Speech and drama classes at the junior high school only whet a student's appetite when she begins to love the craft. Speech and drama instructors help students prepare and plan for competitions with other schools and help students plan a performance to be accomplished in front of the student body before the year is over. Drama camps, speech camps and debate teams travel to nearby facilities in summer months to learn more about their interests and to meet other students while taking the opportunity to learn from other professional instructors. American Dance Training Camps, for example, offers overnight summer dance camps for girls.
Writer's retreats are widely enjoyed by teens who enjoy the writing craft. Many retreats offer one-day-only retreats the student can attend with a parent, while other retreats are several evenings long at the local library or college. The junior high school often offers writer's classes for small fees, taught by one of the teachers in the evenings, on weekends or in the summer months to help students enrich their writing abilities.
Band activities are enjoyed by many junior high students. Jazz bands, marching bands and concert bands each often have separate activity schedules. Alternatively, students in more than one band schedule block may have overlapping activities, keeping band members busy performing at games, holiday events and competitions throughout the year. Band members also attend band dances, hayrides and pizza parties . At the end of the year, band members often join others at a college or other facility to participate in band camp.
Beyond the school's basketball, football, wrestling and track teams, other sports events are enjoyed by junior high students. Many students attend organized clinics within their sport of choice, such as tennis or volleyball clinics. Students also organize activities on their own, such as video game competitions, dodge ball or golf competitions. Many competitions are complete with team T-shirts. These activities are planned in advance and often take place at school or at a public park, such as dodge ball or war ball events. Parents also attend these casual events. School junior high sports coaches often attend and supervise these events unofficially and "off the clock" to ensure player safety.