Career & College Readiness Lesson Plans
Educator Guide
Introduction
The California Career Resource Network (CalCRN) program in the California
Department of Education (CDE) is pleased to offer these Career and College Readiness
Lesson Plans (CCRLPs).
The CCRLPs provide a set of age-appropriate lessons for grades five through twelve
that can be used in advisory periods, or other life skill development courses, and easily
integrated with other curriculum objectives. They have been written so they can be used
in sequence or as stand-alone lessons.
These lessons provide California educators with a key tool for implementing and
incorporating critical career and college readiness knowledge and skill development into
their classroom instruction as well as supporting advisory and life skills classes.
When you introduce students to the CCRLPs, it is recommended that you have them
create a hard copy Career Portfolio so they have a place to save copies of all the work
they complete. Many lessons will use CalCRN online tools that allow students to save
work online; but as students’ progress through middle and high school, they will find it
helpful to have their accumulated career and college readiness work in one place so it is
easy to access as one cumulative record. A hard copy Career Portfolio also provides a
resource that is easy to share with a counselor, teacher, parent or guardian.
Table of Contents
Purpose
Organization
Lesson Plan Structure
Student Handouts in Spanish
Career and College Readiness Glossary
CalCRN Resources
Naming Conventions for Student Accounts on CalCRN Resources
Career and College Readiness Lesson Plans Contents
Appendix A: Lesson Plan Development
Educator Guide
Career and College Readiness Lesson Plans
Purpose
The CCRLPs have been developed to support the following expected student
outcomes. After completing the CCRLPs student will:

Be able to identify career and occupational goals.

Be able to describe postsecondary education and training options.

Understand the role that interests and values play in career selection.

Understand the financial implications of career decisions, including the cost of
education and training in relation to specific occupational goals.

Possess an initial postsecondary Career Action Plan.
These lessons will enable students to identify a broad range of careers and
occupations, explore potential life and work goals, and build awareness of the array of
postsecondary education and training options available to them.
Because many of the lessons require using a computer with Internet access, please
note:

State and federal laws govern the conditions and limitations for Internet usage by
children under the age of 13. Before using the Internet, check your district
policies and/or state and federal regulations.

For homework assignments, students without home access to computers and the
Internet may need time in the school computer lab or library.
Organization
The CCRLPs are organized by grade levels and topic areas. In each grade level, there
are five or six lessons, each addressing one of the four topic areas. Although the
lessons are organized this way, you are encouraged to review all the lessons to
determine which lessons will best meet your students’ needs. Additionally, lesson plans
can be downloaded as Word documents which you can revise to better suit your
students’ needs.
A key element to consider when bringing these lessons into your classroom is how
much time you have available. The lessons are designed to be offered over a period of
six to ten class sessions throughout the school year. If more time is available, it would
be helpful to students to complete a lesson from another grade level or topic to increase
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understanding.
If time is limited, you are encouraged to use at least one lesson from each of the four
topic areas to provide students a broad, basic understanding of career-related issues
and an opportunity to answer the four core questions as they develop their career goals.
The four major topic areas that address core career development questions are:
Self-knowledge
These lessons help students address the core question: “Who Am I?” They focus on
building a student’s understanding of their interests, values, and skills through
assessments and activities that help them reflect and learn how these relate to the
identification of career goals.
Career Exploration
These lessons help students address the core question: “Where Am I Going?” They
focus on conducting research to help students explore careers and occupations,
understand the job market, and learn how labor market information can help determine
career and occupational goals.
Career Planning
These lessons help students address the core question: “How Do I Get There?” They
focus on developing middle school and high school plans, understanding requirements
for postsecondary options including the military, skilled trades, and college, and creating
a viable postsecondary plan (Career Action Plan) that identifies at least initial
occupational goals and conveys an understanding of the steps necessary to achieve
those goals.
21st Century Skills
These lessons help students address the core question: “How Do I Succeed?” They
focus on helping students identify essential workplace skills, workplace safety issues
they need to be aware of, develop financial literacy skills, and become
media/technology literate for the 21st Century workplace.
Lesson Plan Structure
The following provides an overview of the structure and elements common to every
lesson plan.
Lesson Identification
The first page of each lesson includes the program title, “Career & College Readiness
Lesson Plans”, the lesson plan title, and the topic area.
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Career and College Readiness Lesson Plans
Header
Each page of the lesson has a header which includes the lesson title and the topic area.
Grade Level(s):
This shows the recommended grade level for this lesson; however, in most cases, a
lesson can be used in a variety of grade levels.
Overview
The Overview is a brief description of the information the lesson is designed to convey
and the activities students will undertake to complete the lesson.
Learning Outcomes
The Learning Outcomes describe what skills, knowledge, or abilities, students will
acquire and what products students must complete by the end of the lesson.
Language Objectives
The Language Objectives describe how students will demonstrate their mastery of the
lesson by reading, writing, speaking, or listening.
Standards Alignment
This section describes how the lesson aligns to the various educational standards or
guidelines that will help students become career and college ready, including:

