Extracurricular activities and how students view them

Students and teenagers in general can struggle to find healthy and productive ways to express themselves. This can cause behavioral issues, development struggles, and a lackluster academic performance. Overall, teens need ways to productively spend their time and invest their skills into, or else they can have extreme and detrimental side effects of not having positive social experiences, which can cause severe social anxiety in adulthood. 

Drama club is one such club students may join. In the drama program, they hand make props, costumes, and sets to recreate a stage production in front of an audience. “At times, (preparing for shows can be) stressful and tiring, but joyful and helps you make lots of friends.” says eighth grader actress Juliana Santos when asked what it was like working on a school play. The drama club can have really beneficial effects with students who enjoy creative work, such as improved mood, greater academic performance, and all around being a happier student.

Another club students may join as a creative and helpful outlet is the NJHS, which stands for ‘National Junior Honor Society’. In this group, students focus on how to improve their community. “If anyone needs help, they can come to me.” Said the president of the NJHS, Ares Van Straaten, when asked what they do there. In the NJHS, they run community service projects, food drives, and try to make their community a safer and happier place. When asked what to tell someone who wants to improve their community but doesn’t know where to start, the NJHS president also said “They can start small, they can pick up trash from their neighborhoods, being kind to others can go a long way.” 

Finally, we visited the Bookworms and Creators club. As the club’s whole purpose is to promote creativity, it is perhaps the most inspiring creatively to students. In this club, they gather weekly to write stories and poems, play music and all around have a fun and encouraging environment. “I want to create a safe environment where everyone feels safe to get feedback from peers” Said Bookworms and Creators club president, ninth grader Hailey Tsang. Hailey is in charge of creating a kind, safe, and encouraging environment for young creators looking to practice their skills. Excitingly, this has proven to be one of the most encouraging for healthy teenage development. 

Overall, the clubs interviewed showed the positive benefits of joining a club. Surely it’s not perfect, but it can be helpful to have friends in a non-academic environment. No matter what students may choose to do to relieve the stress that comes from school, it’s important that they’re supported in their endeavors and given a positive work environment to minimize the stress school causes in the first place.