Extracurricular activities are activities done outside of school, and are essential because they show interest and involvement in activities. Moreover, they can develop a lifelong passion and curate leadership skills. Other advantages of extracurricular activities include time management skills, increased confidence, and an edge in the college application process. For anyone curious about extracurriculars or needing examples, below are ten possible ways to involve yourself outside the classroom.
1 – Sports
There are two main ways to be involved with sports – join your school team or a club league outside of school. Common sports offered in most high schools include basketball, football, wrestling, swimming, soccer, cheerleading, dancing, tennis, and volleyball. If your school doesn’t offer your sport, consider joining a youth team or club.
2 – Community Service
First, determine which tasks interest you most. These may be art, culture, construction, social media management, writing, or making cards. Then, start contacting volunteer organizations that offer people to take on a role that interests you. Another way to find a volunteer organization that engages you is to search for them on VolunteerMatch. I recommend using VolunteerMatch because it allows you to search based on your interests or causes you support.
If you don’t know where to start, look into Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity, UNICEF, AmeriCorps, or your local soup kitchen or senior center.
3 – School Clubs
You can either join established clubs or take the initiative to create your club. Many schools offer standard clubs such as speech and debate, chess, photography, art, Distributive Education Clubs of America(DECA), Future Business Leaders of America(FBLA), Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA), and Business Professionals of America (BPA).
Most schools also have various honors societies, such as: National Honors Society, Spanish National Honors Society, French National Honors, and National Arts Honors Society. Moreover, schools have volunteering-related clubs such as Key Club.
4 – Employment
Getting a job is a great way to foster a hobby while earning money. You can work as a host, cashier, dishwasher, barista, busser, or waiter at cafes and restaurants. Furthermore, you can also be a call center representative, or representative for local businesses. Look for opportunities around your neighborhood, as your neighbors may be looking for a babysitter, lawnmower, or dog walker. Havi9ng skills in any activity, gives you the ability to offer lessons. Let’s say if you’re a swimmer, then provide swimming lessons.
5 – Internships
Not only are internships a significant boost to flaunt on your resume they can also help you develop interests and skills. It would help if you spoke to school counselors, teachers, classmates, neighbors, and other connections about opportunities. Moreover, it would help if you searched the web for internships. A great site to find opportunities is LinkedIn.
6 – Academics
There are various extracurricular activities related to academics, such as the National Honors Society, Academic Decathlons, American Mathematics Competitions, Science Bowl, Quiz Bowl, Science Olympiads, and Chemistry Olympiads. Speak with your core classes teachers about offerings.
7 – Political Activism
If you want to make political or social change in your school, neighborhood, city, or state, then be a part of the student council or community youth board. Moreover, for political activism, consider joining Mock Trial, Model United Nations, Model Congress Club, Teenage Republicans, or Young Democrats of America. As for social activism, seek out a group that supports your cause. Examples include joining an environmental club, a gay-straight alliance, or joining Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD).
8 – Culture and Language
Many high schools offer language courses such as German, Spanish, French, and Chinese. Moreover, many schools have culture and language clubs or events related to their course offerings. If you are enrolled in a foreign-language class, speak to your teacher about opportunities related to your learning language.
9 – Media and Technology
With accessible internet access and innovation constantly popping up, involvement with media and technology is a great way to boost your resume and develop a new hobby. Whether it’s a youtube channel, blogging, a personal website, or a social media account, you can bring your interests to the mass media by utilizing technology and media. If you want to be a part of media or technology at your school, consider being a part of the school’s newspaper, magazine, yearbook, or TV announcement.
10 – Religion
If you practice a religion, you can join a Youth Group affiliated with a religion, a Church choir, a Student Union, Missionary work groups, or help out at your place of worship. You can even teach classes, whether it’s for your religious text or language. Moreover, you can volunteer at religiously-affiliated places.
