EMPLOYA ILITY SKILLS STUDENT ATIVITY E PAK · 2017-04-27 · STUDENT ATIVITY E-PAK ZThe skills...

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Croydon Youth Guarantee Scheme Pilot Project 2014

A Preparatory Action funded by the European Commission

EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS STUDENT ACTIVITY E-PACK

‘The skills almost everyone needs

to do almost any job' UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES)

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Employability Skills Student Activity E-Pack

Contents Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 4

Planning .................................................................................................................................................. 6

Employability skills planning tool ........................................................................................................ 7

Finding the right activity ................................................................................................................... 10

Skills Bank .............................................................................................................................................. 13

Activities ................................................................................................................................................ 27

Anybody that…. ................................................................................................................................. 28

Bad interviews................................................................................................................................... 29

Bob, Bob, Bob .................................................................................................................................... 30

Classic interview questions group..................................................................................................... 31

Classic interview questions pairs ...................................................................................................... 32

CV builder .......................................................................................................................................... 33

Employer Expectations ..................................................................................................................... 34

South London employers’ employability skills preferences – top 40 in alphabetical order ......... 35

South London employers’ employability skills preferences - results ........................................... 36

Freeze frames .................................................................................................................................... 37

Greetings game ................................................................................................................................. 38

Handshakes ....................................................................................................................................... 39

Hidden treasure ................................................................................................................................ 40

In the manner of… ............................................................................................................................ 41

Intruders ........................................................................................................................................... 42

Letters of application – analysing adverts ........................................................................................ 43

Recruitment advert analysis and matching template ................................................................... 44

Letters of application – Drafting a letter .......................................................................................... 45

Covering letter template ............................................................................................................... 46

Making an entrance .......................................................................................................................... 47

Making an entrance hand-out ...................................................................................................... 48

My ideal job ……. ............................................................................................................................... 50

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My word! ........................................................................................................................................... 51

Number noise .................................................................................................................................... 52

Online job applications ..................................................................................................................... 53

Handout: 10 tips for on-line job applications ............................................................................... 54

Power play ........................................................................................................................................ 55

Short scenes ...................................................................................................................................... 57

Stand up and be counted .................................................................................................................. 58

Straws team challenge ...................................................................................................................... 59

Talking about work experience… ...................................................................................................... 60

Telephone call skills .......................................................................................................................... 61

Telephone script template ............................................................................................................ 63

10 top tips to help you make the right call ................................................................................... 64

That’s what you think: opinion thermometer .................................................................................. 65

The name game ................................................................................................................................ 66

The working contract ........................................................................................................................ 67

Handout: What is a contract of employment? ............................................................................. 69

The yes no interlude ......................................................................................................................... 71

This week’s guest on ‘life stories’ is… ............................................................................................... 72

To me – to you! ................................................................................................................................. 74

When I went out on Saturday ........................................................................................................... 75

Zig-Zag ............................................................................................................................................... 76

On-line employability skills activities .................................................................................................... 77

Barclays LifeSkills programme .......................................................................................................... 78

Inspiring the future ........................................................................................................................... 84

Pfeg ................................................................................................................................................... 85

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Introduction

The activities in the pack are designed for KS4 to support the development of communication and literacy, and also support the delivery of other employability skills. We are grateful for the work of a number of organisations that have helped to inspire the activities in this pack, notably My Voice London and Equal Voice.

The pack forms part of the Employability Skills Training Package in Croydon based secondary schools that are participating in the European Youth Guarantee Scheme. The package is a part of a new European Progress Funded programme, the aim of which is to support and improve young people’s transition from education to employment and secure a positive destination in terms of an apprenticeship, training or further education on leaving school. The project will complement and support the activities of the London Borough of Croydon’s Skills and Employment Strategy which is underpinning the new Pathways to Employment Agenda.

In July 2013, CapitalSouth Education Business Partnership in partnership with Economic Development Croydon Council was successful in securing funding to test and pilot activities that are effective in improving the transition from school to employment in order to reduce the number of young people leaving school without having secured post 16 destinations.

The intended outcome of the pilot activity is to ensure that all young people are in employment, apprenticeship, further education or other intervention within four months of leaving school. A pilot will test various routes to achieving this objective, with particular focus on those young people who are risk of becoming NEET on leaving school.

The delivery of this project is timely, with the removal of mandatory work-related learning in schools, and the statutory responsibility on schools to ensure the delivery of high quality careers IAG, the time is ripe for trialling and testing innovative solutions to the problem of youth unemployment.

The London Borough of Croydon is also on the cusp of regeneration and ripe for investment in skills. The next five years will see over £3.4bn worth of investment in the development of its town centre bringing new commercial and retail development. The scope and potential for employers to locate and grow in Croydon is unlimited. Yet, to compete internationally, attract and retain business with high growth potential, and create the right conditions for local SME growth, it is imperative that young people in the borough are equipped with the right skills to secure employment with these employers and further afield.

The specific objectives of the Youth Guarantee Scheme are:

To improve the link between schools, public services and employers / industry to ensure that employer demands for employability skills are met

That young people leave education better prepared - with schools being better prepared to engage with employers and industry to deliver employability skills through the existing curriculum

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The bespoke employability skills capacity building programme, developed in partnership with employers and other agencies is designed to enable schools and teachers to:

a) Understand employability skills

b) Adopt teaching methods that would allow them to deliver employability skills/culture in the classroom. In addition to this pack, the capacity building programme includes:

• Employability skills training of trainer programme for teachers and peers with routes to continuing professional development (CPD) and accreditation

• Training for employability mentors

Other elements of the pilot project include:

Young Intern Programme (YIP) - In response to the call for work experience to be flexible and better linked to the labour market, a programme of work experience will be rolled out to year 10, 11 and 12 pupils and students at risk of becoming NEET

Work Credit Scheme & e-passport to employment - A digital employability skills bank and credit scheme

Teacher Internships - An Industrial placement/extended work based learning programme which will take place over agreed times during the academic year for teachers

Education Internships - Employers participating in extended education work shadowing linked to their professional development and career progression; debriefing and evaluation will follow the placement

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Planning

Use the planning tool on the following pages to identify the areas in which you want to take action, and how you will deliver employability skills. The chart ‘Finding the right activity’ will help.

Start with the SkillsBank activity to inspire students to think widely about how they can

record their use of employability skills in their everyday lives.

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Employability skills planning tool

Group/Year:

Employability skills Current coverage in the curriculum

Priority – is further coverage required?

Action

Positive attitude

I am ready to take part

I am open to new ideas

I am open to trying new things

I want to achieve

Self-management

I am ready to accept responsibility

I am flexible about what I do and how I do it

I can manage my time effectively

I want to keep improving my performance in education and work

Team working

I respect other people

I can cooperate with others

I can negotiate

I can persuade

I contribute to discussions

Business and customer awareness

I understand that successful businesses sell a good quality service or product to their

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Action

customers and make a profit from that sale

I understand that businesses need to treat all their customers well.

Problem solving

I can analyse facts and circumstances

I can think creatively about my findings

I can use my creative ideas and the facts to develop solutions that will work

Communication and literacy

I use my reading and writing skills in my daily life

I can produce clear and structured written work

I can talk, listen and question

I adapt the way I speak or write depending on who I am communicating with

Application of numeracy

I can use numbers to solve questions and problems

I use my maths skills in daily life

Application of information technology

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Action

I have basic IT skills

I can word process

I can use spreadsheets

I can organise electronic documents and files

I can use internet search engines

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Finding the right activity

Activity and length (minutes) Ice breaker

Job seeking

Employability skills

Application of IT

Application of

numeracy

Business &

customer awareness


Positive attitude

Problem solving

Self-management

Team working

Anybody that 10 mins Bad interviews 15-20 mins Bob, Bob, Bob 5 mins Classic interview Qs – group 20-30 mins Classic interview Qs – pairs 25-30 mins CV builder Employer expectations 15 mins Freeze frame 15-20 mins Greeting Game 5-10 mins Handshakes 5-10 mins Hidden treasure 5-10 mins In the manner of… 10 mins

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Job seeking


Application of IT

Application of

numeracy

Business &

customer awareness


Positive attitude

Problem solving

Self-management

Team working

Intruders 15 mins Job advert analysis 15 mins Letters of application – analysing adverts 30 mins Letters of application – drafting a letter 30 mins Making an entrance 10-15 mins My ideal job 10 mins My word! 10 mins Number noise 10 mins On line job applications 10-60 mins Power play 15-20 mins Short scenes 20 mins Stand up and be counted 5-10 mins Straws 40 mins