California Common Core State Standards: College & Career Readiness Anchor
Standards [PDF]
http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/documents/finalelaccssstandards.pdf

California Career Technical Education Anchor Standards
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/ct/sf/ctemcstandards.asp

California Standards for Career Ready Practice [PDF]
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/ct/sf/documents/ctescrpflyer.pdf

National Career Development Guidelines [PDF]
https://www.calcareercenter.org/Uploads/Links/nationalcareerdevelopmentguideli
nes2015accessible.pdf

International Society for Technology in Education Standards
http://www.iste.org/standards/iste-standards/standards-for-students

English Language Development Standards
http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/el/er/eldstandards.asp#Standards
Materials
This section lists all the materials needed to teach the lesson.
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Academic Vocabulary
This section identifies key vocabulary that will be used in the lesson.
Activity
This section provides a brief description of the activity(ies) that students will engage in
as they participate in this lesson.
Lesson Procedures
This section provides a sequential set of steps to follow for teaching the lesson.
Estimated Time
This section provides an estimate of how many class periods it will take to complete the
lesson. Most lessons can be delivered in one class session.
Evaluation
This section identifies the student outcomes which can be used to evaluate student
performance.
Additional Resources
This section provides additional resources you may wish to use to enrich your lesson
delivery, extend the lesson activities, or build on the lesson.
Adaptations
This section identifies changes which can be made to enhance the lesson, to use
different activities, or better address the needs of various student populations.
Attribution
This section identifies and credits lesson ideas or topics that were initially developed by
outside sources.
Student Handouts in Spanish
The student handouts in the lesson plans have been translated into Spanish to support
English Learners who might need primary language support. Please note this was done
as an attempt to support the largest student population that speaks a language other
than English; in this case, Spanish speaking.
Career and College Readiness Glossary
A CalCRN Career and College Readiness Glossary is available and provides educators
and students with the key vocabulary and definitions found throughout the lesson plans.
This Glossary is posted with the lesson plans on the California Career Resource
Network Web site.
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California Career Resource Network (CalCRN)
Resources
The CalCRN program was established pursuant to California Education Code Section
53086. Its primary duty is to distribute career information, resources, and training
materials to middle school and high school counselors, educators, and administrators,
in order to ensure that middle and high schools have the necessary information
available to provide a pupil with guidance and instruction on education and job
requirements necessary for career development.
The CCRLP promote use of core CalCRN career and college exploration and planning
resources. Lessons include directions for setting up free accounts so students can save
assessment results, plans, journals, and key content pages. See Naming Conventions
for CalCRN Resources with Student Accounts for suggestions for naming
conventions that are useful when a group of students are establishing accounts.
The California Career Center (Career Center) (www.calcareercenter.org) Web portal
is a comprehensive “virtual counselor” with career and college resources and tools to
help students begin their career journey. The Career Center’s focus is on students, but
it contains hard-to-find resources for counselors, teachers, parents, and guardians. Go
to the Educators section for workshop handouts, parent handbooks, and more. Free
user account feature.
The California CareerZone (www.cacareerzone.org) is a career exploration system
providing four easy-to-use career assessment tools. It connects users with information
on more than 900 California occupational options as well as colleges across the
country. The “Make Money Choices” budgeting tool helps students make the connection
between lifestyle choices and the occupations that can financially support those
choices. Free user account feature. There is a free downloadable workbook (8 pages)
that can be used by educators as an overview of the CareerZone features, it can be
found on the Additional Resources page under the “Decide” option.
Career Surfer is mobile application for beginning career exploration and planning.
Students can explore careers on their mobile devices by viewing snapshots of the more
than 900 occupations detailed on the California CareerZone. Career Surfer is a free
download from the Apple App Store or Google Play.
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Educator Guide
Career and College Readiness Lesson Plans
Naming Conventions for Student Accounts on CalCRN
Resources
Consider creating a naming convention for your class if they are creating user accounts
for a CalCRN resource. A naming convention can be any combination of words, letters,
or numbers which are uniformly applied. The purpose of naming conventions is to make
it easy to manage online resources. Whether or not you use a naming convention to
assist students in setting up online accounts, you must ensure student identities are
protected.
Here are some naming conventions examples:
Usernames:

