Anyone know of extra curriculars? (2 Viewers)

[jimmysmith560]

Hi!
Does anyone know of extra curriculars for someone who isn’t really sporty. I’m planning on doing piano because I’m absolutely horrible at strong instruments. I would like a sport extra curricular but one that isn’t very tiring. Currently do table tennis and debating at school. Any suggestions are appreciated!
Thanks a lot!

You could try playing chess with your friends at school or joining your school's chess club (if applicable)? Playing chess is something that is appreciated at Fort Street High School from what I've seen, so I believe it would definitely be a good idea to add it to table tennis, debating and piano!

Home - Fort Street High School

Home Page

www.fortstreet.nsw.edu.au

I hope this helps!

 

[quickoats]

quick question, is piano easy to learn, i’m not a very co-ordinated person and i have barely any experience with instruments other than the ukelele assessments i had to do at school which i completely flunked. given by this, how long do u think it’ll take me to get used to the notes and stuff?

no it's not easy to learm.

I don't think it's the best idea to ham up on the extra curriculars to impress fort street (as evidenced by your other posts on the site). Explore your own interests and see where they take you. This will make you a much more well rounded and vibrant person.

 

[quickoats]

yeah honestly my interests are probably anything but sport, im not a sporty type of person what instruments do u think is easiest to learn for a 13 year old?

I don’t think you understand where I’m getting at. Try to find a genuine interest, not something you can try and do to quickly “tick a box” for a selective school application. Are you drawn to any instruments? Types of music you like listening to? e.g. if you like jazz, try trumpet or sax. If you don’t really care about music and are just doing this for brownie points then what’s the point? Tbh schools may like someone who’s part of a band as it demonstrates teamwork and participation in a community. They won’t care that you learn piano or whatever.

Even if your passion is gaming or something, you can get yourself involved in a community in a much more meaningful way.

 

[Epicman69]

if i can’t do many at once i’m thinking about just doing one instrument for now because i don’t do any extra curriculars out of school only in school which is table tennis and debating but we don’t get awards for it or anything so i’m not sure how to prove it to them :/

I just want to ask are you trying out for entry into fort street year 11 or 10? Cause I'm pretty sure entry to year 9/10 is based on if there is any spots available i.e someone leaves the school etc. Also I don't think starting any hobby only for the sole purpose of entry into a selective school is worth it, cause you really got to enjoy something to continue it. I have learnt piano before starting from kindergarten but I was kinda forced into it by my parents so I quit around year 6/7, since I just really didn't enjoy it.

 

[may22]

You mentioned you do debating; what about public speaking? Some competitions have closed for this year, but there should be a few more (online) towards the end of the year, and then throughout next year as well.

Also does your school have a robotics club/team? If you're interested in STEM, it's a great way to learn a lot of new things, while building teamwork and communication skills.

 

[nilatar]

ohhhh okay we don’t actually have chess club at our school but i’ll see if there’s any places that give chess lessons bcuz currently i have no absolutely no idea how to play lol

@IAmWinston can teach you chess, he's a GM.

 

[quickoats]

I’ve always wanted to get involved in music tho. Mainly either piano or violin, i just never applied for it because i didn’t think i would be good at it. And because I didn’t have much time to participate in it. Only days i could do were saturday and sunday but it was filled with tutoring. But now i think i should start considering i’m much better at managing my time and also want something that can relieve my stress and anxiety from my studies.

You're probably too old for the violin (well in the eyes of Suzuki) so piano is more accessible. If it's for your own sake, piano can be a good thing to learn for leisure as well as a nice party trick - same goes for guitar. But if it's solely for the purposes of selective school entry, it's not worth the hassle as it won't win you any brownie points (a lot of ppl in year 9 would be like grade 8 at piano at least lmao - even though it doesn't really make a difference)

Best practice is just to apply and see where it goes from there. There is no point dedicating your life into forcing an uncertain outcome that won't really matter in the long term anyway. You're in year 8 - do the things you enjoy and have some fun at school and involve yourself deeply in a community (whether its cultural, social, sports etc). Forcing yourself to like different things and cover a variety of ground thinly (30 mins of volunteering and a free online certification) to appeal to an admissions committee is no way to live.

 

[ExtremelyBoredUser]

Don't force yourself to do random extra-curriculars just for the sake of selective; coming from experience, its not enjoyable to do so much random extra-curriculars because you rarely have time to adjust and focus on recreation. Rather go to one or two extra-curriculars or committments aiming to achieve high and dedicate a good portion of time to that, for e.g scouts, aim to become a pack leader or gain X amount of badges. Its better showing to admission committees that you are able to manage time effectively through excelling in your extra-curriculars/commitments and school rather than you're in loads of clubs and organisations but you don't have anything noticeable than your participation. I suggest you research some clubs or organisations outside of school, at least 1 or 2, that pick up your attention and interest you to an extent you're willing to dedicate your time to it then choose it on the basis of your interest and self-development rather than solely for selective.

