Team, Club Activities Teach Valuable Lessons

By JULIA CAMERON, BERGEN COUNTY ACADEMIES

Extracurricular activities. Some students hear these words and can rattle off a laundry list of their involvements at school, which range from being a varsity athlete to being president of the environment club. It’s not uncommon for one student to be both. Other students shudder at the thought of having to spend extra time in school, which already captures too much of their time.

Many parents try to nudge their children in a certain direction when it comes to extracurricular activities. An old fear among parents was that extra activities took too much time away from the more “important things,” such as homework and GPAs. Now, many parents are aware that such activities are an opportunity to show colleges how well-rounded and involved you are.

Even though I hate to encourage parental nudging, let’s face it: Extracurricular activities matter. I’ve typed mine on numerous college applications in the last few months.

But these activities should also matter on a more personal level. My involvements helped me to meet some of my closest high school friends, as well as developed my character in a way that classroom learning could not.

When I first entered high school, I joined the soccer team. Practices began more than three weeks before school did, with two- hour sessions six days a week. Surprisingly, I was more concerned than my parents about time management. I was entering a new school known for a rigorous workload, and thought I would not have enough time to balance it all.

However, I found that being busy forced me to become productive. In order to preserve my sacred eight hours of sleep at night, I had to begin my homework almost as soon as I got home from practice. My time was structured, and I had to keep up with my schoolwork procrastination was definitely not an option.

Joining a team before I even entered the school also helped me to adjust when I entered the Academies in September, I already knew more than 20 of my freshman classmates. Seeing familiar faces in the hallway was a great relief, and I already felt integrated into the school community. Three years later, some of my closest friends are from the freshman girls soccer team and even though I can’t remember our record that season, I remember talking with the girls on bus rides to away games.

Last year, my involvement in an extracurricular activity helped to build my character and awareness. I was a competitor with SkillsUSA, a career-oriented organization that prepares students for the workforce. With two classmates, I competed against other schools in creating a study-abroad program. We began in October and worked until June on the project, putting in more than 150 hours.

Our experience was amazing. We were able to meet many industry professionals, including a United Nations education liaison and a chef from the Waldorf-Astoria. We learned about aspects of creating a business and how to give a business pitch. This extensive real- world knowledge was something that I would have never experienced in a classroom.

So, students, sign up for a few activities in your school just make sure they are of interest to you and can provide you with a more diverse experience than regular classroom learning.

Parents, students and all other readers: Have a subject you’d like to see addressed in “Listen Up”? Send us an e-mail: listenup@northjersey.com. North Jersey teens tell what your child or school won’t. Log on to the “Listen Up” blog at northjersey.com/ listenup. Teens who want to join the blog can e-mail their interest to dng@northjersey.com.

(c) 2007 Record, The; Bergen County, N.J.. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.