Last Week Before Fall Break - Keep Moving Forward

This week, we have to hit the rewind button on our electronic portfolios.  While Portfoliogen is an awesome resource for creating student portfolios, the restrictions that the free version puts on us just don't provide us the necessary tools to make a comprehensive website.  That said, we are going to work on creating a Weebly page that allows us to really show off what we can do.

In addition to working on our portfolios, we will review our homework assignment in which we take as much of the footage we've made and make sure we have a good amount to include in our intro videos.  We will also work on practicing interviews for jobs at a Goodwill, fast food restaurant, or other side job opportunity.  By the end of the week, we will have completed the following tasks:

• Finalize resume (include QR code to blog)
• Complete practice interview
• Analyze and critique all practice interviews
• Work on a skeleton for our Weebly page
• Blog about our tasks

We will also have some homework over the break.  I have already emailed you about this, so you should know that the homework isn't hours and hours of busy work.  Rather, it is going to prepare you for what we do when we return from our 9-day vacation.

Below is a breakdown of our week:

Monday:
Clear Target: We can create a comprehensive functional resume
During our class time, I will circulate the room and offer suggestions on how each of you can improve your resume.  You must include every element of a resume in your final submission, and this will be the last time you have in class to work on this artifact for the remainder of the semester.  We will obviously re-visit this in February as we prepare for Mock Interview Competition.

Tuesday and Wednesday:
Clear Target: We can analyze and critique an entry-level job interview
In class, each student will sit down and interview with me for a position with either a fast-food restaurant, retail clothing store, or family-owned small business.  I will address the five questions mentioned in a previous blog that every student should be prepared for, as well as other questions that may come up based on your answers to these.  Be prepared to think on your feet and don't get nervous.  This is a time to work on your communication skills so that you're prepared for the real thing.

To assess these interviews, you will fill out the Interview Critique Sheet I shared with you in Sunday's email.  Your performance on the interview, as well as the detail you include in your critiques will determine your grade.

Thursday:
Clear Target: We can create an electronic portfolio
Sure, I know we can't make an entire website in 45 minutes.  I also realize we can't fully understand how to create a website in 45 minutes if we've never even tried to make one in the first place.  Today's class period will be dedicated to working in Weebly on making a skeleton for our electronic portfolio.

Your website should include:

1. A home page with welcome message
2. A short biography in a tab on your site
3. Links to various artifacts, such as
1. Your resume
2. Your blog
3. Your YouTube page (not yet started)
4. Your Intro Video
5. Your (appropriate) Social Media pages
1. This is a little easier if you have appropriate social media pages.  Think about how to address this if you have not yet set up a Google+ account or professional Twitter account

Friday:

Clear Target: We can reflect on previous successes and failures

On Friday, you will have the entire class period to compose a blog entry about your progress this week.  Please dedicate a few sentences (comprehensive paragraph) to each of the following topics:

1. Your self-assessment of your resume
1. Is your resume impressive?
2. What stands out?
3. What kinds of things could you do to make your resume even better?
2. Your performance on your interview
1. Were you nervous?
2. Did you have answers prepared for each question?
3. Did you make a good impression in your interview?
4. Do you think you would get hired based on your performance?  Why or why not?
3. Your experience working on Weebly for the first time
1. Do you have a solid grasp on what your site will look like?
2. Do you think this will help you get jobs? scholarships? college acceptance letters?
3. What have you finished so far?
4. What else do you need to add to this?
4. Are you starting to see the big picture? Do you see how the things you've completed in class will help you separate yourself from other students your age (your contemporaries)?

That's it for this week.  I'll address the homework you need to do next weekend in a brief blog entry and email.  I look forward to seeing you in class on Monday!