By Riley Gonzales, Staff Writer
It can be difficult for students at River Hill to find time for personal activities when school occupies so much of student life. Many participate in after-school clubs and honor societies, but some also engage in other interests despite their demanding schedules.
River Hill offers a multitude of clubs, but there are a sea of activities that exist outside of just what the school has to offer. Many students participate in such activities, which can range anywhere from sports to volunteer groups, and more. Junior Ellie Hasegawa details, “I play softball, so that takes up a lot of my time. I also do scouts BSA which is basically Boy Scouts but it’s coed now.”
Athletics is one popular activity that students enjoy participating in within and outside the school system, commonly showing up among students’ interests. They often occupy a large chunk of time, but not so much that students can’t enjoy their other pursuits.
“I play soccer, and I participate in clubs too,” Alicia Antony, a sophomore at River Hill, shared. “I also like to paint and do artwork, and I play the piano.”
Hobbies can include a number of activities, but many students seem to be most interested in music and visual arts. For example, junior Marley Cosgrove stated, “At home, I like to draw. I listen to a lot of music, and then I try and play said music on instruments.”
Junior year is often the most hectic for high schoolers, making it tough to find time to engage in other pursuits. Juniors like Marley haven’t been able to spend as much time on activities outside of school, but it is always valuable for students to include leisure time in their day.
Group activities as well as individual hobbies both have a number of benefits. Junior Tiffany Liu is a member of the Baltimore Symphony Youth Orchestra. She expresses that one of the great things about it is “seeing my friends, and getting to talk to them and work with them. BSYO is really great for that because it’s making music together.”
Though a lot of students enjoy participating in clubs and activities with others, individual hobbies can be just as beneficial. They can help one express their creativity, as well as relieve stress.
“I try to make a little bit of time every day,” junior Sheila Li says about her hobbies, “just because I keep a sketchbook, so I try to do that after school because it helps me unwind a bit.”
However, academics take up much of students’ time after school. It leaves little availability for hobbies and their benefits.
Marley explains that she usually only has time for her hobbies on the weekends, because “each class often acts like they’re my only important class, so they’ll give me hours worth of homework each night.” However, she also mentions that “on Wednesdays, since we have Wellness Wednesday, a lot of the time I can do my homework in school and then have a little bit of time at home to draw or do whatever.”
Even with the addition of Wellness Wednesdays, school work can be overwhelming. It is crucial for students to have a balanced schedule that includes space for pastimes throughout the day.
“It’s really just time management, and if you don’t have time to do your hobbies, sometimes you just have to know what your priorities are,” Junior Ellie Hasegawa states, “If you feel like it’s a mental health day and you need to take some time for your hobbies, then you need to prioritize that.”