Cheryl Maguire
How
Afterschool Activities
Benefit Kids
“I’m bored,” my 11-yearold daughter grumbled as she collapsed on to the couch. It was a rare unscheduled moment. I cringed because I know what can occur when she has a spontaneous second. At the age of 3, I assumed she was quietly playing with toys, only to discover the entire wall covered with crayon. We are happier now that she’s in art classes. My daughter prefers to be busy, which is why she participates in multiple extracurricular activities, ranging from sign language to swim team. There are many benefits to having scheduled activities for children. Research by National Center for Education Statistics shows that students who participate in afterschool activities have better school attendance, higher levels of achievement and aspirations for higher education.
Better Academic Performance Research shows that students who participate in extracurricular
22 • SanDiegofamily.com • October 2018
activities perform better in school. Douglas Reeves studied data at a local high school and found students who were in three or four afterschool programs had dramatically better grades than those who participated in none. A study by the College Board found high school extracurricular participation is correlated with significantly higher SAT scores. Plus, sometimes kids learn skills that can be applied to school. For example, sports such as basketball, baseball and football use statistics, addition, subtraction, probability and geometry, which support math skills. My daughter was in the garden club and
used information she learned about plants in science class.
More Adaptable When children participate in more than one activity, they experience multiple coaches or teachers with different rules and expectations. They have the opportunity to meet kids with a range of personalities and interests. These interactions teach children how to be adaptable to various types of people and situations. In the book Resilience at Work, authors Salvatore Maddi and Deborah Khoshaba discuss the importance of being adaptable and
