Interview skills lesson plan and printable activities
When students are “unprepared for interviews,” they usually need three things: (1) a simple structure (STAR examples), (2) a repeatable practice routine, and (3) fast feedback on what to improve next time. This 45-minute lesson plan gives you all three with a printable activity pack you can run in one class period.
School counselors
CTE teachers
Lesson plan
Printable pack
Career readiness teams
Lesson overview (45 minutes)
- Grade levels: 7–12 (easy to adapt)
- Materials: printable pack, timer, pens/pencils
- Outcome: students practise 2 interview answers using STAR and leave with 1 clear goal
Learning objectives (student-friendly)
- I can answer common interview questions with a clear structure.
- I can use one strong example to show a skill (STAR).
- I can improve my delivery (pace, clarity, filler words).
- I can ask one good question at the end of an interview.
Teacher/counselor script (minute-by-minute)
0–5 minutes: Warm-up
Ask: “What makes someone sound confident in an interview?” Take 3–5 quick responses. Then say: “Today you’ll practise two answers and get feedback you can use immediately.”
5–12 minutes: Mini-lesson (STAR in plain English)
- Situation: What was happening?
- Task: What did you need to do?
- Action: What did you do (specifically)?
- Result: What happened? What did you learn?
Tip: Keep STAR to 60–90 seconds. If an answer runs long, cut to the “Action” and “Result.”
12–27 minutes: Practice round 1 (pairs)
- Pair students. One is the interviewer, one is the candidate.
- Candidate answers one question from the pack using STAR.
- Interviewer gives feedback using the mini rubric: 1 strength + 1 next step.
- Swap roles.
27–40 minutes: Practice round 2 (upgrade)
Students repeat one question, but improve one thing: more detail, clearer STAR, or stronger delivery.
40–45 minutes: Reflection exit ticket
- One thing I did well:
- One thing I will improve next time:
- One question I can ask the interviewer:
Printable question bank (examples)
- Tell me about yourself.
- Why do you want this role/program?
- Tell me about a time you worked on a team. (STAR)
- Tell me about a time you solved a problem. (STAR)
- What’s a strength you’re proud of?
- What’s one thing you’re working to improve?
- How do you handle feedback?
- Why should we choose you?
How to assess quickly (simple rubric)
Use 4 levels: Needs work → Developing → Strong → Excellent. Score only three categories to keep it fast:
- Structure: clear STAR, includes result
- Specificity: real details and examples
- Delivery: pace, clarity, confidence
Related resources
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