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Job seeking


Application of IT

Application of

numeracy

Business &

customer awareness


Positive attitude

Problem solving

Self-management

Team working

Talking about work experience 30 mins Telephone call skills 40 mins That’s what you think 15-20 mins The name game 5-10 mins The working contract 15-20 mins The yes no interlude 5-10 mins This week’s guest on life stories is… 10-20 mins To me to you 5-10 mins When I went out on Saturday 5-10 mins Zig Zag 15-20 mins

Barclay’s Life Skills

Inspiring the future pfeg

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Skills Bank

20-30 minutes Identifying skills and qualities and creating evidence to use for interview and CV preparation. Especially useful for students who feel that they lack good evidence of their skills and qualities. Give out Skills Bank workbooks or access via PC. Explain that you are going to look at what they do or have done in school and out, and look at how they can talk about them in terms of skills and qualities when talking to employers or at interviews. Each student chooses which sheets to complete – and can do as many as they have time for, completing others later. Supporting the students to put in real and specific examples is key. They are likely to generalise, so they will need individual support - ask questions about what course they did or are doing, exactly where their work experience was, what specific sport are they talking about, and get them to write it down. Getting them to add specifics to any general answers as much as possible is important. Many will find this difficult. You may need to talk to students and help them identify any areas they have done. All will be able to provide an example of a course that they have taken. Most of them would be able to fill in work experience, sport, and school trips. Throughout the exercise and at the end, give lots of praise around the skills the group have, how interesting what they have done is, and what good examples they would have for an interview. Encourage the group to complete a card each time they do something new in the future in order to build up a bank of examples and evidence for when they come to interview.

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SKILLSBANK

A WORKBOOK TO RECORD EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS IN EVERYDAY LIFE

My name:

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Mapping your everyday use of employability skills

This workbook will help you to prepare evidence for applications and interviews. Look at these examples to get some

ideas of how you use employability skills in everyday life.

Employability skill

Includes… I can… Examples of evidence

Positive attitude Readiness to take part I am ready to take part

Openness to new ideas… I am open to new ideas

…and new activities I am open to trying new things

Desire to achieve I want to achieve

Self-management

Readiness to accept responsibility I am ready to accept responsibility

Flexibility I am flexible about what I do and how I do it

Time management I can manage my time effectively

Readiness to improve own performance


Team working

Respecting others I respect other people

Cooperating I can cooperate with others

Negotiating/… I can negotiate

…persuading I can persuade

Contributing to discussions I contribute to discussions


Basic understanding of the key drivers for business success...

I understand that successful businesses sell a good quality service or product to their customers and make a profit

…and the need to provide customer satisfaction

I understand that businesses need to treat all their customers well

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Employability skill

Includes… I can… Examples of evidence

Problem solving Analysing facts and circumstances… I can analyse facts and circumstances

…and applying… I can think creatively about my findings

Creative thinking to develop appropriate solutions

I can use my creative ideas and the facts to develop solutions that work


Application of literacy I use my reading and writing skills in my daily life

Ability to produce clear structured written work


Oral literacy including listing and questioning




Manipulation of numbers I can use numbers to solve questions and problems

General mathematical awareness and its application in practical contexts



Basic IT skills including… I have basic IT skills

…familiarity with word processing… I can word process

Spreadsheets… I can use spreadsheets

File management… I can organise electronic documents and files

…and use of internet search engines I can use internet search engines

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Make your notes here

THINGS THAT I DO IN EVERYDAY LIFE IN WHICH I CAN USE EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

E.g. babysitting, playing in a sports team, organising groups of friends to go to the cinema, creating a website, getting my young brother or sister ready for school, making a meal, getting to school on time, keeping up to date with my homework, learning to play a musical instrument…

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Complete the following pages with your examples…You do to have to complete this all at once – keep it safe and then you can

add ideas as you think of them…

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Positive attitude

I am ready to take part My evidence:

I am open to new ideas My evidence:

I am open to trying new things

My evidence:

I want to achieve

My evidence:

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Self-management

I am ready to accept responsibility

My evidence:

I am flexible about what I do and how I do it

My evidence:

I can manage my time effectively

My evidence:


My evidence:

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Team working

I respect other people

My evidence:

I can cooperate with others

My evidence:

I can negotiate

My evidence:

I can persuade

My evidence:

I contribute to discussions

My evidence:

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I understand that successful businesses sell a good quality service or product to their customers and make a

profit from that sale

My evidence:

I understand that businesses need to treat all their customers well

My evidence:

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Problem solving

I can analyse facts and circumstances

My evidence:

I can think creatively about my findings

My evidence:

I can use my creative ideas and the facts to develop solutions that will

work

My evidence:

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I use my reading and writing skills in my daily

life

My evidence:


My evidence:


My evidence:


My evidence:

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I can use numbers to solve questions and problems

My evidence:


My evidence:

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I have basic IT skills

My evidence:

I can word process

My evidence:

I can use spreadsheets

My evidence:

I can organise electronic

documents and files

My evidence:

I can use internet search engines

My evidence:

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Activities

The group activities follow.

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Employability skills used are marked in bold: Positive attitude Problem solving Self-management Communication and literacy Team working Application of numeracy Business and customer awareness Application of information technology

Anybody that….

10 minutes Icebreaker; also promotes attentive listening Pick a statement that applies to you – anyone else the word applies to moves chairs. Remove your chair, so there is one chair too few in the circle, and stand in the middle.

Explain that, in a moment, you will state something which is true about you by saying “Anybody that -” and then add a couple of examples to illustrate: “– is wearing black shoes”, “- drank tea this morning” etc.

Whoever else in the circle this is true for has to get up and quickly move to another chair which has become free through someone else moving – but they can’t move to a chair right next to where they were, nor can they return to the chair they came from after getting up. In the meantime, you (and subsequent people in the middle) will also try to sit down.

The person left without a chair after each round picks another fact about themselves – give them examples if need be. You might let yourself be stranded in the middle in order to introduce emotion-related facts – “Anybody that has ever lost their temper”, “Anybody that has felt proud about something” etc.

Don’t pressure people to move, even if the group (or a teacher) indicate someone should – sooner or later they’ll want to.

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Bad interviews

15-20 minutes A look at how to improve interview answers; boosts confidence with students evaluating answers from an adult A facilitator should act as the interview candidate, and the interviewer can be played by another adult, or a student. SAMPLE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

Tell us about yourself

Why have you applied for this job?

What are your strengths and weaknesses?

Give an example of how you’ve worked in a team

Give an example of when you’ve been placed in a position of responsibility

Give an example of how you’ve dealt with a problem

Give an example of how you’ve worked under pressure

Where do you see yourself in 5 years’ time?

What interests do you have?

Tell us about your last job

Do you have any questions for us?

The students put their hands up to stop the interview candidate as they go along to give them advice and then re-start the candidate who takes on board the advice. Only allow one or two pieces of advice at a time. They keep going until the candidate can model a very good interview.

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Bob, Bob, Bob

5 minutes An icebreaker that builds confidence in speaking in groups Facilitator stands in the middle of the circle and explains to the group that the person in the middle will say the name of someone in the group three times as quickly as they can. The person whose name is said has to say their own name before the person in the middle finishes saying the name three times. If they succeed, the person whose name they were saying comes into the middle of the circle. If they don’t succeed they try again. Just before you start, ask everyone in the circle to say their name.

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Classic interview questions group

20 - 30 minutes A group exercise exploring interview strategies This can be done as a whole group or divided into groups as detailed below. The discussion should be led and extended by the facilitators into drawing out examples from young people who have had interviews, a general discussion about interview experiences. Divide the group into small groups (max. 4 per group).

Allocate a question to each group.

SAMPLE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

Tell us about yourself.



Give an example of how you’ve worked in a team.

Give an example of when you’ve been placed in a position of responsibility.

Give an example of how you’ve dealt with a problem.

Give an example of how you’ve worked under pressure.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?


Tell us about your last job.


The group must discuss ideas for answering their allocated question, talking about what kind of things people might want to include in an answer to their question. They should come up with general ideas, not personalised examples, for example: “You could answer this question by talking about playing in a football team, or doing charity work, or talking about the different communication skills you have.”

Feedback as a whole group allowing for general discussion and ideas about real experiences in interviews, getting nervous, taking time to answer questions and thinking if needed.

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Classic interview questions pairs

25 - 30 minutes The opportunity to look at ‘the usual suspects’, and work together to find answers Divide into pairs: – Each pair chooses 3 – 4 questions each from the list below. They support each other to make notes and get ideas on how to individually answer the questions. Give them 10 – 15 minutes to do this. Ask them to do one person first and then the other – about 5 – 7 minutes each. Monitor this and if they need more time, they can have it. Tell pairs to practise asking and answering the questions with each other. This is quite informal, but concentrated. They can stop if they get stuck and ask each other for help and then practise again. Give them about 10 minutes and get them to swap half-way through.

