The article is devoted to the analysis of the features of preparation for making educational choices in children and adolescents in the single-industry town of the industrial Urals in the context of digitalization and automation. The authors analyze the activities of the "School of Engineering Knowledge" for children of preschool and different age stages of school age (primary, secondary and senior): additional general developmental programs in the areas of "Robotics", "ZD-modeling", "Prototyping", courses "Living Lessons" and "Professional Success Strategy". The aim of the study is an attempt to consider the formation of the competence of educational choice in children and adolescents from 6 to 17 years old by the example of practical experience of the Department of Pre-University Training "School of Engineering Knowledge" of the Polytechnic Institute (branch) of the Ural Federal University named after the first President of Russia B. N. Yeltsin in the city of Kamensk-Uralsky (hereinafter branch of UrFU). When conducting the study, methods of theoretical analysis of the literature in the field of pedagogy, sociology, psychology and philosophy on the topic of research, as well as activity analysis and comparative data analysis were used. It is concluded that, becoming members of child-adult educational communities, children gain wide social experience in constructive interaction and productive activities. Education is not understood by children as preparation for life or acquaintance with a profession, but becomes the essence of a continuous process of self-development and self-improvement of a person.