You probably already know that extracurricular activities look great on college applications, making your student seem well-rounded, passionate and eager to learn. Showing colleges that your student has participated in activities will help his future academic career by helping him get into the program of study he desires, but extracurriculars also help students' academic careers at the present moment. Research shows that participating in extracurricular activities actually increases the likelihood of achieving higher grades, probably because students who participate in extracurricular activities are more likely to be responsible and use their time wisely. While the type of extracurricular can matter, altogether extracurriculars have a positive effect on students' academic performance.
Joining a variety of extracurricular activities opens students' social lives beyond their immediate group of friends and can form bonds based on common interests. Many schools offer clubs based on cultural backgrounds, such as Latino, African-American and multicultural clubs, and clubs based on interest, like chess, sports and debate. Enjoying extracurricular activities with like-minded students, usually under the supervision of a teacher or coach, also encourages students to pursue healthy interests instead of spending free time lacking any particular goal, which can lead to negative behaviors like drinking and drug use.
When a student is involved in extracurricular activities on top of having a social life and keeping up with school work, she must learn to manage her time wisely, to choose what is most important to her and to be responsible to others who are depending on her. Participating in extracurricular activities teaches students the importance of dealing with their own responsibilities as they grow older. They might be responsible for keeping track of meetings or practices, sports equipment or paperwork. Your student will have to schedule time to complete homework, spend time with family and friends and fulfill any other responsibilities while balancing her extracurricular activities. Much like they will balance home, family, work and fun as an adult, students must balance the responsibilities of school, activities and the rest of their lives as they grow older.
Participating in extracurricular activities is beneficial overall to many students, but piling too many activities on top of academics can be overwhelming. If students are having trouble completing homework, participating in family life or getting enough sleep, scale back on activities and say no to new activities. Learning to say no when they are not capable of fulfilling more responsibilities is also an important lesson for children and young adults to learn, so discuss the amount of activities your student wishes to join. Some parents go overboard when trying to create a well-rounded child by joining a little bit of everything, so always make sure your child is a willing participant in activities. The idea is for students to find a passion, an activity that is fulfilling, so limit activities to one or two at a time until your student finds what he loves to do to avoid activity overload or burnout.