5 tutor time tasks

Tutor time is often one of the key delivery slots for your careers education programme in most settings. Ensuring you make the most of this time but using engaging, interactive activities is key to getting students to think about their future and not eye rolling every time they hear the word "careers"!

Tip: Keep 5 boxes in your room with these resources in so tutors just need to collect the appropriate box for the activity they want to run.

Here are 5 tried and tested tutor time tasks to help you make "careers" their favourite tutor time topic...

1. University Prospectus Game - The tutor has a box of university prospectuses and asks students to take one each. They are then set a task to find different courses. This could be a course that interests them, the most unusual degree they can find, a degree that requires a science subject etc - there is no end to the challenges you can set and the "rounds" of this game!

2. Fortune Cookie - Students write a limiting belief or self doubt on a post it.If you have an open class who will want to share, you can have a discussion about these beliefs, why they think them and what they can do to overcome them.  The teacher walks around with the recycling bin and they throw this negativity away. The teacher then hands out fortune cookies with positive messages on.

3. Spaghetti and Marshmallow Towers - Teamwork is a soft skill all employers are seeking. Put this skill to the test by asking students to get into groups to create a spaghetti and marshmallow tower. The tallest one wins, but technically everyone is a winner as they're developing their skills. This sort of task is often used as an assessment for apprenticeship roles.

4. Networking String - Each student is asked to get out a pencil or pen, the teacher ties a piece of string around their pen then throws the string to a member of the class. You can ask them to share something (i.e. a future career they're interested in, their strongest skill etc - keep it positive and easy!). They wrap the string around their pen and throw to the next person. The Teacher then explains how professional networks work; the more people you know, the more opportunities you have available.

5. Top Trumps - Ask students to create a top trump of themselves outlining and ranking their key skills/attributes. There might be a worksheet coming for this in tomorrow's session; 4 free resources!