Teachers can make use of a school's technology such as PowerPoint and projectors, which allows websites and videos to be shown on a large screen in an interesting way. College Click TV airs student interviews from hundreds of colleges, and the prospective student link on any college website offers information regarding admissions and college life. Teachers may also want to supply Internet links to a variety of colleges so students can explore schools in depth from a library or home computer.
Teachers may use the school's library to teach the fifth graders a lesson in research as each learns about his favorite college or university. Supply a large list of colleges, and instruct the kids to select a university or college they would like to attend. Ask the students to write a one-page paper explaining the reasons for their choices and describing several facts about the college, such as its location, mascot and student population. After the teacher reviews the papers, she can make a fact sheet for each selected school. Or, ask each student to give the class a short speech about her college of choice.
Teachers or parents may wish to schedule a field trip to one or more nearby colleges. A university ambassador will guide the students to some interesting areas of the campus, such as the dormitories, science labs and theaters. If the tour is timed right, take the students to an athletic practice, such as football, softball or basketball, for a fun break. Parents of fifth graders may want to plan a family vacation that includes a college tour.
Teachers may also wish to invite a few current college students to speak abou their their college experiences and activities, major academic choices and career goals. After the college students speak, the teacher can inform the fifth graders of the programs their own school has to offer, such as Key Club, Science Club and student council, and can discuss how to get involved in one of the activities. Teachers can hand out papers with a list of their own school's programs and extracurricular activities, with a definition of each program and activity. List words and phrases that are common in colleges such as degree, majors and minors, Dean's List and magna cum laude.
Fifth grade teachers may also consider asking several other teachers to be guests of their class to explain college choices. Like a show and tell, ask the guest teachers to speak about their own college experiences while showing their college memorabilia, such as yearbooks, college pictures, books and awards, to the students. Likewise, the guest teachers can explain why they chose to become a teacher and why they chose their college. Get the the fifth graders involved by allowing questions from the class.