions, visitor round | 1 practice + Expo | The student can pitch without reading the poster. |
Teacher resources
Project walkthrough deck · Make a Google copyFull research deck · Make a Google copy
Website examples · Make a Google copyPromotional-material examples · Make a Google copy
Research organizer PDFEditable organizer DOCX · Make a Google copy
How to use the decks
- Project walkthrough: use slide 2 for the complete project map, then slides 6, 9, 12, 15, and 16 when each step begins. This is the default whole-group route.
- Full research deck: use it as an optional planning and discussion bank. It was built for a longer CCR course, so do not teach it straight through in this flex unit.
- Website and promotional examples: use them for critique and comparison. The current Canvas directions and rubric control the assignment if an older example shows a different requirement.
Materials and preparation
- Career research access: Xello if available, plus the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook and CareerOneStop.
- A website route: Google Sites or Canva, with sharing tested from an account that does not own the file.
- A poster and handout route: digital export or physical materials, plus a printing plan.
- Expo space, tables, visitor rotation, and a plan for students who use AAC, recorded delivery, or another teacher-approved communication route.
Formative checkpoints and likely misconceptions
- “A high salary means it fits me.” Send students back to tasks, work setting, training, and one honest challenge.
- “The first Google result is enough.” Require a source title, organization, URL, and checked date before the fact enters the site.
- “The poster should contain the whole research paper.” Test it from six feet away. The site holds detail; the poster earns attention.
- “Professional means pretending to know.” Teach the line: “I do not know yet. I would check…”
Grading and trim points
The full project remains 100 points: Steps 1 through 4 are 10 points each; the Expo is 60 points. The Expo rubric has four 15-point criteria: Content Accuracy, Visual Communication, Delivery, and Professionalism.
If time is tight: Preselect a smaller career pool, provide one common site layout, or shorten the visitor rotation. Do not quietly remove the poster, handout, or live explanation while keeping the same rubric. Change the rubric first if the demonstration of learning changes.