Extra Curricular Activities

Also known as extra-academic activities, extracurricular activities include sports, student government, community service, employment, arts, hobbies, and educational clubs. Extracurricular activities all complement an academic curriculum.

What are Extracurricular Activities?

Extracurricular activities are programs that:

• are not part of the regular school curriculum; and,
• are structured around an activity, goal, or purpose

Also known as extra-academic activities, extracurricular activities include sports, student government, community service, employment, arts, hobbies, and educational clubs. Extracurricular activities all complement an academic curriculum. While these activities can be structured by age group, such as high school programs, they aren’t always. For example, your teen might volunteer with a local charity or have a part-time job.

The range of extracurricular activity offerings varies extensively — both in high school and the community. Here are some of the most common:

 School Extracurricular Activities

Athletics: This is perhaps the most common extracurricular that comes to mind. Almost all high schools have sports teams with varying sizes, types, and competitiveness.

Sports teams compete at different levels within the school system: varsity, junior varsity, and club. Check with your teen’s school for a complete list of school-sponsored athletic programs.

Career and Technical Student Organizations: CTSOs are academic and professional programs, also known as career technical education (CTE) that extend classroom learning and provide career-focused education. These organizations offer activities that support social and academic growth by focusing on developing career, interpersonal, leadership, self-confidence, communication, and decision

Academic Clubs: Other academic organizations focus on specific areas of study or performance. Examples include math club, science club, debate team, forensics club.

Student Government: Participating in student government is a great way to gain leadership skills and shape school policy and events. Students can be elected to individual offices by their peers or simply volunteer with their student government association (SGA). Sometimes called student council, these groups represent students’ interests and coordinate events like dances, spirit weeks, community outreach, and fundraising.

Model UN, mock trial, and debate team are excellent options for budding politicians, as well as participating in municipal government. Some high school students have even won local offices despite their young age. Now that’s a resume-builder!

Volunteer & Community Organizations: Most schools have volunteer or community-service clubs, and many school districts require students to complete volunteer hours to receive their diplomas. Getting involved with a service club or volunteer project not only gives your teen a meaningful extracurricular activity. It also allows them to accumulate service hours for graduation.

You can check with your school’s guidance counselor for details on school-sponsored volunteer organizations. However, there are many volunteer options outside of school.

Multicultural/Cultural Organizations: It is common for high school students to take foreign language classes. Generally, each language the school offers has a club for students to practice their language skills. These groups focus on cultural education and will often organize field trips or even travel abroad.

Cultural clubs also provide an environment for students with similar backgrounds to meet and socialize. Their activities are a way for students to showcase their culture to the broader school community