# Handout 2.20: Soft Skills Self-Rating and Growth Plan

Name: ______________________ Date: __________ Period: ______

## Part 1: The six skills employers name most

Copy a two-word definition of each skill from the slide.

| Skill | What it means (two words) | What it looks like at work (one example from the slide or the job ads) |
|---|---|---|
| Reliability | | |
| Communication | | |
| Teamwork | | |
| Problem solving | | |
| Adaptability | | |
| Honesty | | |

Hard skill or soft skill? Circle one for each.

- Knows how to use a knife: hard / soft
- Shows up on time every day: hard / soft
- Can use a spreadsheet: hard / soft
- Tells the truth about a mistake: hard / soft

Count the soft skill words in the job ads on the screen: Ad 1: ______   Ad 2: ______

## Part 2: Rate yourself, with evidence

Directions: Rate yourself on each skill from 1 to 4. Then write one sentence of evidence. Evidence is something you actually did this year in this room: a lab role (name it), the Silent Measurement Challenge, the $40 project, the Investor Challenge, a class job. A rating with no evidence does not count. Leave a row blank rather than make something up. You need evidence for at least four rows.

Scale: 1 = Not yet (I do not do this much)   2 = Sometimes   3 = Most of the time   4 = Every time, even when it is hard

Sentence starter: "In ___ (lab, game, or project), I ___."

Example: Teamwork, 3, because as Prep Cook in Lab 2 I had the toppings ready before the Head Cook asked.

| Skill | My rating (1 to 4) | My evidence (one sentence, a real event from this year) |
|---|---|---|
| Reliability | | |
| Communication | | |
| Teamwork | | |
| Problem solving | | |
| Adaptability | | |
| Honesty | | |
| (Grade 8 stretch) A skill I found in the job ads: ______________ | | |

Which lab roles have you held this year? Circle all: Station Manager, Head Cook, Second Cook, Prep Cook, Helper Cook, Toppings Chief, Plate Builder, Time Keeper, other: ______________

Which skill did that role need most? ______________________

## Part 3: One skill to grow

Directions: Choose one skill to grow. Not your highest. Fill in all three parts.

**The skill I will grow:** ______________________

**Where I will practice it this year** (the next lab, the Unit 3 babysitting project, the Unit 5 sewing team, a class job; name the one and the role you will ask for):

________________________________________________________________

**What I will do differently** (one action a person could see you do):

________________________________________________________________

**How I will know it worked** (what will be different; who would notice):

________________________________________________________________

**I chose this one because** ________________________________________________

## Part 4: Pair share

Read your plan to a partner. Your partner asks: "How will you know it worked?" If your answer was weak, fix the last line above.

Partner's question or suggestion (one line): ________________________________

## Exit card (tear off or copy onto an index card)

1. The skill I rated highest and my evidence: ________________________________
2. The skill I am growing and where I will practice it: ________________________________
3. One soft skill I saw a classmate use today (name the skill, not the person): ______________

* * *

## Teacher key

Part 1, hard or soft: knife: hard. Shows up on time: soft (reliability). Spreadsheet: hard. Tells the truth about a mistake: soft (honesty). Job ad counts depend on the ads chosen; four or five soft skill words per ad is typical.

Two-word definitions that count (accept close wording): reliability, "shows up" or "keeps promises"; communication, "clear talk" or "explains, listens"; teamwork, "works together"; problem solving, "finds fixes"; adaptability, "handles change"; honesty, "tells truth."

Part 2 is scored complete, partial, or missing: complete means at least four rows have a rating and an evidence sentence that names a real event from this year and matches the skill. A 4 with no event is scored as a blank row. Part 3 is complete when all three parts and the "because" line are filled and the practice place is something happening this year, not "high school."

Word bank for ELL students [check with a native speaker]: reliability (güvenilirlik / confiabilidade / confiabilidad); communication (iletişim / comunicação / comunicación); teamwork (takım çalışması / trabalho em equipe / trabajo en equipo); problem solving (problem çözme / resolução de problemas / resolución de problemas); adaptability (uyum sağlama / adaptabilidade / adaptabilidad); honesty (dürüstlük / honestidade / honestidad).