Feedback as a whole group allowing for general discussion and ideas about real experiences in interviews, getting nervous, taking time to answer questions and thinking if needed. SAMPLE INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

Tell us about yourself



Give an example of how you’ve worked in a team

Give an example of when you’ve been placed in a position of responsibility

Give an example of how you’ve dealt with a problem

Give an example of how you’ve worked under pressure

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?


Tell us about your last job


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CV builder

An on line cv-building tool

33% of employers say that good candidates sometimes miss out on interviews because their application is not exciting enough.1 So what do employers want to read on a young person’s CV?

38% want young people to give greater prominence to their personal achievements and real-life experience. Recruiters say they want to see evidence of:

Positive attitude

Communication skills and

Team working skills

https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/tools/cv/Pages/default.aspx has a CV

builder tool that will help students to tell their story

1 Study of more than 900 line managers, conducted by ICM Research, for the Brathay Trust, June 2014.

http://www.brathay.org.uk/2014/06/young-advised-give-job-application-personality-boost/

https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/tools/cv/Pages/default.aspx

http://www.brathay.org.uk/2014/06/young-advised-give-job-application-personality-boost/

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Employer Expectations

15 minutes An opportunity for students to think like an employer and so to understand the skills and understanding that they will need to demonstrate in interviews Students work in the circle – they can work with person next to them if they want or can do this individually. Explain that a survey asked 63 employers in South London which qualities they most prized in recruiting young people. Give them the list of 40 attributes and explain that it is alphabetical order. Ask them to agree in their groups which they think are the top 10. Get feedback, and discuss, then tell them the employers’ actual views. Ask them to decide the top attribute. Discuss what surprised them. You might want to discuss the surprising result about qualifications –emphasise that these are important to get, but other qualities are also important. Discuss expectations of employers in terms of young people, ability and willingness to learn etc. Discuss attendance, good to start now to show this for employers. Not too late to start with many of these skills and qualities.

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South London employers’ employability skills preferences – top 40 in alphabetical order

A ‘can-do’ attitude

A desire to learn

A desire to work

Ability to use statistics

Able to organise own work

Awareness of their strengths

Awareness of their weaknesses

Career ambition

Computing skills

Confidence

Creativity & enterprise

Determination to succeed

Experience of the specific occupation

Financial understanding

General experience of work

Good academic qualifications

Good arithmetic skills

Good attendance

Good grammar & punctuation

Good physical fitness

Good self-expression

Good spelling

Good team working skills

Good vocational qualifications

Honesty & integrity

Initiative

Key skills qualifications

Liveliness

Neat handwriting

Politeness

Regular punctuality

Respect for others

Smart appearance at interview/work

Speaking clearly

Strong self-motivation

Telephone skills

Willingness to adapt to the company culture

Willingness to compromise

Willingness to do as they are told

Willingness to listen

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South London employers’ employability skills preferences - results

Results of a 2006 survey and based on 63 questionnaires. In order of preference: 1 Good attendance 21 Willingness to do as they are told

2 Willingness to listen 22 Good grammar & punctuation

3 Respect for others 23 Creativity & enterprise

4 Good team working skills 24 Willingness to compromise

5 Regular punctuality 25 Good academic qualifications

6 Smart appearance at interview/work

26 Good arithmetic skills

7 Honesty & integrity 27 Good self-expression

8 A ‘can-do’ attitude 28 Experience of the specific occupation

9 A desire to work 29 Telephone skills

10 Politeness 30 Computing skills

11 A desire to learn 31 Career ambition

12 Initiative 32 Awareness of their strengths

13 Determination to succeed 33 Good spelling

14 Able to organise own work 34 Good vocational qualifications

15 Strong self-motivation 35 Key skills qualifications

16 Speaking clearly 36 Awareness of their weaknesses

17 Willingness to adapt to the company culture

37 Neat handwriting

18 Liveliness 38 Ability to use statistics

19 Confidence 39 Financial understanding

20 Good physical fitness 40 General experience of work

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Freeze frames

15-20 minutes Looking at body language Each group does a freeze frame of a scene based around a designated emotion – group to guess emotion.

Divide into groups of five or six learners.

Give each group an emotion – for example: Happy, Angry, Frustrated, Excited, Proud, Confident, Surprised, but not upset or sad.

Give each group 3 minutes to create a freeze frame, or still picture, of a situation which predominantly features this emotion.

Towards the end of the 3 minutes, direct groups to get into position, then count down from 10 to 1, after which groups should freeze in their picture. Ask them to relax but stay where they are; freeze each picture in turn, round the room – everyone else must guess what is going on in the picture, and the main emotion it features.

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Greetings game

5 - 10 minutes Can be used as an icebreaker, or to change the pace in a longer session; practices eye contact and handshakes Ask the group to walk around the space on their own, without making any eye contact whatsoever.

Stop them. Now, as they walk, they must look someone in the eye then immediately look away. Start.

Stop them. Now, as they walk, they must hold eye contact very briefly, and then drop it. Start.

Stop them. Now, as they walk, they must ‘greet’ with their eyes and head when they make contact, before moving on. Start.

Stop them. Now, when they make contact, they should stop and shake hands, then move on. Start.

Stop them. Next the group has to shake everyone else’s hand whilst saying “Hello”. Start.

Finally, the group has 30 seconds to shake as many people’s hands as possible, maintaining eye contact and saying “Hello, my name is …”

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Handshakes

5-10 minutes Handshake practice Group exercise – group shakes hands and introduces themselves to at least 5 members of the group.

The whole group stands up.

Facilitator explains that each person must introduce themselves to at least 5 people when the facilitator says GO.

Facilitators model example: Learners are to introduce themselves to each other as follows: -

Shake hands, looking each other in the eye. “Hello, my name is XXX”,

“Nice to meet you XXX, my name is XXX.”

Facilitator says GO and the whole group does this together. Facilitators and staff participate.

OR if time allows, start the exercise as ‘Greetings’; and then develop into handshakes as the last stage.

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Hidden treasure

5–10 minutes

A team working and observational activity

Demonstrate by asking a staff member to stand in the middle of the circle, remove their chair, and ask the circle to close up so that the group are almost knee-to-knee with each other.

Explain to the group that, in a moment, you will ask the volunteer to shut their eyes for a count of 5, during which time you will pass a coin to someone (a 2p is a perfect size, and denomination!). When they open their eyes, the group must already be passing the coin around the circle from fist to fist, and pretending to pass even if they don’t have it, thus making it hard for the volunteer to know who has it. She/he must identify who has the coin at any particular point, and has 2 ‘lives’ to do so. Stress the need to ‘keep passing’, especially if you sense the coin has come to a stop. Hands cannot go behind backs or under clothes.

Explain that, if the volunteer suspects someone, they and the suspect must follow the Accusation Procedure – first the volunteer says ‘Stop’, freezing the action, and accuses the suspect. The suspect must always deny the charge, even if he/she has the coin. If the volunteer believes the suspect, she/he can re-start the game without losing a life – if she/he doesn’t, then she/he must say “Open your hands”. If the coin is there, the volunteer has won. If not, she/he has only one life left to guess.

Either way, at the end of a turn, swap into the middle either whoever ended up with the coin, or another volunteer

With circles larger than 12, try passing 2 coins round, to give the volunteer a better chance.

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In the manner of…

10 minutes A guessing game to increase emotional vocabulary, develop group empathy and lay the foundations for more drama based work The facilitator asks one member of the group to stand in the corner of the room with their back to the group

The facilitator then chooses a particular emotion (happy, sad, angry, jealous, proud, shy etc.) and either shows that feeling on a card or list, or whispers it around the group

The person in the corner then comes back to stand in the centre of the circle and asks the group to mime an action (brushing their teeth, drawing a picture etc.) in the manner of the feeling they’ve chosen (angrily, proudly etc.)

The person can ask the group to perform a maximum of 3 actions (which can be performed without leaving the circle or huge physical exertion), and has 2 chances to guess the feeling. At the end of the turn, ask for another volunteer to guess, and then pick a different feeling.

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Intruders

15 minutes A group activity, in which participants react to suggestions; and develop self-expression and confidence The facilitator asks for 2-4 volunteers to burgle a house. The group gives each burglar a ‘character’ – e.g. suspicious burglar, secretive burglar, paranoid burglar, nervous burglar, confident burglar etc. Each burglar must try to conform to this character for the rest of the activity.

The facilitator establishes with the burglars how they will enter the house, and then the scene begins. At regular intervals, the facilitator ‘freezes’ the actors, and gives them details of a change to their situation, e.g. the suspicious burglar sees the secretive burglar put something in his/her pocket, the paranoid burglar hears a noise from upstairs, etc. Unfreeze the actors, and watch how they react to each other before introducing another change.

