Last Thursday afternoon, fifth grade students at Clear Lake Elementary School were able to get out of their classrooms and out to the school pavilion to learn about three career options.

“This the second year we have done this,” Clear Lake International Baccalaureate (IB) Coordinator Colleen Ransford said. “The professionals come in, share a little who they are, what they do and ways they use our learner profile traits – being a caring thinker, principled, open-minded — in their workplace.”

The three professionals students were able to interact with are parents and members of the community. This year students heard from critical care nurse Erin Basak, physical therapist Jaime Nowak and Anne Knox, an underwater archaeologist. Each of the volunteers represented specific career zones: Education and Training; Health and Science; and Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.

Each of the three fifth grade classes at Clear Lake spent about 40 minutes with the three volunteers. When they went back to their classrooms, students were able to reflect on what they learned. — Don Rush