Talent Tuesday: Focus on one essential workplace soft skill
per week (communication, teamwork, problem-solving,
etc.). Watch job shadow clips from different CTE fields,
having students track how this skill appears across various
technical careers. Create a running digital board of real-
world skill applications.
What's My Path Wednesday: Students use Pathful's career
profiles to create visual flowcharts showing different paths
to CTE careers. Compare certification routes, technical
school options, and degree paths to demonstrate multiple
routes to success. Great for understanding education ROI
(return on investment).
CTE Month 2026
25 Ways to Explore Careers with Pathful
Daily Quick Activities (15-20 minutes)
Career Mystery Monday: Show clips from CTE-focused job shadow videos (from Career)
without revealing the profession. Students write down observed technical skills, tools used, and
workplace environment clues. Class discussion reveals the career and explores required
credentials. Excellent for building observation and deductive reasoning skills.
Engage students with these career exploration activities designed to showcase the evolving
world of Career & Technical Education. Each activity uses Pathful's resources to highlight
traditional and emerging CTE pathways while requiring minimal prep time.
www.pathful.com | info@pathful.com
Skills Spotlight Thursday: Select one technical skill (welding, coding, patient care, etc.) and
watch different Pathful videos to see how it's applied across CTE fields. Students create "skill
spotlight" cards showing various applications and work environments for each technical skill.
Future Friday: Watch job shadow videos from technology-driven careers (like robotics
technicians, digital manufacturing specialists, or healthcare technology support). Students
identify which traditional technical skills are still important and what new skills these evolving
roles require. Create a running class list of how familiar CTE careers are being enhanced by
technology. Perfect for understanding industry advancement while connecting traditional skills
to modern applications.
CTE Month 2026
Interactive Class Activities (25-35 minutes)
Speed Career Dating: Students rotate through CTE career profiles every 5 minutes, using a
structured form to note key facts about required skills, certifications, and work environment.
Conclude with students presenting their top "match" and explaining why.
Technical Skills Bingo: Create digital or printed bingo cards using common technical skills
from CTE career profiles. Play during job shadow videos, marking skills as they're
demonstrated. Winners explain how the skills they spotted are used in the career.
CTE Cluster Challenge: Teams use Pathful's comparison tools to find unexpected connections
between different careers within CTE clusters. Example: How might an automotive technician
and a surgical technologist use similar skills or tools?
Industry Reflection: Students watch job shadow videos from careers they've seen in their own
community (like healthcare workers, mechanics, construction workers, etc.). They create
presentations comparing what they learned from the Pathful videos to what they've observed
locally - noting similarities in tools, workspaces, and daily tasks. Excellent for connecting career
exploration to students' real-world experiences and observations.
Industry Tools Exploration: Students identify and research professional tools mentioned in job
shadow videos. Create digital flashcards showing how similar tools are used across different
CTE fields.
Extended Learning Projects (35-60 minutes)
Day in the Life: After watching job shadow videos, small groups create and perform 2-minute
skits showing key moments in different CTE careers. Must include accurate technical
terminology and workplace scenarios.
Salary Scenario Planning: Using Pathful’s salary data and the Lifestyle Calculator, students
explore how income, location, and lifestyle choices impact different CTE career paths. Students
create monthly budgets and reflect on tradeoffs between career options.
Technical Skills Lab: Students identify entry-level technical skills from Pathful videos and
create "how-to" guides for beginners. Focus on foundational skills that can be safely practiced
or simulated in a classroom setting.
Career Evolution Timeline: Teams research how specific CTE careers have changed over the
past decade and predict future developments. Create visual timelines showing the evolution
of tools, skills, and job responsibilities.
CTE Professionals Showcase: Using Pathful videos as models, students create engaging
presentations about local CTE careers, including interviews from Pathful’s WBL sessions*, if
possible.
www.pathful.com | info@pathful.com
CTE Month 2026
Assessment & Integration Activities (30-45 minutes)
Interest Assessment Partners: Students take Pathful's interest assessment, then interview
classmates about their results, focusing on CTE-related matches. Create "career pathway maps"
showing how interests connect to specific technical careers.
Skills Portfolio Builder: Students develop digital portfolios highlighting CTE skills and interests
identified through Pathful. Include career research, skill assessments, and action plans for
acquiring needed certifications.
Career Path Mapping: Create detailed visual flowcharts showing education and certification
options within CTE fields. Include time requirements, costs, and potential salary increases with
each credential.
Technical Skills Gap Analysis: Students compare required technical skills from dream careers
with their current abilities. Create specific action plans for developing needed competencies,
including courses, certifications, and practice opportunities.
Experience Tracker Reflection: Students review and organize their logged CTSO activities, Work-
Based Learning experiences, and employability skills using the Experience Tracker. Students
identify patterns in their experiences and reflect on how these align with potential CTE pathways.
Problem-Based Learning Activities (35-45 minutes)
Industry Challenge Solutions: Present real workplace scenarios from job shadow videos or
industry-led projects*. Teams research and propose solutions considering industry regulations,
technical constraints, and best practices.
Future Skills Forecast: Analyze emerging CTE careers to identify future technical skill
requirements. Create presentations about how automation and new technologies might
change traditional technical roles.
Local Industry Connections: Research how different CTE careers impact the local community
and economy. Create impact maps showing how technical professionals contribute to various
sectors.
Culminating Activities (45-60 minutes)
CTE Career Fair: Students create interactive displays about different CTE pathways using Pathful
resources. Include salary data, required skills, and local job opportunities. Invite other classes to
explore the displays.
Innovation Challenge: Teams identify a traditional CTE career and propose how emerging
technologies might transform it by 2030. Create presentations incorporating research from
Pathful's emerging careers section.
Skills Showcase: Students demonstrate and teach basic technical skills learned from their
career research. Create hands-on stations where peers can try simple industry-related tasks.
**All activities can be modified based on class size, time constraints, and available CTE programs. Use Pathful
Explorer's built-in resources to minimize prep time while maximizing student engagement.
*Denotes features limited to Pathful and WBL module.