An extracurricular activity can be almost anything that you do in high school apart from the regular academics and workshops and not for credit. It is very important for students to be a part of extracurricular activities while in high school.
Why Are Extracurricular Activities Important In High School In Abudhabi?
Extracurricular activities are an important part of the holistic growth of an individual. In high schools, it also helps students to socialize, understand each other and work as a team and in a community.
Extracurricular activities also reduce stress and help students bond with each other. Not only this, extracurricular activities help students understand their strengths and weaknesses and often find something that they like to do apart from the routine studies.
One can learn, experiment, hop from one extracurricular to another and you never know when you are able to find that one thing that also becomes your hobby.
High schoolers can also flaunt these extracurricular activities where they may be a team player, fly solo, lead on their resumes and letters while applying for universities.
It also improves dedication, leadership, communication, time management, flexibility, creative thinking skills activating the right side of the brain, marketing skills, business savvy, project management skills, writing skills, analytical skills amongst others.
These activities become very important subsequently, such as when you are applying to colleges because they help you develop your talents, interests, and passions.
They can also teach you practical skills like time management. What are some extracurricular activities that are commonly seen at high schools?
● Debates
● Swimming
● Dancing
● Kho Kho
● Foreign Languages
● Peer tutorings
● Robotics
● Graphic Designing
● Sports like basketball, baseball, rugby, tennis
● Clubs, organizations or societies like The book Club, History Club, Poetry Club etc
● Volunteering for cleaning, taking in strays, extra work, working for a cause etc
● Fundraising for annual fests, symposiums, etc
● Jewelry Making
● Fashion Designing
● Adventure Sports
● Photography
● Drama Club
● Theater Program
What Things You Should Keep In Mind While Selecting An Extracurricular Activity?
While you list down your choice of extracurricular activities, remember that Abu Dhabi can get very hot and outdoor activities might become a challenge.
Whenever you apply for a particular activity, always ensure to understand the nuances, hours required, who will help you or coach you, how it will benefit you and most importantly if you like it.
Don’t do an extracurricular activity just because your high school demands it, do it because it interests you and gives you tremendous joy and happiness and moreover you get to learn from it.
You might also understand the transportation situation because if you are a part of any extracurricular activity that demands extra time apart from school, you will want to see how far your home is, how will you reach there and go back and forth as Abu Dhabi traffic can be very difficult to manage and navigate. It is extremely crowded, especially during office hours.
What Will You Learn From Extracurricular Activities?
Some things that you will learn from extracurricular activities in Abu Dhabi Indian School.
1. Team Work
Extracurricular activities help students work in a team towards a shared goal and provide a sense of teamwork and being a part of something larger and belonging which is a basic human need.
2. Finding And Exploring The World Out There
These extracurricular activities in high school will help you explore and find your interests. They may not even remain static, but you will find something that will occupy your attention and interest.
This also means that your time doing meaningless exercises like binge-watching will reduce when you will find something you enjoy.
3. A Path Towards Life Lessons That Might Not Be Taught Traditionally
Extracurricular activities help in developing holistically. Due to a rigid schedule and curriculum, a lot of times life lessons are missed.
Extracurricular activities help you learn life skills like how to be compassionate, how to accept failure and how to have humility and appreciation even when you win. They keep you grounded.
4. Experience A World Of Difference
Extracurricular activities provide what mainstream academics might not offer. These are experiences such as how it feels to be in front of hundreds of people on a stage, how to be introvert or extrovert and hone those talents.
5. Time Management
Time management has to be one of the biggest skills that extracurricular activities offer.
Time management is best learnt when you have to juggle between school, activities, homework and everything else.
6. Teach Compassion
School can often feel and be very competitive, while everyone tries to be the best. This can often cause bullying.
Extracurricular activities make sure that you are not bullied nor allow you to bully.
A lot of schools and colleges also ask students to sign anti-ragging forms. This helps develop compassion not only for others but for oneself as well.
7. Boost Morale And Confidence In A Student
Even the most introverted students, rule breakers often come out shining in extracurricular activities. Sometimes it’s sports, sometimes it’s dramatic, etc.
Extracurricular activities help them feel confident in their own skin in a world full of competition and hierarchy.
8. Makes A Student A Divergent Thinker
In a cutthroat world, companies and universities look for people who have out of the box ideas, who are divergent thinkers.
Extracurricular activities encourage students to be creative, do impromptu sessions, and be people who don’t just follow the mandate but also have ideas that are unique and special.
Elon Musk is an example of a divergent thinker, he does not stop at one standardized mechanism but keeps innovating, recreating, and rethinking. So is Apple, Apple creates technologies in the premium segment that are based on innovation and out of the box ideas.
Conclusion
Extracurricular activities are a very important part of any student’s development and growth, it is holistic development. It has so many benefits one can only imagine.
If a student is a part of co-curricular activities, even for a short while they become decision-makers, find what interests them, learn compassion and humility that is often taught through textbooks in practical lives.
If holistic development is a fist, extracurricular activities are one of the fingers.
They help become a student whole, independent, strategic and most importantly do what they like and are good at.
Even failures are welcome in extracurricular activities without the burden of marks or grades or credits, extracurricular activities in high schools in Abu Dhabi and around the world are an invaluable part of the development of any student as it braces them for the world while finding joy in their own terms.
Students can choose what extracurricular activities they would like to be a part of and enjoy and if it does not work out, then back off and find an alternative activity.
At the end of the day, students are becoming wholesome individuals ready for the world one extracurricular activity at a time.
And you never know when an extracurricular activity becomes a hobby and slowly a full-blown profession.
