Approximate Time Needed:

1 -2 hours

Lesson Summary:

Lesson Objective:

Students will use personal reflection and computer-based research to determine possible career paths, as well as use strong writing techniques to represent themselves and their interests effectively.

Materials and Resources:

1. ECOS Career List
2. Career Shopping List lesson plan
3. Career Search, Career Directory, or Career Strategy
4. New York Times Style Manual or similar book outlining proper format for business letters.
5. Sample General Inquiry Letter
6. Sample Thank You Letter

Helpful Hints:

1. To be most effective, use the Career Comparative Essay and Wanted: A Better Classified Advertisement lesson plans as an introductions to this lesson. Each of these exercises will provide the student with a better understanding of what he/she and the employer are looking for, respectively.
2. Have students read one another's letters to help edit style and expression as well as suggest new ideas.
3. Group students in pairs or threes by career interest to maximize computer resources for research.
4. Teachers need not insist that students write each type of letter. The letter of general inquiry is a good starting point from which to begin teaching.

Activities:

1. Students choose a career that interests them. This may be accomplished by having already completed a Career Search using ECOS.
2. Students list their personal skills, life experience, and general interests that may have prepared them for the career.
3. Review the components of a good business letter. If the technology is available, use a document projector, or LCD internet projector, to go through a sample letter step-by-step to focus the class' attention on each aspect.
4. Students compose:
• a General Inquiry Letter
• a Thank You Letter
5. Encourage students to discover the name of an actual personal contact they may have made while researching their career of interest. If not, have the students create a fictitious "networking friend" in order to write the first letter. Rough drafts and revisions may be assigned for homework, or they may be completed during computer-lab time.
6. Pair students with a partner who will read and edit their letter(s).
7. Have students make corrections to letter(s) after partner has read it.

Evaluation:
Students may be evaluated on the final draft of the letter with rough draft(s) attached.

Possible Adaptations: