Pre-Work

Pre-Work: Building Foundational Understanding

Each module begins with pre-work designed to introduce students to the featured employability skill. This section includes four key traits that break the skill into manageable parts, a Guide and Define activity to establish a shared understanding, “I Can” Statements to set clear learning goals, Relevant Terms to build essential vocabulary, and a Pre-Assessment to help gauge students’ baseline understanding and readiness. This foundational work prepares students for deeper engagement with the skill throughout the module.

Four Key Traits

Each SBCSS Employability Skill module is intentionally divided into four key traits to support strong instructional practice and deepen student understanding. This structure reflects evidence-based teaching strategies that promote skill development in manageable, meaningful ways.

This allows teachers to:

Teach one trait at a time so students can focus deeply without feeling overwhelmed.
Layer learning by moving from foundational behaviors (e.g., being open to new tasks) to more complex workplace applications (e.g., managing stress and using feedback).
Differentiate instruction, as students may already be strong in one trait but need support in another.

Guide & Define

The “Guide and Define” task is designed to provide students with a clear, student-friendly explanation of the skill and its relevance, setting the foundation for meaningful learning and real-world application.

Builds Common Understanding: Students come from different backgrounds and may interpret terms like adaptability, collaboration, or initiative differently. “Guide and Define” ensures everyone starts with the same baseline definition, using accessible language and relatable examples.

Promotes Self-Awareness: By breaking down the skill into what it looks and sounds like in action, students can reflect on their own strengths and areas for growth. It supports self-assessment and helps them answer questions like: “Do I already show this skill? How do I respond when things change?”

Supports Deeper Learning: When students are guided to define a concept in their own words or through examples, it moves learning beyond memorization into active engagement. This primes them for success in later activities where they must demonstrate or reflect on that skill.

Connects to Workplace Language: Many employability skills are tied to professional expectations and interview language. Helping students define and discuss these terms early on prepares them to confidently communicate their strengths to employers.

I Can Statements

The “I Can” statements in each module translate broad employability skills into clear, student-friendly goals. They help students understand what success looks like, take ownership of their learning, and make connections between classroom activities and real-world career expectations. These statements also support self-reflection and can be used to guide goal setting and portfolio development.

Understand what they're learning and why it matters: These statements take complex workplace readiness skills and turn them into personal, actionable goals that students can relate to.

Build confidence and ownership of learning: When students see that they can recognize change, manage stress, or listen to others’ ideas, they begin to internalize these skills as part of their identity and capability.

Track their own growth: “I Can” statements are great for reflection. Students can revisit them after completing activities to self-assess: Have I grown in this area? Can I give an example of this skill in action?

Make real-world connections: Each “I Can” statement mirrors a workplace behavior or career-readiness expectation, helping students understand how classroom learning translates into professional success.

Relevant Terms

The Relevant Terms section introduces key vocabulary that supports students’ understanding of the employability skill in both academic and workplace contexts. By engaging with these terms through discussion and the accompanying worksheet, students build language that deepens comprehension and equips them to communicate their skills effectively in interviews, resumes, and real-world situations.

Pre-Assessment

Each module includes a pre-assessment designed to help students activate prior knowledge and reflect on their current understanding of the featured employability skill. This quick, formative tool allows teachers to gauge students’ baseline perceptions and experiences before diving into the content. It also helps students begin thinking critically about the skill in relation to their own lives, setting the stage for deeper engagement and personal growth throughout the module. Pre-assessments can also be used to inform instruction, guide discussion, and measure progress when revisited later.

The teacher guide, presentations, and worksheets have been adapted from Oregon Employability Skills and tailored to meet the needs of our region.

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