When talking about extracurricular activities, it’s very important to take into consideration the negatives and the positives of these activities. Although they can be a lot of fun, it’s essential to think about the time they require.

Time Spent 

Sports and clubs take up a lot of time throughout the week. Students in Lakota West High School who participate in activities that require full participation including band, clubs, and sports are busy throughout the week and their afternoons. Band throughout the summer would practice five of seven days of the week for at least six hours and could even extend past that. Sports like football and softball are right after school; practices are normally three to five p.m. but given game days the activity can last up to eight p.m. The decision to give up your time to do something you enjoy can truly reflect poorly on the other important things in one’s life.

Losing Sleep & The consequences of it 

When students and people are using their time to enjoy their activities it can lead to a bad sleep schedule. The recommended hours of sleep a teenager should get is seven to nine hours of sleep. When asking multiple student-athletes, most said they receive six to seven each night. When students lack the amount of sleep they are most likely to have lower grades, bad moods, and have more of a chance to get into car accidents. Although activities are a great social experience for everyone and most truly enjoy the activities they participate in, are the consequences worth it? 

Is losing sleep worth it

When talking to Lakota West student, Paige Kopp, she said that “she loves softball and although she does suffer with time management during the season she would not want to give it up.” Athletes give up a lot of time to do something that they love, so it is very important for them to develop time management. 

When thinking about joining extracurricular activities it’s very important to recognize the dedication and the time spent on these activities. Activities have a lot of positives when thinking about them including: making new friends, exercising, being involved, enjoying your surroundings, and social interactions. Although these activities come with some negatives do they truly outweigh the positives?