The importance of extracurricular activities

Extracurricular activities build skills school cannot: they surface hidden talents, grow social and interpersonal skills, lift academic performance, boost self-confidence and sharpen thinking. The best choice is whatever matches your child’s genuine interest, from debating and sports to LEGO, astronomy, cooking or coding clubs.

“I make most of my friends through my extracurricular activities,” says the actress Kiernan Shipka, and most of us recognise the pattern from our own childhoods: the hobby class was fun, it taught something real, and the friendships came free.

Indian families lean into this more than most. A Cambridge University study found Indian students engage more in extra classes and co-curricular activities than their global peers: almost two-thirds take extra tuition in key subjects, 72% participate in co-curricular activities, 74% play sports regularly at school, and only 11% take part in no extracurricular clubs at all.

Why are extracurricular activities good for kids?

1. They teach new skills

An activity outside the syllabus can surface a hidden talent or passion, open a gateway to future niches and careers, and give a child a place where they discover what they are worth.

2. They grow social skills

Most classes run in groups, so conversation, discussion and collaboration are built in. New friends beyond schoolmates, and, for online courses, friends beyond geography; these classes quietly train the social skills that classrooms rarely have time for.

3. They lift academic performance

Counterintuitive but well documented: students with equal interest in academic and non-academic pursuits improve their grades. A Texas A&M University study found reading achievement, maths achievement and course grades all positively influenced by extracurricular participation.

4. They build self-confidence

A skill mastered outside school wards off stress and negativity, and the discipline of showing up teaches time management and teamwork along the way.

5. They sharpen thinking

Problem solving, analysis, leadership and creativity all get exercised, especially in group sports and team-centred classes.

What do students actually choose?

In the Cambridge survey, debating led the clubs at 36%, followed by science club (28%), art (25%) and book club (22%). Among the 74% who play sports regularly, badminton (37%), football (30%) and cricket (30%) topped the list.

Five unconventional activities worth exploring

1. Debating and public speaking. The most popular club for a reason: oratory, self-confidence and interpersonal skills, all in one room.
2. LEGO club. Creativity, innovation and analytical skills; club settings add the exchange of ideas between young builders, and construction play teaches more than it appears to.
3. Astronomy club. Interest in space keeps growing and the topic range is enormous; many schools now run one.
4. Culinary club. Cooking has shed its stereotypes and suits all ages; it is creativity you can eat.
5. Coding and animation. For the child drawn to the digital world, coding builds logic and animation opens doors into art, storytelling and design at once.

The market has noticed too: an IIM Kozhikode student study projected India’s extracurricular market at $5.8 billion in 2021 and growing with internet penetration. But the market is not the point; the match is.

The right extracurricular is not the one that impresses on an application. It is the one your child would attend even if nobody was keeping attendance.

Whatever you choose, sync it with your child’s interest first and any future roadmap second, and let free play keep its own unscheduled hours alongside.

Dr. V.S. Gayathri is a Certified Dyslexia Therapist, an Orton-Gillingham trained literacy specialist, and the founder of Flourishing Kids. She has delivered over 4,000 hours of one-to-one reading and spelling intervention, helping children across multiple countries build stronger literacy skills. For a child who struggles in class, the right activity outside it can be the confidence engine; get in touch for a free 15-minute conversation.