If doing extra-curriculars feels like a burden than something enjoyable, don't do it, simple. Why waste loads of time and energy on something just out of hopes to gain entry into some school. If you're **decently fit**, I suggest joining a soccer or cricket club because they don't drain as much time or energy (sometimes) to an extent that its noticeable, unless you're doing reps etc., because just playing every week for 4-5 hrs makes you way more active and energised which carries to your studies; from experience.

If you like music, try the guitar, there's many variants of it but just get an acoustic guitar. Its always satisfying after playing a riff, you feel so proud of yourself after learning chords etc. There should be smaller sizes if you worry about it being too heavy but it is definitely worth a try - I really enjoyed playing it a lot, you'll also notice your fingers toughen up a bit after a while which is pretty cool and there's so much more I won't spoil. Perhaps when the lockdowns lifted, try going to a music class and just ask to try out a guitar and play a basic chord if you want a feel.

 

[ExtremelyBoredUser]

hmmmm we did the guitar at school and i was horrible

Ahhh Sad to hear that. Well I enjoyed the guitar a lot since I played it from year 5 but I guess its something you appreciate after a while. Is there any instruments you enjoyed a bit at school? Or some that interest you which you haven't played?

 

[ExtremelyBoredUser]

i’m interested in piano, i think it would be sick if i could pull off playing it

Then try enrolling in some piano classes or if you know some friends who have a piano, ask them if you can try it out? If the thought of being good at piano excites you then you can overcome the original barriers and constraints that would normally demotivate you. I haven't played the piano regularly and I only tested it out at school so I can't give advice about it. You should consult someone who knows it but I believe if you're willing to dedicate time to it and your patient/disciplined, you shouldn't be scared away from having a go.

 

[may22]

nope my school doesn’t offer any comps sadly, that’s why i’m trying hard to get into extra currics so i can not only gain awards to apply for fort street but also so i can have smth to rely on and do after my studies.

Oh, I think you can apply for some public speaking competitions separate to your school

There might be robotics community clubs, but tbh most of the ones I met when I did it were other schools, and home-schooled teams

 

[may22]

The UN Voice. They ran it online last year, looks like it'll be the same this year.

Not sure if you need to join through school though

NSW | UN Youth Australia

Voice is a national public speaking competition that sees participants propose solutions to pressing global issues, lobby for their consideration, and defend their validity. Registrations are open now for the 2023 NSW Voice Competition.

unyouth.org.au

 

[nourished.]

i’m interested in piano, i think it would be sick if i could pull off playing it

Do it. Piano is not as hard you think it is. You get at a very decent level in a short amount of time. Practice a bit everyday, fiddle around with the keys, take lessons, and just be patient with it. After a month, you'll be able to play a couple of easy songs. After 3 months, you'll be able to play songs you like. After 6 months, you'll be able to play songs you like even better.

For context, I'm self taught. So, you'll be able to pick it up in no time.

 

[nourished.]

What do ppl think of tennis as an extracurricular? Tennis is one of the few sports i would actually play and enjoy. Has anyone had experience with it?

Lmao, I also play tennis. I've also taught it for the lols before too. If your hand-eye coordination is pretty good, you'll be awesome at tennis in no time. If it isn't, it won't take long to get there.

When u do piano lessons at like a music academy or something like that, is there a recreational level? Like I’d rather just do it for recreation rather than trying to level up and go up to higher grades and stuff.

Local libraries sometimes offer these types of classes. If piano is just something you want to do for fun, start with the common pop chords (C, A, F, G).

 

[nourished.]

Where did u have tennis lessons at?

Well, I taught a bit at Strathfield. I'd suggest you just take a couple lessons with a friend, and then just start making it a regular thing with some friends.

 

[wzsmartypants]

remember ur main focus is ur grades

 

[may22]

If you manage your time well, you’ll have no problems

I did about 5 or 6 extra curricular activities in year 10 (2 very time consuming, the others not as much), but I also didn’t have much of a problem keeping on top of my studies, so if you can strike that balance, it’s great

year 11 is a different story lol

 

[Eagle Mum]

Do you think you’d prefer to perform or compose? If you think you’d enjoy being part of an orchestra, then learning the violin might be a good option (school & community orchestras are always looking for extra members). If you think you’d enjoy composing one day, the piano/keyboard is very versatile.

 

[may22]

DAMNNNN, 5 or6?!!! that’s so many, what ones did u do??

so the time consuming ones were robotics and my out-of-school sport (fun fact: ended up with both competitions on the same day the weekend of my exams...I have no idea where all that drive and motivation went this year)

the others were public speaking, drama (sort of part time), a weekly religious lunch class, and I was on the student council. I also did a lot of in-school sport competitions and community events/services

I think the reason I did a lot is because I’m the kind of person who works better when there’s more to do, but in different fields. So, yeah, there was lots to do for school and academics, but I love being challenged in other ways

I’m a big person for inter school events haha, and we can’t do them now because of COVID 🥲

 

[IAmWinston]

@IAmWinston can teach you chess, he's a GM.

I'ma hella rusty though. Use to be much better when I drew against Illingworth. Now I'm on a losing streak against like 1500s.