How Does Participation in School Activities Help in Enhancing Social Skills in Children?
How Does Participation in School Activities Help in Enhancing Social Skills in Children?
Digitalization has increased our efficiency, enhanced effective communication, and saved valuable resources. However, it has also interfered with a vital element of our lives-face-to-face interaction. With increased screen time, competitive academics, and time constraints our kids too are at a significant risk of losing out on the quintessential social interaction that is instrumental for their social development. And we parents are faced with the added challenge of enhancing their social skills.
Chitra Mehrotra, a 33-year-old homemaker from Bengaluru says she feels helpless trying to coax her 11-year-old son in vain to stop playing video games and step outdoors with other kids. Her son is quick to respond “Most of my friends are online so who will I go play with?” Sanjeev Jha a software engineer with a multinational firm in Hyderabad shares that his 14-year-old daughter has to complete home assignments and then attend tuition after school. “That leaves her very little time and energy to meet up or interact with friends,” he says.
The problem is real but so are the consequences.
What does compromised social development mean for our kids?
A study published by PubMed reveals that child development is significantly affected by too much screen time and reduced social interaction. The study states ‘children and adolescents who spend more time using screen media are lower in psychological well-being than low users. High users of screens display poor emotion regulation (not staying calm, arguing too much, being difficult to get along with), an inability to finish tasks, lower curiosity, and more difficulty making friends.’
Experts second the findings of the study and express concern over reduced social skills in children. It impacts them in terms of negative self-perception, difficulty in making friends, holding healthy conversations, and regulating their emotions. However, they also agree that schools and parents can work collectively to enhance social skills.
How can the school’s involvement help?
Experts believe that the role of school activities in developing children’s social skills is a very significant one. They say that with severe time constraints and peer pressure, schools can help in enhancing children’s social skills through school activities as a part of the curriculum. Activities like school plays, sports, school clubs, and music ensembles can provide an effective stage for children to interact, communicate, collaborate, and enhance their confidence. An added advantage is that student participation in school activities saves parents the hassle of spending extra time and effort to enroll their children in external classes and offers an opportunity to help build their personalities in a safe, secure, and familiar environment.
How extracurriculars at Sherwood High boost social skills
The impact of school participation on social skills in children, cannot be understated and Sherwood High’s approach to improving social skills via activities reflects the school’s dedication to holistic child development.
Here is a comprehensive list of the benefits of school involvement for children’s social development specially collated to assist parents enhance social skills in kids.
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- Teamwork and collaboration– Working together as a team is a valuable skill that helps kids empathize, resolve conflicts, accommodate different perspectives, share responsibilities, and work towards common goals. These school social skills are important for success in their careers as well as in their personal lives later. Student engagement in sports teams, drama clubs, or group projects can develop these skills.
- Communication– Effective verbal and non-verbal communication is the pillar for successful and meaningful relationships. School activities like debates, theatre or drama clubs, art, and music help children sharpen their communication skills through voice modulation, clear expression, articulation of thoughts, positive body language, and respectful discussions.
- Emotional Intelligence– Emotional intelligence is crucial for healthy child development. Children need to experience and deal with different emotions and perspectives. This helps them become more tolerant, sensitive, and empathetic as they learn to accommodate different thoughts, feelings, opinions, and backgrounds. Extracurricular activities like school dramas, debates, etc help them understand different characters and behaviors while volunteering for social service and other community services exposes them to the challenges faced by people and fosters compassion.
- Overcoming social anxiety- A lot of parents worry about their child being shy, introverted, and unable to speak up in a group. A shy child may find their voice in a debate, a poetry recital, playing an instrument in the school band, a science or an art project, or even during a storytelling session which are guided school activities by senior and skilled educators who create a non-judgemental environment at Sherwood High.
- Problem-solving and decision-making– During group activities, children encounter disagreements while interacting with others. Learning to step up and play an active role in resolving conflicts constructively without aggression is a trait that makes children more patient and diplomatic and is an important social skill in children.
- Expanding social circles– Many lifelong and strong bonds are developed during school years. Participating in extracurricular activities brings like-minded children together and forges strong bonds that go beyond the academic competition. This helps children feel accepted and develop a sense of belonging.
- Leadership qualities -Good leaders are made and not born and school’s involvement in bringing out the best in children is vital. Exposing children to different activities can hone their leadership skills, by making them more responsible, taking accountability for their actions, making better decisions, motivating others, and organizing events. All the qualities that serve them well in adulthood. Student engagement in volunteering for a fundraising campaign and serving as class monitor representatives or sports captains can help tremendously.
- Adaptability and resilience– A vital trait of child development for survival in society is to adapt to different cultures, environments, people, and situations. Activities like sports, competitions, etc provide children with the opportunity to build tolerance, acceptance, and resilience for dealing with unexpected setbacks and bouncing back. They help children navigate challenges with optimism and confidence to grow up as better and happier individuals.
Challenges in encouraging kids to participate in school activities
Active participation in school activities can be rewarding and challenging at the same time. Like any other process, there may be hurdles. An effective way to leverage Sherwood High’s activities to enhance children’s social skills is acknowledging and addressing the blockages and working towards a win-win situation.
Kids may resist being a part of the activities for the following reasons:
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- Lack of confidence.
- Lack of motivation.
- Fear of failure and rejection.
- Academic pressure.
- Logistical challenges.
- Peer pressure.
How can we as parents help?
While participation in school activities may pose challenges for the kids, it may be an uphill climb for us parents too. The resistance from children is not easy to deal with. Hence senior psychologists offer some insights to help navigate the hurdles.
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- It always helps to be aware of where our children’s interests and talents while choosing extracurricular activities with them. This keeps them excited and committed. Coaxing children to sign up for random activities may make them disinterested and give up in exasperation sooner or later.
- Psychologists insist on being patient with and supportive of children who are anxious about joining any activities. Student participation is for bringing out the best in kids and should not be seen as an obligation. The child should feel comfortable enough to communicate if at any point they wish to discontinue participating in the activities.
- We cannot force our kids to sign up for activities that we don’t believe in. Eg a child cannot be coaxed into a sports activity if physical fitness and playing a sport are last on the list of family priorities.
- Squeezing in an extra activity in an over-packed academic schedule needs time management and prioritizing which can be taught to children. Experts suggest preparing a realistic timetable along with the kids for sustainability and better student engagement.
To summarize,
- Social interactions are intrinsic to overall child development and well-being.
- School activities can help in enhancing social skills in children.
- Sherwood High’s methods for enhancing social skills through activities help children grow to be healthier and happier adults.
- Parents can take advantage of school activities and social skills development at Sherwood High by encouraging their kids to participate.
- They can encourage effective student participation by choosing the right extracurricular activities based on their children’s talents and interests.