Throughout Texas, White Oak High School is well-known for its academics. However, it is arguable that it is known just as much for its success in extracurricular activities, and that’s because the students love what they’re doing. These activities are fun to the students who participate, but that’s not all. Extracurricular activities help students improve themselves by giving them motivation to work towards goals and a passion to put everything they have into.
In the lives of students, extracurricular activities motivate kids to try hard and do well. For example, my friend Aaron used to believe that life has no purpose. “You go to school, work, then you die.” However, he’s become heavily involved in band and loves every last bit of it. He wants to now pursue a career in music, so he’s having to pour all of his effort into his euphonium every night in order to perfect his sound and technique. Just like Aaron, other students also have passions in extracurricular activities. When students are dedicated to an activity they love, the hard work and long hours help shape their character. The no-pass, no-play rule involved in these activities also helps students become motivated in the classroom. It doesn’t matter if you’re quicker than lightning, you can’t be on the track team if you’re failing in schoolwork. Therefore, extracurricular activities help students by giving them motivation to work towards goals and pass their classes.
These “extra” curricular activities also give students structure in life and something to love. You see, some students fall in love with their activity of choice, and “extra” starts to seem to disappear from the word extracurricular. Their activity becomes their whole life and all they can think about. They decide that, in one way or another, they want to continue whatever they’re involved in for the rest of their life. This forces students to plan in order to achieve these goals. Music has given me an exciting future to look forward to, but I’ll have to buckle down and grit my teeth a couple of times to get there. Large amounts of hard work through high school will have to be paid to get accepted to college, and then I’ll have to go through said college, studying music. It will be difficult, but now that I have a plan, I won’t face the struggles of jumping in blind-folded without a clue of what I want to do in life. In addition, music has brought a lot of structure into my life, and I’m not as clueless anymore. I definitely feel more secure than before I found myself in music. I’m not the only kid whose life has been changed by these “extra” activities, and that’s a good thing. The organization that these passions cause students to have is incredible. When there is a will, there is a way, and these activities give students a will. Like others, Music gives me a reason to work hard, and so do all other activities that students enjoy.
My friend Aaron’s life has turned around for the better. He has more of a work ethic than before he committed to music. This can happen to all of us if we find the right realm for our souls. I don’t care what it is. Music, sports, theatre, or any other activity that an individual can fall in love with. All of the extracurricular activities have the power to strengthen the character of a person by causing them to push towards what they want and by giving them something to truly love and pour their heart into