In my experience, extracurricular activities have influenced various factors of my student life positively in many ways. They helped shape me into the person I am while giving me important skills that have benefitted throughout my secondary school life. 

At a young age, my parents signed me up for various sports extra-curriculars from swimming to golf to gymnastics. Joining all these classes helped me gain a better understanding of myself and my interests. At gymnastics class is where I found my passion in life. Not only did I find my passion through this amazing sport, it developed my social skills where I managed to make some lifelong friends that shared a common interest.

Basketball is another extra-curricular I engaged myself in during my late primary years. This team sport connected myself with many other classmates and students from different year levels. In addition, joining basketball also improved my communication and collaboration skills when discussing tactics and team chats. Other than those immediate problem solving skills on court were also learnt. These skills were able to swiftly transition into the academic portion of my student life when doing group presentations and assignments. Better communication enables a more productive and efficient working atmosphere.

Apart from sports, I also took part in music extracurriculars like trumpet. Even though music wasn’t always my strongest suit or favourite extracurricular. At times I would play some old songs with it at home as a way of stress relief. Sometimes being able to find your way of stress relieving is very crucial as it can help get you through many hard times that you may encounter.

In high school, I got the opportunity to do volunteer services to several different groups of people allowing me to grasp a greater insight into the less fortunate communities within our society. They included organising activities for children with hearing disabilities, visiting families living in subdivided flats and writing cards to front-line COVID workers. Learning to balance between serving those in need and making a positive impact on society while keeping up in academics was definitely a challenge. But it allowed me to improve my time management skills by managing my time more effectively and working more productively to get the best of both worlds. 

One of my most memorable extracurricular experience is going to the ACAMIS basketball competition in Shanghai where we played against many other elite teams around Asia. Allowing me to broaden my horizons and develop my skills. This is why extracurriculars are in no doubt a crucial part of a student’s life, helping them find their passions, improve social skills and stress relief which can hugely help us in the future. 

About the author

Hi, my name is Keona and I have recently graduated from Renaissance College Class of 2022 where I studied the IB Diploma. I am currently studying at UCL where I am pursuing a degree in BSc Social Sciences. In my spare time I enjoy baking and playing basketball in which I hope to continue to develop and grow as a person. 

References

Websites 

1. https://lancersarmyschools.com/what-is-the-importance-of-extracurricular-activities-for-students/
2. https://www.crimsoneducation.org/uk/blog/extracurriculars/benefits-of-extracurricular-activities/#:~:text=Lots%20of%20studies%20have%20been,school%20and%20higher%20academic%20aspirations.

Photos 

3. https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/52424783132732179/ 
4. https://www.nbccamps.com/blog/basketball/teamwork-the-great-team-difference
5. https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/February-2022/How-Volunteering-Improves-Mental-Health