Organized sports include soccer, football, baseball, softball, cheerleading, swim team, basketball and volleyball. Tryouts are held before each sporting season begins and students picked for the team usually practice before or after school, with the actual gaming events taking place after school and on weekends. Students may be able to participate in more than one sport during the school year depending on the season and schedules. Each sport carries is own unique financial burden to pay for things like uniforms, dues and transportation to and from events.
Clubs usually meet just after the school day ends for 30 to 90 minutes, depending on the type of club and availability of school staff to supervise the group. Clubs may include a small or large number of students. During club meetings, rules, upcoming events and skill development are discussed and practiced. Interest areas for after-school clubs may include speech or debate, art, chess, drama, yearbook and traditional Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts.
Students can embark on outdoor explorations depending on the time of year and the geographical location. Sometimes things like bug catching or digging for treasure can take place in a person's own backyard. If an adult is willing, he can escort the student or students to an area, with the proper permissions granted, and use a metal detector to search for buried objects. He can teach the students about how sound is used to locate objects and then discuss the possible history or uses behind the objects that are found.
Games and puzzles offer entertainment and skill building, especially on rainy days. Traditional jig-saw puzzles can be laid out for students to try to put together, teaching them about color matching and pattern configurations. Strategy or mystery-filled board games can be used as another teaching tool for analysis and comprehension, depending on the type.