Elementary school is a crucial time for developing career awareness and instilling a culture of self-empowerment. From an early age, students can begin profiling their strengths, interests, and values. There are many fun and free resources available on the Internet to help young students explore career paths. This is also an ideal time to take students on field trips to various places of employment and host guest speakers from colleges and local businesses. The goals, at this level, are to expose students to a variety of careers and to build their confidence.

For most children, their first awareness of careers develops from their immediate family members. A child whose mother is a nurse might want to be a nurse. A child whose grandfather is an electrician might want to be an electrician. This development of awareness is a positive step, and educators can help students deepen this awareness beyond their experiences at home. It is also an appropriate time for students to begin examining their own interests and developing self-confidence to achieve their future goals (even if those goals change many times).