Supporting students as they think about their future can feel both meaningful and complex. Students bring different experiences, hopes, and questions to the conversation—and they don’t all start from the same place or move at the same pace.
That’s why we created this Self-Discovery Mini Toolkit.
This resource is designed to help you meet students where they are by offering simple, research-informed tools that support reflection, conversation, and growth without adding more to your plate.
Introducing Mini Toolkits
This Self-Discovery Mini Toolkit is the first in a series of mini toolkits focused on key areas of college and career readiness, including college exploration, career interests, and financial awareness.
Rather than offering a single, comprehensive toolkit, we’ve intentionally designed these resources to be:
- Bite-sized and easy to use
- Flexible across grade levels and settings
- Grounded in research and student development
Each mini toolkit includes:
- A brief research insight to ground the work
- Conversation starters to help students reflect and articulate what matters to them
- A classroom-ready lesson plan you can use right away
Think of these mini toolkits as tools you can pick up when they’re useful, adapt as needed, and return to as students grow and change.
What the Research Says
Our research team, Eduventures, developed six student mindsets that captures the motivations and expected outcomes students have as the consider which college or university to attend called Student Mindsets. These mindsets reflect how students currently imagine their path through college, not who they will become. Most students evolve over time, and that’s expected.
Let’s take a quick look at the 6 mindsets:
- Experiential Interest: These students see college as a place to gain hands-on experience while figuring out what kind of work fits them best.
- Social Focus: These students believe college success includes relationships, community, and personal growth alongside career preparation.
- Exploration & Meaning: These students see college as a time to explore the world and how they want to contribute to the world.
- Career Pragmatists: These students are focused on getting to a stable career in a way that is financially responsible and personally sustainable.
- Career Through Academics: These students see academic success as the pathway to career success and want structure to support both.
- Grad School Bound: These students view college as preparation for advanced study and long-term professional goals.
We know that students don’t approach college with one shared definition of success. They come to the table with different expectations, priorities and ideas about what college is “for.” Understanding these Mindsets can help you guide students toward options that align with who they are right now without locking them into a single path. The goal isn’t to choose the right label but rather help students articulate what matters to them now, so they can make informed, confident decisions.
Conversation Starter
We developed these sets of conversation starters to help you surface how your middle or high school students are thinking about college, so you can guide them toward options that align with what matters most to them right now. These questions aren’t meant to label students or lock them into a path. Instead, we hope they offer a starting point for meaningful conversations and self-discovery.
High School Conversation Starters
- When you picture yourself after high school, what feels exciting and what feels overwhelming?
- What do you hope college might help you with, even if you’re not sure how yet?
- If there were no “right answer,” what would you want your next few years to look like?
- When you think about college, what do you think it’s mainly meant to help students do?
- What feels most important to you about the college experience right now?
- What do you imagine the outcome of college will be for you?
Middle School Conversation Starters
- When you think about life after high school, what are you most curious about?
- What are you excited to learn more about as you get older?
- What do you hope your life looks like in your 20s even if you’re not sure how you’ll get there?
- What comes to mind when you hear the word “college”?
- What do you think people do in college?
- Where do you think students learn the most—in class, through experiences, or with other people?
- What activities do you plan to do in high school to help you for college or your career?
Classroom Connection
In earlier chapters of this toolkit, we explored how students approach college and the future with different expectations, priorities, and questions. Our Resilience Lesson Plan builds on that foundation by helping students develop the self-awareness, confidence, and resilience they need regardless of which path they ultimately choose.
If you are looking for a simple way to introduce these ideas before diving into the full lesson, start with this quick reflection activity:
Choose 1 Prompt
Ask students to respond to one of the following:
- List three things that bring you joy.
- Describe an accomplishment you’re proud of and why
- I believe in my ability to…
Create a One-Sentence Affirmation
- Invite students to turn their response into a sentence that reminds them of a strength they already have.
Reflect Briefly
Ask one follow-up question:
- When might this reminder be helpful for you?
- Where could you keep this so you can see it again?
Looking for more? Our full lesson plan introduces students to Encourage content through a focus on resilience, self-reflection, and personal strengths. Rather than asking students to define a specific future goal, it helps them practice skills they’ll need no matter where their path leads.
You made it to the end! Thank you for caring so deeply about your students and supporting their success. That commitment matters most.
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