Integrating Career Awareness into the ABE/ESOL Classroom - SABES

L e s s o n 3
Overcoming Obstacles
Learning Objective
To help students understand the advantages and disadvantages within choices
that we make
Materials Needed
Completed student life lines from Section II, Lesson 5, Part 1
Vocabulary
obstacles, barriers, accomplishments, challenges, decisions
SCANS Competencies
Basic Skills: Listening; Speaking
Thinking Skills: Reasoning
Instructions for Conducting the Activity
Explain that when making decisions we often have to consider how to deal with certain obstacles or barriers. When we look
back at our accomplishments, we often learn about our decision-making process. Ask students to think about a challenge
that they met last year.
Ask students to take out the life line they did in Section II, Lesson 5, Part 1. Have the students locate an event or accomplishment
on the life line. Distribute a list or write the following questions on the board:
• What decisions did you have to make to accomplish this?
• What obstacles did you have to overcome to meet it?
• What was hard?
• What was easy?
• How long did it take?
• What support did you have?
• What surprised you?
• What feelings did you have afterward?
• What did you do after you reached your goal?
• How did it turn out that you didn’t expect?
• How do you feel about this now?
Then ask students to pair up and interview each other. One person will ask questions. Then partners will switch.
In the ESOL classroom, you can simplify the lesson by asking all students to locate the place on their life line that they
decided to immigrate to the United States. The teacher can lead a discussion asking students questions about the date they
moved, how old they were, where they were living at the time, etc.
Integrating Career Awareness into the ABE & ESOL Classroom | Section IV, Lesson 3: Overcoming Obstacles | 102