In time the facilitator invites suggestions from the audience. After 5-10 minutes invite fresh volunteers to take over the roles.

Activity development:

Keep the tension mounting; and also, on occasion, include an extreme direction, e.g. there’s a sudden earthquake, an army unit arrive outside the house, the nervous burglar faints and the others have to hide him/her before they leave, etc.

Some people may feel self-conscious and cannot contribute to a scene. This is particularly evident when one of the volunteers in the group is being extremely creative or funny. Others can feel that they cannot reach this level and so, retreat into the background. Many people are simply not confident in front of an audience, and this is an entirely understandable challenge that performing creates. It is fine if they are content to simply be part of the scene. Don’t worry if they ‘do their own thing’ instead of following suggestions or characters, unless their ‘own thing’ is disruptive or unsafe.

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Letters of application – analysing adverts

30 minutes

Develops understanding of how to decode a job advertisement

Covering letters are often neglected by candidates so spending time on understanding what the employer is looking for can give students an advantage over those that do not and will improve their chances of securing an interview. The letter will probably be the first document that the employer will see, so students will want to ensure that it gives the right messages. It should make them want to look at the CV or application form. A covering letter gives another opportunity to focus on strengths, experiences and skills. To be in with the best chance of succeeding students should aim to match all of the essential criteria that the employer is asking for and 80-90% of their desirable criteria. Provide students with the job advertisement section of a local paper. Ask them to:

Select an advert

Read it

Re-read it

What is the employer asking for? - essential and desirable criteria

Look for the experience, skills, qualifications

Highlight or underline their key requirements

Use the format below to identify how they match these requirements

Resources:

Recruitment advertisements from newspapers or internet

Recruitment advert analysis and matching template.

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Recruitment advert analysis and matching template

Select a recruitment advertisement for which you wish to apply. Analyse the advertisement for its requirements and write down your evidence to demonstrate how you match them.

Their criteria What I offer - evidence

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Letters of application – Drafting a letter

30 minutes Develops understanding of how to write a letter of application Ask students to draft a covering letter, using the results from Activity 1 and follow the format in the letter template. Resources: Covering letter template

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Covering letter template

Your

address and telephone

number

Name Company Road Town Post code Date Dear Mr/Mrs/Ms etc Application for the post of…………..(job reference number, if applicable) 1st Paragraph: Why you are writing (e.g. I am very interested in the post of… and attach my cv in support of my application. I have summarised below how my skills and experience relate to your selection criteria). 2nd Paragraph: What you offer and how you match their criteria (Taken from your completed analysis and matching template) 3rd Paragraph: A positive close and reinforcement of your interest (e.g. I believe that my cv highlights additional skills and experience that would make me effective in this role and I hope that you will be able to give me the opportunity to discuss this with you. I shall look forward to hearing from you.) Yours sincerely (Sign your name) (Print your name) Enc: cv/application form

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Making an entrance

10-15 minutes Guess feelings and motivations from the way we enter a room – a look at body language and how to make the right first impression Explain to the group that this simple game was developed just through watching people walk into a room and sit down, and what we can learn from that.

Explain that you (or the other facilitator) will pick a specific feeling in your head (e.g. ‘Angry’), and also a reason for why you feel that way – it could be something that has just happened (‘Blamed for something you didn’t do’) or that is about to happen (‘Confront someone who’s been telling lies about you’).

Tell the group you will leave the circle and stand by the wall; once everyone is ready, you will ‘come in’ and sit down on your original chair in the manner of the feeling you picked, but without talking. Once sat down, you will keep the act going for a brief moment; then relax.

The group must then guess first the feeling, then the reason why. Don’t let the guessing go on for ever, and give clues if necessary.

Once you have demonstrated, ask for volunteers – if necessary, give them the feeling and motivation, or let them supply their own.

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Making an entrance hand-out

Even the most experienced people are nervous in interviews, and that is right – it

shows that they are taking the process seriously and care about the result. But

unfortunately sometimes nerves can get the better of us, so here are some top tips.

1. Make sure you are there on time:

Being on time means 10-15 minutes early – some buildings are very large

and you will need time to get to the interview room. Some employers

actually check with reception what time candidates arrive

Plan your route, and then add extra time in case something goes wrong

Look up the address on Google Street View or similar so you know what it

looks like

2. Look confident:

Dress smartly and formally

If you can, stand up while you are waiting as this will make you look more

confident

Make sure that anything you are holding is in your left hand so you are

ready to shake hands with your right. And if you are worried about

sweaty palms, practice in a mirror ways of wiping your hand that the

interviewer won’t see!

If you are standing up, think of your heels. This is a great trick that helps

you to stand more confidently – just think of them, don’t do anything,

and your body will adjust.

If the shakes come on, then tighten the muscles in your legs to stop them

Smile!

3. Use a confident voice:

Don’t speak too loudly or too quietly

Don’t try to put on a formal voice – try to sound relaxed and like yourself

Before you arrive, sing a favourite song to relax your voice and face

Don't rush your words - while you are waiting, breathe deeply in and out

slowly for a few seconds to calm down

Have a bottle of water with you in case your mouth dries up – and refuse

offers of coffee or tea as answering questions and drinking a hot drink is

difficult to combine!

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4. Show you are interested:

When you sit down in the interview, lean very slightly forward on your

chair

Gently hold your own hands to stop you waving them around

Make sure your hands are visible – on the table, or neatly in your lap

Show you have done your research – mention what you have read on

their website, or that you visited one of their shops for example to see

how it operates

5. Tell them what they want to know:

Listen carefully to the questions and reply to what has been asked

Prepare questions, and ask them and be genuinely interested in the reply

Make sure you have covered everything by asking as one of your

questions “Is there anything more that you would like to know about

me?”

6. Be the best version of yourself:

If you are yourself in the interview you will be more confident and

likeable.

However, being yourself doesn’t mean that you have to go out of your

way to give them negative evidence!

Tell the truth

Be proud of what you have achieved

End with a confident handshake and say how much you have enjoyed the

interview

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My ideal job …

10 minutes A look at how to answer the question “why have you applied for this job?” Sitting in a circle, each member of the group says, “My name is…and my ideal job would be….because…” and add at least one reason why it would be ideal for them.

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My word!

10 minutes A listening and concentration activity As in ‘Anyone Who’, remove one chair from the circle and stand in the middle.

Choose a ‘buzzword’ – any word apart from someone’s name or something offensive, e.g. Pineapple, Ferrari, and Hong Kong. Explain that you are going to speak for a maximum length of 10 seconds, and maybe as little as 2 or 3. When the group hears you say the buzzword, everyone must get up and swap seats – as in Anyone Who, they can’t move to a chair right next to where they were, nor can they return to the chair they came from after getting up. In the meantime, you (and subsequent people in the middle) will also try to sit down.

The person left in the middle can choose their own buzzword – you may have to suggest a few.

Make sure everyone knows that they can say as little or as much as they want, up to 10 seconds. This will take the pressure off nervous participants, who may just want to say the word straight away. This is fine!

As follow-on, you can keep using the same buzzword to get people talking about a specific subject – e.g. school, work, money etc.

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Number noise

10 minutes

A creative concentration game, which develops concentration and focus; and establishes working in pairs The facilitator walks around the circle quickly allocating pairs. The pairs face each other.

The facilitator demonstrates with a partner what she/he would like each pair to do:

One of the pair begins by saying ‘1’, her/his partner says ‘2’, the first person replies ‘3’, then the partner goes back to ‘1’, and so forth. Each pair practises this – going no higher than 3.

After one or two minutes, the facilitator stops the group and asks for some volunteers to demonstrate.

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Online job applications

10 minutes – 1 hour

Understand how to apply for a job on-line Many employers now require job applicants to use on-line application forms.

Ask students to work in pairs to consider the steps that they would take to complete an online application, what they would do and what they would not do and feedback to the group

List actions on flip chart/board and compare with the handout (following)

Handout printed sample online application forms for practice

Alternatively, if computers can be made available, search for online application sites, e.g. Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Navy etc. to research different requirements and feedback to group

Resources: Paper for groups to make note, pens, flip chart of board, sample forms/access to computers

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Handout: 10 tips for on-line job applications

1. Registration – have your personal details such as National Insurance number to hand before you register on the site.

2. Make a note of the questions that require difficult or longer answers.

3. Do not draft your application when you are on-line because:

• You might accidentally press submit before you have completed the form

• You might not be able to read it clearly

• There may be word count restrictions

• There might be a power cut

4. Draft your answers to the longer questions in the application first then cut and paste it into the form and spell check it.

