Hobbies are very impactful on everyone. They can have both positive and negative effects on people’s lives. They give individuals a way to relax, learn new skills, and express themselves, but they can also take up time and become distractions. For students, hobbies play a big role in school life. When balanced well, they can boost focus, creativity, and mood, but when they take priority over schoolwork, it can be harder to stay on track with assignments and grades.
Many students at Taylorsville High School take part in different extracurricular activities as their hobbies. These include things like sports, fine arts, and gaming. For some students, hobbies make school more enjoyable and help them stay focused, while others find it hard to balance them with homework.
According to the Washburn Review, hobbies can greatly improve student life by helping them relieve stress and discover new interests. Creative and physical hobbies can boost mental health and academic performance when done in moderation, as supported by research from PubMed Central. However, too much focus on hobbies can sometimes distract from schoolwork or create pressure to perform well in both areas.
For junior Tuaiselelei Tagovailoa, his hobby of singing is both a source of joy and stress. “My hobby is singing, and I don’t think it’s influenced me much. I usually sing in my free time and when I’m in choir, so they kind of mix together for me,” he said. But he also mentioned that it can become overwhelming. “Singing is a little stressful for me. My entire family is involved in singing and it puts pressure on me, even though I enjoy singing myself.”
Despite the pressure, Tagovailoa said that it motivates him to work harder in choir class, though he admits it can sometimes be distracting. “A lot of the time, I focus on singing and writing songs instead of doing work in class,” he added.
“I want to make music full-time after I graduate,” adds Tagovailoa. His passion for music motivates him to improve in choir and think about how he wants to incorporate it into his future. For some students, hobbies like his can help them figure out what they enjoy doing and may inspire their future goals.
Junior Vivian Ly finds her hobby of gaming to be a fun escape that she manages carefully. “I play games every day, but school takes priority,” she said. “If I’m ever in the middle of a game and remember I have work to do, I’ll always finish up my game in order to get to my homework.” Ly explained that gaming helps her relax, even if it can be competitive at times. “When I’m done though, all of my stress is gone,” she said. While gaming doesn’t interfere with her schoolwork, she admits that she sometimes rushes through her homework to have more free time afterwards.
For junior Charlotte DeWidt, ice skating is a fun but difficult hobby to balance with school. She said, “My ice skating hobby has definitely affected my balance for school. I have a hard time balancing schoolwork, and I usually put my hobby before school.” She adds, “It’s made me fall behind and feel stressed, and my motivation has gone down.” Still, Charlotte said that skating has helped her gain confidence and become better at performing and speaking in front of others.
For many students, hobbies can do more than just relieve stress. They can also guide them toward interests and strengths that connect to their education and future goals. When students are passionate about something, it can motivate them to put more effort into related subjects and think about how their hobbies could shape careers later on.
Across Taylorsville High, students show that hobbies can shape school life in many different ways. Some use them to relax and manage stress, while others find it hard to balance hobbies with schoolwork. Research shows that hobbies can help with mental health and learning, but it’s important to keep them in balance.