The student’s first and last initials + the student’s ID number; for example,
js382945.

The student’s first name, last initial, + a consecutive number or class period; for
example, JakeS01 or jakesperiod1.

School’s initials + student first name + student last initial + any number:
AHSjesseS01

Student’s first name + last initial + school mascot + year: JesseSTiger2015

Teacher’s first name + student first name + class name: JohnJesseEnglish

Student’s first name + last name initial + class number + year: JesseS1022015
These are just a few examples; you can use any combination of elements that works
best for you. You may also want to discuss with your students the best way to create
passwords.
Student Accounts
California CareerZone
Students can establish a free account with no foreseeable expiration date. An e-mail
address is not required but is needed to help students if they forget their username or
password. E-mail addresses are not used for any other purpose and remain
confidential.
California Career Center
Students can establish a free account with no foreseeable expiration date. An e-mail
address is required. Before having your students sign up, you may wish to take this time
to suggest they create appropriate usernames for career and college pursuits.
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Educator Guide
Career and College Readiness Lesson Plans
Career and College Readiness Lesson Plans Content
Key: Lesson Title – Topic Area (Number of Class Sessions)
5th Grade

Learning about Myself—Self-knowledge (1 Session)

Name That Job—Career Exploration (1 Session)

What’s the Market for My Labor?—Career Exploration (1–2 Sessions)

Studying For Careers—21st Century Skills (2 Sessions)

Who Am I?—Self-knowledge (1 Session)
6th Grade

Me and My Career—Career Exploration (1 Session)

My Dream Career—Career Exploration (5–7 Sessions)

I Have “M.I.” Strengths!—Self-knowledge (1 Session)

Roadmap to Success—Career Planning (2 Sessions)

An Online Tool I Can Use—Career Planning (1 Session)
7th Grade

Planning for Middle and High School—Career Planning (2 Sessions)

Workplace Skills—21st Century Skills (2 Sessions)

My Future Lifestyle—21st Century Skills (2 Sessions)

Possible Careers—Career Exploration (1–2 Sessions)

Where Am I Going?—Career Exploration (2–5 Sessions)

Where Will I be in the Next 6 Years?—Career Planning (2 Sessions)
8th Grade

Preparing for My Future—Career Planning (2 Sessions)

Transitioning to High School—Career Planning (1 Session)

Exploring Military Career Options—Career Exploration (1 Session)

How to Succeed in Life—Self-knowledge (2–3 Sessions)

Evaluating Web Sites—21st Century Skills (1 Session)

Safe at Work—21st Century Skills (1–2 Sessions)
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Career and College Readiness Lesson Plans
9th Grade

What Skills Do I Need?—Career Exploration (1–2 Sessions)

