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Entry bubble Take Your Kids to Work With Kids.gov

By: Nancy | April 24, 2008 | Category: Home and Family

If you're in an office today, you might notice some new faces around the place. Either you really are getting older and the interns are getting younger or your office is participating in Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day. Originally created as Take Our Daughters to Work Day back in 1993 by the Ms. Foundation, girls and boys are both encouraged to head to work today with a parent or other significant adult in their lives. It's not just a free pass from a day at school though; it's a chance for kids to get exposed to workplace culture and to start thinking about career opportunities.

This got me wondering about what career-related links there were on Kids.gov. Turns out, there are a lot. Kids.gov is the government's official web portal for kids, with links to more than 1,200 family-friendly sites. The content is divided into two age groups for kids: K-5th grade and 6th-8th grade. Here's a taste of some of the fun, career-related stuff I found in each age group:
child dressed as doctor 

K - 5th Grade

Most elementary school kids I know love cats and dogs and horses. And that love could translate later into a career as a vet. The American Veterinary Medical Association's animated web site for kids explains the day to day work of a vet and the education that goes into getting a degree in veterinary medicine.

Outer space is always a fascination for kids, as they look at the stars and dream of being astronauts. But not all jobs related to space involve going into space. Using animated stories, NASA's Space Place web site introduces kids to space-related careers including engineering and mapping the stars as an astronomer.

6th - 8th Grade

Mystery...intrigue...maybe the life of an FBI agent who investigates spies is in your kid's future. With the games and quizzes on the FBI's Spy Page, middle schoolers can learn how the FBI uncovers spy tricks and deciphers code words.

Is your kid a good problem solver who loves taking thing apart to find out how they work? They may be perfect for a career as a mechanic. The Bureau of Labor Statistics' page on auto mechanics describes the education that goes into becoming a mechanic and their earning potential, whether they work for themselves, a service station or a car dealer.

If I'd had Kids.gov when I was a kid, I might not have gone around telling everybody that I was going to grow up to be a glockenspiel-playing ballerina/hairdresser. None of those things panned out, but that’s ok; being a blogging bureaucrat is a pretty good gig.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

| Comments [6] | envelope Email This Entry | Tags: career  kids  kids.gov  nancy  work 

Comments:

We welcome your comments and expect that our conversation will follow the general rules of respectful civil discourse. This is a moderated blog, and we will only post comments from bloggers over 13 years of age that relate to topics on Gov Gab: Your U.S. Government Blog. We will review comments for posting within one business day. You are fully responsible for everything that you submit in your comments, and all posted comments are in the public domain. We do not discriminate against any views, but we reserve the right not to post comments.


I did see a few kids riding the metro today. How do I find out if my agency or office participate in this wonderful program? I have a night years old son and he is always curious of how Dad. Make a liviing.

Posted by dcrider on April 24, 2008 at 08:36 AM EDT #

It's up to individual offices how and if they participate in Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day. Check with your boss to see if he or she is open to it.

Some offices have activities planned out for kids all day; other offices, like mine, are informal. Sometimes we'll ask our visiting kids to focus test Kids.gov for us while they're there. Then they get rewarded with a McLunch. ;)

Posted by Nancy on April 24, 2008 at 09:07 AM EDT #

I am glad that no one brought their child to work today. They would be treated to the most creative use of the English language. I do believe that a day in school is more important then a day at a parent's work place.

This is what I wanted to do while growing up.

1) be in the military
2) be some sort of teacher
3) business owner
4) President
5) ruler of the world.

Thomas

Posted by Thomas on April 24, 2008 at 09:22 AM EDT #

What a great post Nancy! Thanks for the info. I actually wanted to be and ice skater in the Ice Capades.

Posted by clutter_buster on April 24, 2008 at 11:05 AM EDT #

The comment above me is funny. :) All of those swear words at the workplace.

Posted by Megan on April 24, 2008 at 05:47 PM EDT #

Kids love to go to school. My kid came to his mom's work place for the 2nd year and I don't think he would like to do it again next year.

Posted by dcrider on April 26, 2008 at 02:40 PM EDT #

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