5. Print out and read it thoroughly – also check for phrasing and grammar and ask someone else to read it and provide feedback.

6. Make any amendments that are required then check it again.

7. Copy and paste it onto the online application, make a final check and if totally satisfied – click the submit button.

8. Personality Profiling: Some online application forms include a set of multiple choice questions about your likes, strengths and preferences. These can be used to identify whether your preferred style of working fits with the culture of the organization and the skills they require. Answer honestly. There are often repeats of questions/same questions phrased in a different way to ensure that your answers are consistent.

9. Some forms automatically scan for key selection criteria. So make sure that you use key words which are appropriate to the job for which you are applying. Check the original job description and look at the words they use under essential criteria/must have/required skills, e.g. if they state that they need someone with excellent numerical skills, make sure that you refer to your ‘numerical skills’ and give an example in your application of when you have used them.

10. Computer recognition: An automated system will check that you meet the basic requirements that are required by the organization, e.g. qualifications. You should then receive an acknowledgement.

Good luck!

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Power play

15 – 20 minutes

A vehicle for exploring ways of managing situations of conflict, through non-aggressive expressions of power; group discussion about behaviour and reactions; builds self-confidence

The facilitator selects two volunteers, and then asks the group to suggest a simple, everyday situation of conflict between two characters, e.g. a driver returns to a car to find a traffic warden writing out a ticket.

Before the scene starts, the group decides on a number between 1 and 10 for each character. This signifies how powerful that character is. You may want to start with extremes – one character playing 1 (very weak) and the other 10 (very powerful).

The facilitator can freeze the scene at any point, asking the audience if the characters are fulfilling the power required of their numbers - and why, or why not? The facilitator should also invite suggestions about what the characters could do to make them more or less powerful.

Swap the numbers of the characters to identify how this changes the scene. Also try using other numbers suggested by the group.


This is very good for looking at instances of violence and provocation - the different ways of reacting, the different ways of ‘appearing’ powerful. You could look at pictures from the world of sport where there is a confrontation or a player is provoked. Discuss different ways of provocation and the various reactions.

Set up a scenario where someone is provoked, and work towards the provoked person being more powerful than the provoker without the obvious reaction of ‘lashing out’.

You could use pictures of people in different roles, e.g. a police officer, a bouncer, a politician, etc. and discuss what kind of power these people have, or do not have, and where that power comes from.

A similar activity can be played in small groups. Each group has a different situation, e.g. a retail environment in which the characters are for example: a shop owner, customer, thief, store detective. Each person is given a different status number. When a scene is performed, the wider group guesses everyone’s number.

The facilitator can use this activity as a basis for discussing what makes someone powerful in a situation. Is the girl who talks a lot really an 8? Is the boy who doesn’t

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want to get involved in crime really a 2? Is the person who threatens physical violence really a 10?

If the group/groups are having difficulties in concentrating on a scene whilst thinking about ‘power’ you could try a simple ‘status’ game first to familiarise the group/s with ways of appearing more or less powerful. Try ‘Entrances’, where the group/s also have to guess the status of someone who has just entered the room. Alternatively, you could achieve this by looking at pictures.

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Short scenes

20 minutes Handling conflict positively Give each group a situation that could happen in the workplace or a life situation where there could be a conflict or stress:

Someone being late to work

Someone being told they can’t wear their hat at work

Someone returning a mobile phone to a shop

Someone getting a parking ticket

Someone having lost their ticket on a bus or train and the conductor comes along

Someone having got the date wrong to hand in their coursework and being confronted by their teacher

Explain that they are going to do a short 30 second scene (do not call it a role play or acting). Explain that they can choose to speak, not speak, to have one or two characters speak etc. They are going to do a scene about their situation in which things go wrong and the situation ends badly with no one getting what they wanted. They create/ practise their scenes with facilitators supporting the groups individually especially going around at the beginning to re-enforce the idea that some of the group may just play background characters (e.g. passers-by just walking or office workers, typing in the background of the scene). They do this for about 5 – 10 minutes depending on how they get on. The facilitator explains that the group will watch each scene and then give advice on how the characters could have made the outcome of the situation a positive outcome. This happens with each group. Each group creates/practises a second version of their scene where the outcome is positive. They show these to the group.

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Stand up and be counted

5 – 10 minutes An activity that is ideal for delivery prior to a break; it develops concentration and focus, and creates group empathy by requiring the team to think as one Stand up on 20: Tell the group that you are going to count to 20. However, you will only count up to 5 aloud, and will count the rest in your head. Taking into account the speed at which you counted to 5, the group must count at a similar speed in their heads, without physically indicating any kind of beat or rhythm, and stand up (or put their hands up, decide which one) when they reach 20. The challenge is for the group to stand up together.

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Straws team challenge

40 minutes A team building challenge Each team must design and build a self-supporting structure. The team building the tallest will win. Time allowed: 20 minutes Resources: Coloured straws / sellotape / scissors Team responsibilities:

All team members must participate and contribute to the task

Each team must make sure that every team member has a role and a responsibility and each team member must be able to say what their role was

Staff responsibilities:

To keep strict time

To identify the winning tower matching the brief – i.e. the tallest self-supporting structure

To lead a feedback discussion on discuss team work within each team and overall

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Talking about work experience…

30 minutes

An activity looking at how students can demonstrate employability skills used in work experience and part time jobs

Students need to be ready to use real life examples of how they have used employability skills – good and thoughtful use of examples can impress an interviewer.

Explain to students that simply describing what you did is not enough – they need to think about what they have learned.

Use the example of work experience in a department store. A description of this might be:

“I helped to tidy the store, put stock on shelves, and answer customer queries. I used a till and helped with the stock take.”

Using just the answering customer queries element of this, students could instead say:

“I used my initiative by looking out for customers who needed help. I saw one lady who was in a hurry and could not find the product she wanted. I took her quickly to the right section and once she had made her choice helped her to find a till and wrapped the product for her so that she could meet her deadline. Another customer was elderly and did not understand the product range so I explained it to him and helped him to think about which product was best for his needs. This showed my communication and problem solving skills.”

This shows how using examples can make your answers more interesting and memorable.

Advise students to be confident in talking about their achievements – for example if an employer has asked them back for more work or work experience.

Ask students to work in pairs to identify good examples of their employability skills in use in their work experience.

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Telephone call skills

40 minutes

Developing telephone call skills

Explain to the students that when they want to phone a company about the possibility of working for them they should prepare in advance. If they do the groundwork first it will make the task easier and make them more effective communicators. Give the example of call centres – the staff there work to scripts and have to practice how to do this.

Students will need to:

Prepare the words by writing a script of what they want to say, so that they remain focused and get their message across clearly.

Practice reading it out loud to themselves. This will enhance their telephone skills. When they have done this a few times and are comfortable with it, ask someone they trust such as a friend or family member to listen to them and then give honest feedback about what they say and the way that they say it.

Choose the voice. The quality of your voice is very important. Students can try varying the tone as this can add emphasis to what you are saying and it makes it more interesting to the person who is listening to you. You may still feel nervous even though you have been practicing; and when we are nervous our voices sometimes become a bit higher/squeakier and faster, so be careful to speak at a moderate volume and slightly slower than normal.

Sound confident, professional, enthusiastic and pleasant.

Be positive. Imagine that the call will go well. It might help to be standing when they make the call – head up, shoulders back etc. A positive stance may give you added confidence; and it always helps to smile when you are speaking on the phone – it makes you sound more warm and friendly.

Two quick voice activities:

Students to practice in pairs saying hello in a variety of voices and to give feedback about how each other sounds. Demonstrate to them a variety of voices, effective and inappropriate to start them off.

Once they know the voice or voices that they might want to use, ask them to practice in their pairs smiling and not smiling when they speak to hear the difference.

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When they do phone, they may not get through to the person that they want to speak with straight away, possibly being transferred from the receptionist who answers the phone initially, to an assistant or secretary and then perhaps onto a deputy. These people are ‘gatekeepers’ – the ones who decides who gets through. Tell them to be patient. It is sometimes part of those jobs to screen calls and deal with them rather that passing them on to their line manager. So they should be friendly, but persistent.

Students need to be ready to respond to any barriers that they might encounter for example:

If the person they want is not available, then find out what time would be better to call back to speak with them.

They might ask what is the nature of the call i.e. why are you phoning? Be ready to explain.

Using the telephone script template, students should draft a script and practice with a partner.