Gaining By Giving—Career Exploration (1 Session)

Plagiarism is Stealing!—21st Century Skills (1 Session)

Learning the Skills to Pay the Bills—Career Planning (1 Session)

What's the Plan?—Career Planning (1 Session)

Matchmaking: Interests & Careers—Self-knowledge (1 Session)
10th Grade

Choosing My Lifestyle—21st Century Skills (1 Session)

What Matters to Me?—Self-knowledge (1 Session)

What’s a Hot Job?—Career Exploration (1 Session)

I'm Ready to Work—Career Planning (1 Session)

What Are My Options—Career Planning (2-5 Sessions)
11th Grade

What Occupation Interests Me?—Career Exploration (2–5 Sessions)

My Best Resume—Career Planning (1 Session)

Hazards in the Workplace—21st Century Skills (1 Session)

Due Dates, Deadlines, & Decisions—Career Planning (1–2 Sessions)

Ready, Set, Test!—Career Planning (1 Session)

College: Plan Well and Pay Less—21st Century Skills (1 Session)
12th Grade

Telling My Story—Career Planning (1 Session)

Writing Right—21st Century Skills (1 Session)

Etiquette? What’s That?—21st Century Skills (1 Session)

Learn to Reach Out—21st Century Skills (2–3 Sessions)

In the Interview Hot Seat—21st Century Skills (1 Session)

What’s Next?—Career Planning (1–2 Sessions)
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Educator Guide
Career and College Readiness Lesson Plans
Appendix A
Lesson Plan Development
The Career and College Ready lesson plans were developed in response to the
growing awareness of the critical need for students to develop career and college
readiness skills if they are to be successful in life after high school.
The lessons were produced under contract with the Yolo County Office of Education
and are the result of a large, dedicated team of California educators:
Yolo County Office of Education:





Ronda DaRosa, Executive Director
Edgar Lampkin, Program Manager & English Learner Expert
Viola DeVita, Program Coordinator
Andrea Barajas, Program Secretary
Marco Raya, Program Translator
Content Experts:

Lesley Farmer, Librarianship Program/Dept. Chair of Advanced Studies in
Education and Counseling at California State University, Long Beach

Terri Griffin, Capital Region Academies for the Next Economy (CRANE) Career
Specialist, Placer County Office of Education

Lauren Sneed, Educational Liaison, San Mateo County Office of Education

Kathleen Steele, Curriculum Design and Professional Development for Regional
Occupational Center, San Bernardino County Office of Education
Woodland Joint Unified School District teachers piloted lessons and provided content:

Julie Bourdet, Sixth Grade Teacher, Ramon S. Tafoya Elementary School

Angela Davies, English & English Language Development Teacher, Lee Middle
School

Florina Davila, Fifth Grade English Language Learners Project Specialist, Gibson
Elementary School

Shannon McClarin, Teacher on Special Assignment – English Learners,
Elementary School, Woodland Joint Unified School District

Graciela Marlene Molina, Seventh Grade English and Seventh and Eighth Grade
World History, Lee Middle School

Maria Orozco, Teacher on Special Assignment – English Learners, Woodland
Joint Unified School District
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
Vicki Schauer, Sixth Grade Teacher, Ramon S. Tafoya Elementary School

Shannon Suesens, Grades Nine through Twelve AVID Teacher, Pioneer High
School

Heather Torres, Grades Nine through Twelve AVID Teacher, Pioneer High
School

Pat Welty, Sixth Grade Teacher, Zamora Elementary School
Additional content and editing was provided by:

Lori Perez, Coordinator, College and Career Readiness, Yolo County Office of
Education

Devin Merris-Coots, Special Education Resource Specialist, Washington Unified
School District

Angela Alexanian, California Department of Education Summer Intern, University
of California Berkeley
CalCRN staff provided support for the development of the CCRLPs:



John Merris-Coots, Education Programs Consultant
Jesse Stevens, Associate Governmental Program Analyst
Cheryl Reyes, Office Technician
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