The New Filipino Private SchoolSharjah, United Arab Emirates

The Importance of Extra-Curricular Activities in School

1. Help as Stress BusterIt is humanly impossible to be fully energetic with a single activity al through the day. Nowadays, the educational curriculum is vast and ever expanding. This can create a lot of mental and physical stress as well as a mental block to take up a study routine day in and day out. Activities like sports, music, arts, etc., expose students to a variety of lighter activities that help let go of the mental tension and stress of studying for a short period of time. In activities like sports, there is known to be a high rush of adrenaline that soothes the strained body even as it experiences physical exertion.

2. Improve HealthSchooling often tends to be sedentary in nature. The load of school schedule and heaps of homework often keeps students glued to their desks. Young children need a lot of physical activity to keep them physically fit. These activities help curtail tendencies of obesity and health-related issues amongst young children while improving the child’s immunity. Also, when students are engaged in outdoor activities, they are prone to receive sufficient quantity of Vitamin D that is essential for their physical growth and development.

3. Help Develop Multitasking and Time Management SkillsThere is no better lesson than to learn the art of balancing studies and work along with other activities. Opting for multiple responsibilities from a young age creates an acute sense of time management as well. These skills accumulate over a period of time and mold the student’s mind for a brighter future.

4. Search Hidden TalentsStudies do have the capacity to improve a student’s set of skills. However, when students are actually exposed to new and variety of activities at a very young age, they may develop their own taste for the activity and thus, parents as well as teachers can search for the student’s hidden likings and talents.

5. Develop Team SpiritMost of the extra-curricular activities like sports, debating, etc., can never be completed without the involvement of a lot of team members. When exposed to such teaming with like minds, there is seen to be an active exchange of creative ideas and the ability to work together as a team. This creates a sense of belonging, a sense of loyalty towards the team, and development of sporting spirit. Friendships thus formed, have often survived for a lifetime.

6. Develop Interpersonal SkillsActivities like public speech, social service, sports develop a student’s interpersonal skills so as help them become masters of communication in their adult life. Crucial arts such as listening skills, leadership skills, stage confidence, negotiating skills, oratory skills and logical reasoning get developed in the students from a very young age.

7. Create Social Responsibility SenseExposure to activities like social service and volunteering helps students understand true social problems since a very young age. This is known to stir the humane side of students creating a sense of social responsibility and social justice in these young minds. Students might be guided by their teachers to help senior citizens and young helpless children by organizing social visits to homes for the aged and orphanages respectively. Students with previous experience in social work have reported that they feel an acute sense of owing some of their precious time and energy to the welfare of the less advantaged people.

8. Help in Making Dual CareersBookish knowledge can never be complete without its actual application. Schools stress that students must engage themselves in lots of extra activities for which they are awarded grades. Such work experience goes a long way into shaping the student’s career. The nurturing of a liking for these activities from a young age, may encourage these students to take up dual careers in their adult lives, e.g. a student who had taken up painting as part of her extra-curricular activity since early age, may balance her life between a professional career and painting as an alternate career during her adult life.

Examples of Extra-Curricular Activities Arts: theater, music, dance, painting, photography, creative writing, and other creative

endeavors Church activity: community outreach, helping the elderly, event planning, community

suppers, church-sponsored music and athletic programs, teaching or organizing summer camps and retreats, missionary work, and any other activity done through the church

Clubs: chess club, mathletes, mock trial, debate, animé club, role playing club, language clubs, film club, skateboarding club, diversity/minority groups and so on

Community activity: community theater, event organizing, festival staff, and many other activities that are organized through the community, not the school

Governance: student government, student council, prom committee, community youth board, advisory boards and so on

Hobbies: Be creative here. Read these articles on how Rubik’s Cube or Collecting Free Stuff can be transformed into an extraordinary activity. Also, colleges are interested in your passion whether it be rocketry, model railroads, collecting, blogging, or quilting. These interests show that you have interests outside of the classroom.

Media: local television, school radio or television, yearbook staff, school newspaper, literary journal, blogging and online journaling, local newspaper, and any other work that leads to a television show, movie or publication (online or print)

Military: junior ROTC, drill teams, and related activities Music: chorus, band (marching, jazz, symphonic, concert, pep), orchestra, ensembles and

solo – these musical groups could be through school, church, the community or your personal group or solo efforts

Sports: football, baseball, hockey, track, gymnastics, dance, lacrosse, swimming, soccer, skiing, cheerleading, basketball, volleyball and so on

Volunteer Work and Community Service: key club, habitat for humanity, tutoring and mentoring, community fund-raising, rotary, church outreach, hospital work (candy striping), animal rescue, nursing home work, poll worker, volunteer fire department, creating hiking trails, adopt-a-highway, and any other work that helps the world and is not for pay