Four years of high school can be a chaotic experience for a lot of students. There are tests to study for, homework to finish, and, along with this, many students want to be involved by joining sports or clubs. At RHS, there is a large variety of clubs and sports that the students can join, but these clubs and sports require a lot out of their members, which could lead to a lot of stress for these students, since they have to worry about their school work as well.

There are some students who have been able to try different ways of balancing sports, clubs, and school work in ways that will not completely overwhelm them.

The majority of high schools have different extracurricular for their students to involve themselves in, but some of them will have students occupied to the point where they might not even have enough time to finish their homework or studying. Clubs could have long meetings and events for their members to attend. Along with that, there are sports where student athletes have practices almost every day, as well as games throughout the week.

“I bowl on a league outside of school, which I’ve been doing since I was four. I’ve been in color guard and track since seventh grade, the girl’s bowling team since last year, the drive one club, and I joined the cross country team this year,” sophomore Miranda Rumfelt said. “When it comes to school work, I just try to take it day by day and stay focused. This school and this city give us so many opportunities, so take advantage of them. For people who are struggling, you only live once so you don’t have time to slow down. Don’t stress.”

While balancing sports and schoolwork can be stressful and complicated, most students that are a part of athletic teams have higher grade point averages than students not part of sports, according to an article on breakingmuscle.com written by Jeanne Goodes. Along with that, student-athletes are shown to have more positive attitudes towards school and a higher interest in continuing their after high school.

“Remember to breathe when you get too stressed out. Take a moment for yourself to collect your thoughts and make a game plan,” RHS alumni Kara Hoffman said. “Make a schedule and stick to it, but don’t put so much on your plate that you get sick. Your mental health is more important than school work, so if you feel overwhelmed it’s okay to take a break.”

Balancing school work and extracurricular can be hard, but this advice goes further than just students that are a part of clubs and sports. Everyone can get overwhelmed with school, so just remember to keep calm and manage your time well. Make time to finish homework and to study, but also be sure to make time to relax and take a break from all of the stress that comes with school.