"Extra-curricular activities are a great leveller"

Clubs, activities and community volunteering help to create a school in which people are valued for a whole range of gifts and talentsSarah Dawson, deputy headteacher, Kingswood School, Bath

After a tough day in the classroom sixth form pupils at Oundle School in Northamptonshire can unwind by attending the Ale Appreciation Society. If that’s not to their taste, further down the corridor they could join their friends at the Wine Society or the Cheese Appreciation Club. (Surely they should get together?)

This is just a taster (sorry) of the range of clubs and activities on offer in independent schools, which can range from more mainstream choices, such as the Duke of Edinburgh Award, sport and dance, to pursuits such as asteroid hunting, Zulu beading and Asian cinema appreciation.

No-one would dispute that children need to learn about team spirit and that exercise and hobbies are excellent ways to unwind from study. In private schools, however, great importance is placed on extra-curricular activities. Why is this and what value do such pastimes really add to your child’s life?

“Extra-curricular activities are a great leveller,” says Sarah Dawson, one of the deputy heads at Kingswood independent school in Bath. “Life is not just about exam results, and pupils who may not be the crème de la crème academically will achieve just as much, and often more, outside the classroom as those who excel within it. This helps to build a school in which people are valued for a whole range of gifts and talents, just as they are in adult life.

Aim high for the future

“Extra-curricular activities also allow pupils to work with teachers outside the normal classroom disciplines and this fosters a fantastic sense of community,” Sarah continues. “All the teachers at Kingswood are encouraged to do at least two activities with the children. Last year I trained for the Bath Life half marathon with some sixth formers. When we’re out training, I’m just another runner – although I’m not quite as fit as some of them!

“Two of our sixth formers are terrific examples of how extra-curricular activities can lead to incredibly high standards. One of our girls is tipped to represent Great Britain in the swimming pool at the Olympic Games in 2012 and one of our boys is making a name for himself on the international golf circuit. Both are studying for their A levels and we’ve adapted a curriculum for them so that they can continue training appropriately,” says Sarah.

Create a new club

As well as team spirit, clubs and activities can give children a degree of independence that they wouldn’t otherwise have. “If there is something that a pupil is passionate about they can be instrumental in setting up this activity or club,” says Sarah. “Schools can’t always provide all of the academic subjects that pupils are interested in but they can often support pupils’ extra-curricular enthusiasms.

"Also, pupils work together across the age-range. For instance, our Eco-Schools club has pupils aged from Year 9 to Year 13 and this encourages the children to work together better as a team.”

Clubs and activities are often geared around helping the community and raising money for charity. “It’s vital for our pupils to be part of with the local community,” says Sarah. “It would be irresponsible if we didn’t encourage our pupils to contribute to society. Some help out at a local state primary school every week, while others put on musical entertainment at local nursing homes.”

Volunteering in Malawi

“Further afield, Kingswood sponsors an orphanage in Malawi and the school ran a trip out there this summer for pupils and staff," says Sarah. "Over three weeks, they helped to clear the ground and make bricks. They also worked in local primary school classrooms, filling holes in the floors and painting walls and murals.”

“It was an absolutely incredible experience,” says one member of the Malawi group.  “It made me appreciate that so many people don’t even have the basics, such as clean water and enough food, things that I take for granted back home. Most of all, it was so humbling to be greeted by such incredibly friendly people wherever we went. They have nothing, but they were much more cheerful and genuine than most people you will encounter in the West.”

Join a jazz band

The broad range of extra-curricular activities at private schools also encourage and nurture different personality types and talents. Not everyone has the confidence to get up on stage and sing Gilbert and Sullivan, but they may feel more comfortable as part of a choir or a jazz band. If your child loves cookery, gardening or wildlife, these are available at many private schools, as well as art clubs, languages courses and computer clubs.

Many activities complement the academic curriculum, not necessarily filling gaps but allowing children with certain interests to explore those more deeply. For instance, at Nottingham High School (a boys-only independent) pupils are offered the opportunity to study for GCSE Greek in their spare time, in addition to French, German and Spanish. There is also a centre at the school that provides the facilities to learn many more languages, including Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Italian and Urdu.

Learn to juggle

Doing too many extra-curricular activities may eat into study time, and as pupils get older they may spend less time on them and more time reading or revising. There’s no doubt that they add huge value, though, and some can lead to a creative and rewarding career.

Photography, flash animation for websites and sound recording are just a few that come to mind, although where circus skills at Harrow fits in we’re not so sure. 

If you know of any alumni who’ve gone on to have rewarding careers as clowns or acrobats, do get in touch…

Find out why sport is so highly regarded in private schools

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Where do you draw the line if your child wants to join in a lot of pricey activities and overseas trips? Please post a comment below