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Telephone script template

Subject/focus What I plan to say

Introduction to receptionist/gatekeeper

Introduction to the decision maker – the person you really want to talk with Tell them your name and what prompted you to call e.g. you saw an advert, or had read an article about them

Your reason for calling E.g. you want to find out more –do they have any job opportunities, apprenticeships, internships? Or you want to draw upon their knowledge and experience of that industry

Capture and develop their interest Give a brief summary of your interest in their company, your strengths and what relevant qualifications/skills/experience you have

Next steps E.g. your request for a meeting – suggested days and times. What would be convenient for them?

Confirm what you have agreed E.g. when you are going to meet- or if you have to call again to arrange a meeting. Thank them for the time they have taken to discuss this with you today.

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10 top tips to help you make the right call

1. PREPARATION: Have the name of the person you want to speak with written

down; and your script and CV ready, plus any notes about the company and what you have to offer them. Make the call when you know that you won’t get any interruptions.

2. POSITIVE THINKING: Before you make the phone call make sure that you are confident by imagining the call going well. Your voice and attitude will be positively influenced by thinking positively!

3. ASK for the person with whom you want to speak to by name

4. EXPLAIN the reason for your call

5. QUESTION them about the company and take notes of the answers

6. DEMONSTRATE that you match the company’s needs. These may be ones that you had anticipated or new ones that arise during the course of your conversation.

7. REQUEST a meeting to discuss possible opportunities.

8. ANTICIPATE objections – acknowledge them and respond to them in a positive way.

9. KEEP the door open by thanking them for their time and help even if they do not agree to meet with you. If you are not able to arrange a meeting ask them where they would normally advertise when employment opportunities become available in their company.

10. REMAIN POSITIVE: Even if you have not arranged a meeting on this occasion you have made the call and will have gained experience for your next call.

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That’s what you think: opinion thermometer

15-20 minutes

Using provocative statements and structured argument to create a discussion

Statements: use two or more of the following

Fast food should be banned

Money is the most important thing

Schools should have rules

Indicate three areas along an imaginary line. Agree, Not Sure and Disagree.

Tell the group you are about to give them a statement which some will agree with, some won’t, and some won’t be sure what they think. After they’ve had a moment to think about it, you will say ‘go’ and each person will move to the area which relates to how they feel about the statement.

Once this has happened, you must create a fast, structured discussion with you as the ‘hub’ (the other facilitator may have to play devil’s advocate if no-one has gone to either ‘Agree’ or ‘Disagree’). Ask someone why they agree or disagree with your statement, then take it across to the other side for a response. Don’t allow people to shout across at each other – all discussion should go through you. Imagine you’re holding a microphone!

Keep offering people the opportunity to move to another area, or group, if they have been convinced by an opposite point of view. The Agree / Disagree camps should both want to entice the ‘Not Sures’ over to their side.

One statement should not go on for too long, - try another before interest wanes. The object isn’t to find a right answer, rather to provoke viewpoints and contributions.

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The name game

5 – 10 minutes

An icebreaker that encourages speaking in front of the group

Tell the group that, starting with you and going round the circle, everyone must say their first name and one thing about their name.

Give them some examples, e.g. Named after a relative, a famous person, your name means something, you wish you were called something else etc. If they can’t think of anything, they should just say whether they like or dislike their name.

Start going round the circle – people can say as much or as little as they want.

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The working contract

15 - 20 minutes Emphasises mutual nature of roles and responsibilities in the employer: employee contract

Divide learners into small groups (max. 4 learners per group) to fill out working contract (pg. 9)

Introduce activity – learners to fill in working contract with ideas of what an employer is responsible for doing to ensure that the employee can do the job and what the employee is responsible for doing to make sure they do the job well.

Facilitators support groups to fill out contract.

Feedback as a whole group. Group take notes in their contract if they want to complete it.

Throughout the exercise, extend the discussion with follow-up questions. An example of points to ask about/draw out is whether it is appropriate for an employer to ask you to follow a dress code? This can lead to a very interesting debate on the topical issues of is it okay for an employer to ask you to take out a piercing, cover a tattoo? You can lead this discussion, introducing points around freedom of choice, appropriate and different dress/behaviour for different situations, if a job requires things you really are not prepared to compromise on, do you need to think about that before applying for the job. You can discuss times when dress code is important in terms of safety, or in terms of shop image (is this appropriate or fair?) etc.

You can use the handout ‘What is a contract of employment?’ to supplement the

discussion.

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The working contract

To ensure that the employee can do the job, the employer is responsible for:

To make sure they do the job well, employees are responsible for:

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Handout: What is a contract of employment?

There is always a contract between an employee and employer. You may not have anything in writing, but a contract will still exist. This is because your agreement to work for your employer and your employer’s agreement to pay you for your work forms a contract. Your employer does have to give you a written statement within two months of you starting work and this must contain certain terms and conditions.

A contract gives both you and your employer certain rights and obligations. The most common example is that you have a right to be paid for the work you do. Your employer has a right to give reasonable instructions to you and for you to work at your job. These rights and obligations are called contractual terms.

The rights that you have under your contract of employment are in addition to the rights you have under law, such as, for example, the right to a national minimum wage and the right to paid holidays.

Generally, you and your employer can agree to whatever terms you wish to be in the contract, but you cannot agree to a contractual term which gives you less rights than you have under law.

A contract of employment will usually be made up of two types of contractual terms. These are ‘express terms’ and ‘implied terms’.

Express contractual terms

Express terms in an employment contract are those that are explicitly agreed between you and your employer and can include:

Amount of wages, including any overtime or bonus pay

Hours of work, including overtime hours (there is a legal limit for most employees on the maximum number of hours they can work per week)

Holiday pay, including how much time off you are entitled to (nearly all full-time workers are entitled by law to 28 days' paid holiday - they may be entitled to more under their contract; part-time workers are entitled to a pro rata amount)

Sick pay

Redundancy pay

How much warning (notice) the employer must give you if you are dismissed

The express contractual terms may not be in one written document, but may be in a number of different documents; they may not be written at all

The express terms may be found in:

The job advertisement

A written statement of main terms and conditions

Any letters sent by your employer to you before you started work

Anything you were asked to sign when or since you started work

Instructions or announcements made by your employer on a notice board at work

An office manual or staff handbook

Payslips

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You may not have possession of all the relevant papers. You may be able to get copies from your Personnel Department, foreman, or trade union representative.

You should always keep any papers given to you by your employer. Because a contract will still exist even if there is nothing written down, anything which was said to you by your employer about your rights, and anything which you agreed verbally, should be recorded.

If you are an employee who does not have a written contract, you should consult an experienced adviser, for example, at a Citizens Advice Bureau.

Implied contractual terms

Implied terms in an employment contract are those which are not specifically agreed between the employer and employee.

Implied terms are:

General terms which are implied into most contracts of employment

Terms implied by custom and practice

Terms from agreements made with the employer by a trade union or staff association

General implied terms

The following duties and obligations will usually be implied into any contract of employment:-

The employee and employer have a duty of trust to each other. This means, for example, that if you give your employer’s industrial secrets to a competitor, you will have broken an implied contractual term of trust

The employer and employee have a duty of care towards each other and other employees. This means, for example, that the employer should provide a safe working environment for the employee and that the employee should use machinery safely

The employee has a duty to obey any reasonable instructions given by the employer. There is no legal definition of reasonable, but it would not be reasonable to tell an employee to do something unlawful, for example, a lorry driver should not be told to drive an uninsured or untaxed vehicle

Your employer has a duty to pay your wages and provide work. As long as you are willing to work, your employer must pay your wages even if no work is available, unless your contract says otherwise

From: http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/england/work_e/work_rights_at_work_e/contracts_of_employment.htm#h_what_is_a_contract_of_employment

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/england/work_e/work_rights_at_work_e/contracts_of_employment.htm#h_what_is_a_contract_of_employment

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/england/work_e/work_rights_at_work_e/contracts_of_employment.htm#h_what_is_a_contract_of_employment

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The yes no interlude

5 – 10 minutes An excellent ice-breaker, designed to involve everyone and develop group empathy One person is chosen by the facilitator.

One at a time, the rest of the group asks that person as many questions as possible in one minute.

In that time he/she is not allowed to say “yes”, “no”, “yeah”, “nah” or any other similar words which indicate “yes” or “no”.

At the end of the minute swap to someone who has not yet had a go.

Facilitator should monitor the questions being asked:

Questioners should invite a yes/no answer (e.g. Are you 16?) Rather than a factual one (e.g. what trainers are you wearing?)

Also, offensive questions (are you an idiot?) will usually provoke silence and resentment of the game, and are not allowed

Encourage the group to keep the questions coming quickly, thus keeping the game light and fun

If necessary, limit the amount of times someone can respond in the same way (e.g. Whatever! ….whatever!)

