Extracurricular
Activities
Extracurricular
Activities
While going on a jog I see a group of
kids just watching other kids play soccer, I ask them “why don’t you go join
them?” they respond to me “ I really wish I could be in the schools soccer team
but the uniforms are to expensive and my family cant afford it. I tried out and
have the grades, but when they told me I made the team they gave me the cost of
all my equipment I had to let the opportunity go away”.
Almost every school offers different
kinds of extracurricular activities. Extracurricular activities don’t just
include sports but also music and academic clubs. These activities offer
opportunities for students to learn the values of teamwork, individual and
group responsibility, physical strength and endurance, competition, diversity,
and a sense of culture and community. Extracurricular activities provide a
channel for reinforcing the lessons learned in the classroom, offering students
the opportunity to apply academic skills in a real-world context, and are thus
considered part of a well-rounded education. Extracurricular activities can
also be a little expensive.
When students don’t have anything to do
they run the risk of doing something dangerous just for fun. Everyone wants
their children in a safe place where they make positive decisions. That’s why it’s
important for every student to have something to do after school for their own
good and future. The reason most children aren’t involved in extracurricular
activities is because of the cost. If it weren’t for the cost of
extracurricular activities more people would be involved.
. How can schools make extracurricular
activities more affordable? Making activities affordable can help increase the
number of student involvement. I know they’re is a lot of students who wish to
be in a sport, club, or any other activity but cant because its to expensive, I
see this happening more in minority families. This problem causes other kids to
miss out on activities.
How can we get every student involved in
some kind of activity?. A lot of students that come from minority groups want
to join some kind of activity but their afraid of getting laughed at by others
because they cant afford the awesome equipment everyone around has. It can be
embarrassing being the only person in ones team with the ripped up shoes
because they cant afford anything better. Being made fun of as a kid can be
dangerous because that leads to bullying.
One
good way to raise money for those students that come from low income families
are Fundraisers. Fundraisers are a good way to earn money for
extracurricular activities. Some of the main activities schools do to earn
money are car washes, sell cookie dough, chocolate, tickets, or do some kind of
activity that can help people contribute for example a performance or carnival.
The money they earn from the fundraisers usually goes towards equipment for the whole
team. What about the uniforms and other costs that each individual has to purchase?
For some students it’s easier because their parents help them out, for other
students with low-income families it is harder to find money to cover for those
kinds of expenses.
For the parents that cant offered having
their children in extracurricular activities can register their children in
recreational programs. Recreational programs are cheaper then an actual sport
club. The community helps with these programs so children who come from
low-income families stay active.
Schools can also do more to help students
increase their physical activity to help them gain some kind of interest by
offering free after school activities for example any sort of club, physical
activity, or volunteering. These things can help students get into the habit of
doing something else besides eating and watching television after school. Some
schools also offer after school homework club to help students with their
homework and make sure they do their homework for those students who are having
trouble turning in assignments. In the After School Programs article by the
Education Board says; “The federal government has gotten into the business of
supporting after-school programs, especially in low-income communities.” Some of the funding goes towards funding
some of the activities going on in the community or neighborhood.
Another method schools could use to help
their students who come from low income families is increase their recess, but
make sure they are doing some kind of sport in one of their recesses. I know
elementary kids have about three recesses; replacing one of those into a
thirty-minute sports game could be beneficial. It can help the students that
cant be in a sport learn some of the skills that extracurricular activities
offer. Having one recess where they just focus on activities wont cost anything
and it’s healthy for the student’s health as well.
So many of our tax money goes to a lot of
things. Using taxpayer dollars to fund after school programs is a good method
to help students with low income families participate in some kind of activity.
It’s for a good cause because the students are our new future. Having this opportunity
can help so many students achieve their dream depending on what their dream is.
Some students have the dream to become writers, artist, professional athletes,
singers, etc.
Students from low-income families receive
fewer opportunities for academic enrichment than students from higher income
backgrounds. Offering scholarships or enrichment programs for students can help
them join an extracurricular activity. Out of school enrichment is defined as a
“unique out of school educational experiences that engage and challenge
students.” Out of school enrichment programs are good for high potential
students from low-income families because these experience can positively
influence student’s achievement levels, enrollment in advanced courses and
decisions to pursue. In the article “Developing Talents” by Rachelle Miller
quote that, “gifted students from low income families may face challenges
because of financial constraints at home”, students who come from low income
families in which the parents educational level and occupational status are
also commensurately low creates a special constraint.”
The government helps families with
low-incomes all the time by fee waivers, which covers their lunch and school
fees depending on their families’ income. I think doing the same for students
that want to play some sport or join and activity would be good thing. If they
have good academics and they qualify it could do them good. Recent researchers
from the article “Developing Talents” by Purdue University suggests that,
participation in extracurricular activities may increase students' sense of
engagement or attachment to their school, and thereby decrease the likelihood
of school failure and dropping out. This will help America have much more
successful people then failure. This would be a good investment for more school
engagement. 
Students from low-income families should
be provided opportunities to develop social support systems, extracurricular
resources such as school clubs, summer enrichment programs, mentor, and
cultural opportunity. This will help more students have a successful future and
helps them gain real world skills. Those kids will benefit them in the future. Everyone
can help giving students the opportunity of getting engage by helping in
fundraisers, volunteering, or just simply spreading the word on why this is so
important. All children should have the opportunity too participate in a activity.
Refrences :
Halpern, Robert. “After School Programs for Low-Income
Children: Promise and
Challenge”. Future of Children
(2007). Web. 2 Oct. 2007
Miller, Kachelle. “Developing Talents: Out of School
Enrichment Programs”. Journal
of Advanced Academics 21 (2010):
594-627. JAA. Web. Summer 2010
Riley, Richard. “After School Programs”. Education Week
(2004). Web. 30 April.
2013
