Soccer club. Art club. Drama club. The list goes on. These are all different extracurricular activities that almost all schools offer. Extracurricular activities can include anything from sports to bird watching, and they are all great ways to spend your time! For years, schools around the country have provided clubs and other extracurricular activities, so you should take advantage of that. All students should be required to participate in at least one extracurricular activity.

First of all, taking part in an extracurricular activity helps students be more socially involved. According to Generic_Name, a guidance counselor at Generic_School, 96% of students that participated in one or more extracurricular activities have more friends. In other words, it is highly likely that a student will make a new friend or gain friends in an extracurricular activity that they participate in. Increasing the number of friends a student has would then make them more socially involved.

Not only that, but participating in an extracurricular activity will increase a student's self-esteem. "Students that have taken part in extracurricular activities show higher signs of happiness and self accomplishment," says Robert Hilton, a pediatric physiologist and expert in child behaviors. Put simply, students that have been in out-of-school activities are happier and appreciate themselves more. This means that if students were required to take part in extracurricular activities, they would all have increased self-esteems.

Another reason is that students can find talent that helps them become successful. The Organization of Career Study, a group of people that help people study to get jobs, determined in a survey that 77% of employed people found the skills that they now use in their jobs from when they were part of extracurricular activities. Put simply, most people discovered the skills they need for work from extracurricular activities they participated in as children. If it was required for students to participate in out-of-school activities, many more people would find inner talents that could help them get a job some day.

People who don't like extracurricular activities say that requiring students to join out-of-school activities deprives them of time after school to complete homework. Generic_Name, a mother of 5 kids that participate in extracurricular activities, says "all 5 of my children come home from their after school activities at 6:00PM and have to be in bed by 7:30PM, leaving them only hour to eat dinner, take showers, complete their homework, and finish their chores." Jameson is saying that her kids don't have enough time to do everything they have to do after school because of their participation in after school activities. However, students can still participate in extracurricular activities and have time after school for things such as homework and chores. The Virginia Directory of Public Schools, the group that runs and regulates all of Virginia's schools, published a study, determining that 90% of schools offer extracurricular activities not only after school but also before school. In other words, most schools give students the option for out-of-school activities both before school and after. Due to that, extracurricular activities do not deprive students of time to complete their homework after school.

Ultimately, it should be required for students to take part in at minimum one extracurricular activity. Why? Participating in an out-of-school activity helps students become more socially involved, increases their self-esteems, and helps them find talent to become successful. If you're a student, participate in an extracurricular activity! If you're a teacher, start a new out-of-school club! It may seem small, but in the end, it might be what jump starts your future... or your whole life.