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This week’s guest on ‘life stories’ is…

10 - 20 minutes Developing group empathy and boosting individual self-esteem and confidence by looking at what people consider ‘success ‘ to be, and the ways it can be achieved The facilitator asks for a volunteer from the group, and asks him/her what they would like to be famous for in 10 years’ time, e.g. music, acting, sport, politics, cooking or plumbing. They might also want to pick a different name for themselves.

The facilitator asks everyone else to imagine that they are the studio audience for a prime-time chat show. The next guest (the volunteer) is the main reason that most of them have come; and when he/she walks out/comes down the staircase to be interviewed; they have to ‘go wild’ with applause, whooping and cheering etc. The facilitator then asks the volunteer to stand to one side in readiness for entering, and assumes the role of interviewer, building up and introducing the guest to the audience.

One welcomed and seated, the ‘interviewer’ makes the guest feel at ease, thanking him/her for appearing on the show and commenting on their immense popularity, before starting the questions. These questions should be related to feelings and opinions, rather than becoming too specific in terms of knowledge about their chosen profession, e.g. questions for a celebrity plumber might include, “How do you feel when people call you “the finest plumber in Britain”?”, “Who was the worst celebrity customer that you have ever had”? Or “What’s the best thing about being a famous plumber”? Questions to avoid might be, “Tell us about the most difficult job you ever did” or simply “Tell us about your job”, because both questions presume that the volunteer knows something about plumbing. If, however, the facilitator knows in advance that they do know something about plumbing, then the questions could reflect this.

The ‘interviewer’ then asks the guest to reflect on their past – perhaps a time of uncertainty, when the guest was younger and unsure of direction – maybe there were problems at school or in his/her life which had to be overcome. The facilitator is trying to provoke a response from the guest about how certain challenges were met and overcome, either by hard work, self-discipline, a change in attitude, or one single event which set this person on the course which led to fame and fortune. The ‘interviewer’ can finish by asking what advice the guest has for anyone who wants similar success in this field, and might be facing similar challenges to overcome.

The ‘interviewer’ thanks the guest and the audience applaud. Another volunteer can be chosen, depending on time and audience attention span.

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Accept questions from the audience at the end of the interview

Encourage volunteers to use their own interests as a basis for choosing what they want to be

Let one of the group be the interviewer

It doesn’t matter how much or how little the guest says – what matters, is that the guest is being interviewed in front of an audience. The facilitator’s role is to help the guest gain confidence, express themselves, open up, etc. One of the best ways to do this is by starting slowly, building the ‘world’ of the guest e.g. “You’re an actor at the top of your profession. You’re paid £20 million a film. You travel all over the world”, etc.; and by careful, precise questioning, e.g. “What kind of films would you like to make next?” Instead of, “What’s acting like”? Allow the interview to flow. If the guest is struggling on a particular question, rephrase it or move on. Awkwardness will make the audience restless, which in turn will unsettle the guest, so energy must be maintained. Further question suggestions:

How do you feel when people call you…?

How has life changed for you now you’ve become successful?

What challenges did you face becoming a ….?

What advice could you give to others wanting to reach your level?

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To me – to you!

5 – 10 minutes This is a fun game, which develops group empathy, quick thinking, focus and concentration and eye contact The facilitator sends an “Oi” around the circle, encouraging everyone to look at the person next to them that they are sending it to, and working towards sending it as fast as possible.

The facilitator then tells the group that if they want to stop the “Oi” and send it back the other way, they can say “Easy”.

Once this has been established the facilitator can add “Take it”, which sends the “Oi” across the circle to someone you have made eye contact with.

So once a person has the “Oi”, he/she can decide to send it either way round or across the circle. Gradually increase the speed.

If the group feel comfortable with this, it can be developed as follows:

The facilitator can stand up and add actions.

Have two “Ois” travelling at once.

Add “Give it”, which throws the “Oi” into the middle of the circle – it can then be reclaimed by anyone, by saying “Oi” in the direction it will travel, or “Take it” to someone across the circle.

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When I went out on Saturday

5-10 minutes Develops memory & concentration - contributes to presentation skills Facilitator begins by saying “When I went out on Saturday I took a …” and then chooses an object, e.g. mobile phone.

The next person in the circle must say, “When I went out on Saturday I took a mobile phone and a …” and add another object.

It continues around the circle until everyone has added an object.

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Zig-Zag

15-20 minutes Communication in a group context - a group activity with observers; group organises itself to prevent ‘walker’ sitting in a chair

Ask the group to form an audience, and set out a zig-zag line of 5-6 chairs, facing in different directions, opposite them.

Ask for enough volunteers to fill the chairs; then ask one of them to stand on the opposite side of the room to where their now-empty chair stands.

Explain that this person is the ‘walker’ – their objective is to sit down in an empty chair. They will walk slowly (toe-to-heel if necessary), towards an empty chair, and someone from the rest of the group must get up from where they are and sit down on this chair, thus preventing them from sitting (these people are allowed to walk quickly, but not run). The walker then walks towards the chair that this person has just left, and someone else from the group must prevent them sitting in the same way. When the walker manages to sit, the turn is ended and another walker is selected.

Make sure you give them the ground rules at the start: No moving of chairs is permitted, no running, and you cannot return to your chair even if you leave it by a couple of inches – you must find another chair.

Encourage an audience to think of strategies to help the group communicate or prevent the walker from sitting quickly, and discuss these quickly in the breaks.

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On-line employability skills activities

The following pages set out some of the employability skills activities that are

available on-line.

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Barclays LifeSkills programme

www.barclayslifeskills.com

LIFESKILLS OVERVIEW

About LifeSkills

LifeSkills is a major new programme designed to give young people access to the advice, support and opportunities they need to get ready for the world of work. It aims to improve the employment prospects for young people through education resources, online content, workshops, events and work experience. LifeSkills will be the starting point to a better future.

LifeSkills will equip young people with the key money, people and work skills, careers support and experience they need to get ready for the world of work.

These resources are designed to help every student aged 11–19. LifeSkills builds their knowledge and confidence to get the job they want and develops the skills employers seek most in young people.

How it works

LifeSkills includes curriculum-linked teacher-led activities, interactive online content, school workshops led by Barclays volunteers and work experience opportunities for students. The LifeSkills website will host a range of interactive resources, top tips and guides, plus useful films and clips to inspire your students. The programme is divided into three modules, which are:

People Skills

People Skills for 11–16 year olds, introduces the skills employers seek and helps students understand and articulate them. It aims to develop their self-awareness, self-confidence and personal presentation, making a positive difference to their career prospects.

The knowledge and skills students gain in People Skills complement what they explore in Work Skills. They can reflect on their strengths, interests and personality, explore their journey towards work and learn how to sell their skills in CVs, applications and interviews.

Work Skills

Work Skills is targeted at students aged 11–19 who are thinking about their next steps. It introduces the idea that they are beginning a journey that will take them to their future in the workplace, during which they need to develop their self-

http://www.barclayslifeskills.com/

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awareness and career knowledge and understanding, learning to sell themselves effectively in words and in person.

The knowledge and skills students gain in Work Skills helps them reflect on the key skills that employers most seek and which they’ll need to succeed in work. It will look at how students use these already and how they can develop and strengthen each life skill, ready to impress at interview and thrive at work.

Money Skills

Money Skills for 11–16 year olds, help students reflect on how they feel about money and how they make decisions about spending or saving. The activities help students build the financial knowledge, skills and understanding they need to stay in control of their finances and plan ahead for their future needs.

The knowledge and skills students gain in Money Skills complement what they explore in People Skills and Work Skills, and will help them manage and make the most of the money they earn as they put their skills and abilities to work.

Teacher-led activities

Each curriculum-linked, teacher-led activity includes notes for teachers, student activity sheets, presentation slides and a take-home summary for students, with hints and tips for success. These activities are designed to be delivered by a PSHEE or careers teacher, but enough support has been provided to ensure they could also be delivered by a form teacher or other teachers.

Students access the programme at school by taking part in teacher-led activities introducing the key ideas in each theme, equipping students with a foundation of knowledge and understanding. Volunteer workshops give detail and real-world examples, building students’ knowledge, skills and confidence. Schools can apply for free volunteer workshops that support the teacher activities by visiting barclayslifeskills.com. Alternatively, teachers can also deliver the workshops themselves by downloading the resources at barclayslifeskills.com

Applying for work experience

Students aged 14-17 are eligible for LifeSkills work experience in two ways:

• Upon completion of two hours of each teacher-led module (Work, People and Money Skills), this can be any combination of lessons/workshops or homework tasks, or;

• By earning 250 or more points through the LifeSkills website and print out progress to demonstrate to their teacher

The eligibility criteria must be completed prior to the start of their placement. This preparation will ensure students make the most of their placement and will provide better employees for the businesses involved.

