Why we have produced this document

We empower young people to prepare for successful futures by working collaboratively with supporters both in industry and education. We know that you want to engage with young people, but that your time is precious – you know your industry; we know young people.

We hope this document will provide you with useful hints and tips for developing a day to remember!

"The employer made it really interesting; they asked us questions about our interests and we really enjoyed designing our own wind turbine!"

The Basics

Some of these are no-brainers but our experience has taught us to:

  • Keep it engaging, interactive & inspiring.
  • Provide regular opportunities for students to speak & interact – no more than 10 mins of ‘talking at’ at a time!
  • Use practical resources – see below for some ideas.
  • Relate to young peoples’ interests, e.g. social media/gaming/celebrity/sporting news.
  • Use key/technical vocabulary BUT check if young people know understand definitions.
  • Collaborate with colleagues or nearby businesses – spread the load!
  • Treat young people like ‘adults’ – offer drinks, snacks, make the venue feel special to be in.
  • Ensure young people understand WHY this topic should matter to them – if they take away one clear message, what would that message be?
  • Don’t be afraid to have a sense of humour and to tell them about you!

Some resources you could try:

  • Cards, images, quizzes and competitions – Kahoot & Menti.com are great for quizzes, but just as good are stand up/sit down ‘True or False’ games.
  • Items to handle/hold/pass round.
  • Freebies – makes a difference EVERY time.

Case Studies

Here are just a few examples of some great days and activities we have facilitated with the help of our delivery partners.

Case study 1

The day: A city visit for Somerset schools

The itinerary:

  • Train ride with talk about safe travel and apprenticeships in the rail industry (Platform Rail).
  • Ferry trip around Bristol with guided tour (Bristol Ferry).
  • Lunch at Za Za Bazaar (organised by SBY).
  • Visit to M Shed.
  • Return ferry & train trips.

Case study 2

The delivery partner: Centre for Modelling and Simulation

The activity:

Students are given the outline of a client’s requirements for an air taxi

They then:

  • Work in groups to try and design an air taxi (using different design sections that are available to them);
  • Build it out of Lego;
  • Explain their design to one of the staff who inputs the details into a system which scores it out of 100.

 

The groups are given three chances to produce the highest scoring design. They have to consider elements such as affordability of design, seating capacity and weight of the air taxi.

The winning team (or teams) are given a small prize.

Other examples

  • A ‘Mint or Skint’ board game on a university campus visit – who can make it to the end with some money in their pocket?
  • Trying out a VR headset on a visit to a construction site.
  • A tour of the venue/premises and an opportunity to meet other employees (especially young ones who they can relate to – we can support with this if you don’t have anyone appropriate) – which are the most exciting areas of your business??

We hope you find this useful but if you would like any more suggestions your programme lead will be happy to work with you to design the day.