Extracurriculars: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Being in a small school presents many unique opportunities with it. While student teaching is still the main focus there are several peripheral experiences that I would love to get involved in and have already begun to dive into. Extracurriculars.

This word can evoke a sense of pride in some, while at the same time conjure up feelings of stress and being overcommitted. However, just like most things there are good points and there are bad.

Bad: Extracurriculars take a lot of time. From my short time here I have heard opportunities for participation in boys basketball, the spring musical, coaching track, a new graphic design club, Prom and many others. While I've been very cautious and picky with what I get involved in I have learned this simple lesson of time management. All these things take so much time and effort.

Good: Extracurriculars let students experience you in a different light away from the classroom. While it is great to get to see students everyday and build a professional working relationship with them, it is nice to get to know the students' interests and talents outside of the math classroom. This gives me a more complete view of who that student is as a person rather than just an ID number.

Ugly: Extracurriculars can get difficult to let go or hand over once a teacher has been doing them for so long. I'm sure that very few teachers are asked to give up extracurriculars since they are always difficult to fill in the first place. So when you volunteer for an activity it is sometimes volunteering to take on a career long responsibility.

I enjoyed doing several extracurricular activities when I was in high school, but the obvious point is that it is easier to participate in several activities rather than overseeing several activities. I'm still trying to find that good balance of giving my time where I know I have some freedom versus overcommitting to several different things and failing at them.