Teenage Activities

myQuiz

myQuiz is a series of five video and audio games developed to engage young people in career development and planning. myQuiz uses questions and answers to get students to explore career concepts and information in myfuture. The activities provide a fun way to think about career development. There’s room for two players so take a look yourself before you think about asking your child to be your opponent.

Activity 1: Recording Your Career Story

You can help your child by taking time out to think about the ways in which your own career has developed. It could be fun to reminisce and it will help you to understand the events and people that have affected your career. Having mapped your own career you might also find it easier to share your story with your child and to appreciate the influences that are shaping their unique journey.

Follow the instructions below to create a timeline that records the highs and the lows of your life, learning and work journey. The following prompts will help to get you started.

your first career game e.g. playing policeman or teacher
a significant school experience such as winning the spelling competition
a significant family event such as moving house
your first paid work
someone whose job or life fascinated you
your first full time job and why you chose it
someone who influenced the career direction you took
the biggest career change you have had to make so far.

When you have had time to reflect upon your completed timeline, you may like to share your dreams and your experience with your child. It will help them to understand the ways in which the unexpected and planned events in your life influenced your career.

It may even stimulate your teenager to draw their own timeline and to talk with you about the people and situations that are currently influencing their decisions.

(This section has been adapted from the Australian Government’s Australian Career Development Studies)

You can view instructions to create your own vertical timeline at: www.teach-nology.com/web_tools/materials/bigtimeline/

Activity 2: Exploring and Developing Career Awareness through Movie-going

Go to a movie together with a view to later discussing- perhaps over a meal – the different characters, their work/life roles and what implications these might have for work and lifestyle choices.

Sometime before you go to the movie, together with your child, you may like to explore your personal aspirations by working through the Aspirations within the Identifying section of My Guide.

After the movie, discuss aspects of the movie that might relate to your own or your child’s aspirations. You might spark discussion with the following questions:

Has the movie altered any of your ideas about careers?
Did it cast certain occupations in a positive light and others in a negative light?
Was there any activity in the movie that made you say “I want to do that!”
Observe the traits of different characters and discuss what you see as their positive and negative characteristics. What did you identify with and what did you feel distanced from?
From the discussion, you might both decide upon 5 character attributes that are most important to you. Consider how they might relate to your and your child’s career aspirations.

Activity 3: Alphabet Careers

On a long car journey or walk together, pass the time and enhance your career and occupation awareness by playing a variation of the alphabet game.

Take turns in identifying an occupation which begins with each letter of the alphabet. Then discuss three skills or personal attributes that someone who chose this occupation would need to have.

For example, A for Accountant who would need to have:

good mathematical ability
be able to solve complex problems
be able to think logically.

B for Butcher. A butcher would need to:

be courteous and helpful
be good at using tools
have a responsible attitude