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WORK SKILLS OVERVIEW AND CURRICULUM LINKS

Work Skills is targeted at students aged 11-19 who are thinking about their next steps. It introduces the idea that they are beginning a journey that will take them to their future in the workplace, during which they need to develop their self-awareness and career knowledge and understanding, learning to sell themselves effectively in words and in person.

The knowledge and skills students gain in Work Skills helps them reflect on the key skills that employers most seek and which they’ll need to succeed in work. It will look at how students use these already and how they can develop and strengthen each life skill, ready to impress at interview and thrive at work.

The Work Skills activities for KS4 are:

Activity One: Get to know yourself (Age range: 11-14 and 14-16). Shows students that good career choices lie at the point at which their strengths, interests and personality come together

Activity Two: The career journey (Age range: 11-14 and 14-16). Helps students prepare to make the transition to employment, using their time to plan ahead and identify the choices they’ll need to make

Activity Three: Sell yourself (Age range: 14-16). Helps students understand the purpose of a CV and explore ways in which they can stand out from the crowd

Each curriculum linked, teacher-led activity includes notes for teachers, student activity sheets, presentation slides and a take-home summary for students, with hints and tips for success. These activities are designed to be delivered by a PSHEE or careers teacher, but enough support has been provided to ensure they could also be delivered by a form teacher or other teachers. Students access the programme at school by taking part in teacher-led activities introducing the key ideas in each theme, equipping students with a foundation of knowledge and understanding. Volunteer workshops give detail and real-world examples, building students’ knowledge, skills and confidence. Schools can apply for free volunteer workshops that support the teacher activities by visiting barclayslifeskills.com. Alternatively, teachers can deliver the workshops themselves by downloading the resources at barclayslifeskills.com.

Students aged 14-17 are eligible for LifeSkills work experience in two ways:


• By earning 250 or more points through the LifeSkills website and printing out their progress to demonstrate to their teacher


Work Skills curriculum links England are:

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PSHEE Personal Wellbeing KS4 1.1 a – c; 2.1a – c; 2.2a; 2.3 c

PSHEE Economic Wellbeing and Financial Capability KS4 1.1a – c; 1.2 a, c; 1.3 a – c; 1.4a; 2.1a, c, d; 2.3 a – i;

Students will also be able to develop the full range of Personal, Learning and Thinking Skills (PLTS).

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MONEY SKILLS OVERVIEW AND CURRICULUM LINKS

Money Skills helps students learn to manage their money now and identify good financial habits ready for the future. The Money Skills activities are:

• Activity One: Money personality quiz (Age range: 11-14) To make students aware of different approaches to situations that require a financial decision

• Activity Two: Making ends meet (Age range: 11-14) Helps students identify sensible spending habits based on their needs and wants

• Activity Three: Who wants to be a squillionaire (Age range: 14-16) Introduces students to a number of personal finance terms and concepts using a light-hearted quiz

• Activity Four: Needs and wants (Age range: 14-16) Introduces the concept of needs and wants and discusses how these might change as we move through different life stages

Each curriculum linked, teacher-led activity includes notes for teachers, student activity sheets, presentation slides and a take-home summary for students, with hints and tips for success. These activities are designed to be delivered by a PSHEE or careers teacher, but enough support has been provided to ensure they could also be delivered by a form teacher or other teachers. Students access the programme at school by taking part in teacher-led activities introducing the key ideas in each theme, equipping students with a foundation of knowledge and understanding. Volunteer workshops give detail and real-world examples, building students’ knowledge, skills and confidence. Schools can apply for free volunteer workshops that support the teacher activities by visiting barclayslifeskills.com. Alternatively, teachers can deliver the workshops themselves by downloading the resources at barclayslifeskills.com Students aged 14-17 are eligible for LifeSkills work experience in two ways:


• By earning 250 or more points through the LifeSkills website and printing out their Progress to demonstrate to their teacher

The eligibility criteria must be completed prior to the start of their placement. This preparation will ensure students make the most of their placement and will provide better employees for the businesses involved. Money Skills curriculum links England: PSHEE Economic Wellbeing and Financial Capability

KS4 1.1a; 1.2 b, d; 1.3 b; 1.4 b; 2.2 a; 2.4 a – d Range and content: h, i, j Curriculum opportunities: a, d, g, k

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PEOPLE SKILLS OVERVIEW AND CURRICULUM LINKS

People Skills introduces the skills employers seek and helps students understand them. It aims to develop their self-awareness, self-confidence and personal presentation, making a positive difference to their career prospects. The People Skills activities are:

• Activity One: What skills do I need? Introduces students to the key personal skills employers seek in young people and which will help them to get the most from life and work

• Activity Two: Using my skills Helps students identify how skills are often used in the workplace and practice communicating these skills

• Activity Three: Building my skills Helps students gain a realistic understanding of how they currently use key skills and helps them find examples which will prove their ability

Each curriculum linked, teacher-led activity includes notes for teachers, student activity sheets, presentation slides and a take-home summary for students, with hints and tips for success. These activities are designed to be delivered by a PSHEE or careers teacher, but enough support has been provided to ensure they could also be delivered by a form teacher or other teachers. Students access the programme at school by taking part in teacher-led activities introducing the key ideas in each theme, equipping students with a foundation of knowledge and understanding. Volunteer workshops give detail and real-world examples, building students’ knowledge, skills and confidence. Schools can apply for free volunteer workshops that support the teacher activities by visiting barclayslifeskills.com. Alternatively, teachers can deliver the workshops themselves by downloading the resources at barclayslifeskills.com Students aged 14-17 are eligible for LifeSkills work experience in two ways:


• By earning 250 or more points through the LifeSkills website and printing out their Progress to demonstrate to their teacher


People Skills curriculum links England PSHEE Personal Wellbeing

KS4 1.1 a – c; 2.1a – c; 2.2a; 2.3 c PSHEE Economic Wellbeing and Financial Capability

KS4 1.1a – c; 1.2 a, c; 1.3 a – c; 1.4a; 2.1a, c, d; 2.3 a – i; Students will also be able to develop the full range of Personal, Learning and Thinking Skills (PLTS).

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Inspiring the future

http://www.inspiringthefuture.org/about.aspx

Inspiring the Future is backed by leading organisations representing the fields of education and employment. These include the main teaching unions and employer representative bodies.

It is being coordinated by the Education and Employers Taskforce, an independent charity.

Inspiring the Future is supported by employer and workforce representative bodies including: British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), Business in the Community (BiC), Confederation of British Industry (CBI), Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), Institute of Directors (IOD), Federation of Small Business (FSB), UNISON, GMB and Trades Union Congress (TUC).

The initiative is also supported by all the main UK teaching unions and headteacher associations including Association of School and College Lecturers (ASCL), Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), NASUWT, National College of School Leadership (NCSL) and National Union of Teachers (NUT).

The Government is supporting Inspiring the Future which was highlighted in the government's 2011 Social Mobility Strategy Opening Doors, Breaking Barriers as a way to 'make a difference to raising aspirations and helping people to make informed choices about jobs and careers.'

The Government has committed to encourage all civil servants to participate in the scheme by volunteering in their local schools and colleges.

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Pfeg

http://www.pfeg.org/

pfeg (Personal Finance Education Group) helps schools to plan and teach children and young people how to manage their money now and in the future.

pfeg’s mission is to support education providers in giving children and young people the skills, knowledge and confidence to manage money. They do this by:

Influencing policy and practice Supporting educators in teaching money matters with confidence Providing education resources that will engage and inspire

pfeg offer

Teaching resources, video clips and case studies – free to order or download The pfeg Quality Mark - an assessment process to ensure the quality of

financial education resources being produced by organisations external to pfeg; it is a trusted sign of excellence amongst teachers

My Money Week - an annual themed activity week for schools across England pfeg Advisory Service – telephone and e-mail support from experienced

education consultants Termly e-newsletter - sent to over 30,000 people and gives information on

all the latest resources and financial education initiatives - sign up to the e-newsletter

Use Your Expertise – a service that trains volunteers from the financial sector and matches them with schools to add value to personal finance education

Innovative projects - that aim to increase the quantity and quality of finance education

http://www.pfeg.org/

http://www.pfeg.org/resources

http://www.pfeg.org/resources/mymoneyweek

http://www.pfeg.org/services/pfeg-advisory-service-free-tailored-educational-advice

http://www.pfeg.org/about-us/receive-updates

http://www.pfeg.org/about-us/receive-updates

http://www.pfeg.org/services/volunteering-schools

http://www.pfeg.org/projects-funding

EMPLOYA ILITY SKILLS STUDENT ATIVITY E PAK · 2017-04-27 · STUDENT ATIVITY E-PAK ZThe skills...

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