The Importance of Extracurriculars in a Child's Education

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The availability, variety, and participation of extracurricular activities is an important aspect of a child's school experience.
 
Hello everyone! I hope you are all having a lovely week. For today's post, I am writing about the importance of offering, and taking part in, extracurricular activities at school, a benefit that is often overlooked or taken for granted. After all, when parents are deciding to make the switch from a public education to private, or they are searching for a reputable private school to enrol their child in, they are not just choosing a school with a strong academic reputation. The number one thing parents look for after academic credentials is an impressive extracurricular program made up of a variety of sports and clubs.
 
The are a number of reasons why participating in extracurricular activities is important for students, thus explaining why parents look to private schools which have a history of providing quality sports and clubs and an environment of mandatory participation (extracurriculars are the first aspect of public schools to suffer or disappear because of provincial budget cuts).
 
CAIS Executive Director Anne-Marie Kee says: "A wider choice of extracurricular activities results in stronger effort in academic programs because [students’] individual needs and interests are carefully thought about and developed". When private schools strongly encourage or even mandate that their students participate in sports or clubs at school, a child's horizons are opened up. They learn more about themselves and their likes and dislikes, develop teamwork and leadership skills outside the classroom, make friends across many platforms, learn organization and time management skills, and hopefully have fun of course! Because many private schools demand participation, no child is "left behind". There is no student who does not "make the cut" and no student is a benchwarmer thanks to the many sports resources and options for them to choose from. Being involved and depended on in a group environment outside of the classroom helps a child feel good about themselves! Sports programs combine with academic work and extracurricular activities to develop "the whole child".
 
So there you have it: academics and extracurriculars are the axis of a great education experience. Please let me know in the comments what sports or clubs your child is enrolled in!
 
Sources cited:
 
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/education/extracurricular-programs-can-make-the-difference/article600793/


About Post Author

I am a passionate Vice Principal and IB coordinator at St. Jude's Academy, who loves to blog about education in my free time! Please leave a comment as I would love to hear your thoughts and answer your questions!

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1 comment:

  1. Ms. ChinJuly 14, 2016 2:55 pm

    I would also add that partaking in sports and clubs at school is a great stress-reducer for kids!

    ReplyDelete

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Where: Ontario, Canada

Who: A passionate Vice Principal and IB coordinator

Why: I love blogging about education in my spare time!

St. Jude's Academy is an IB School

St. Jude's Academy is an IB School

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