Amoruso: How Do Medfield High School Students Balance it All?

Looking at their agenda, the average high school student can get overwhelmed.

The entire page is filled with due dates, projects, standardized tests and daily practices for sports. Even when schedules are double-booked, kids continue to take on more.

When we are younger, parents are responsible for getting us involved in activities. Usually, it starts as a ballet class or soccer team, but, as the years go on, interests expand to fulfill the college application expectations of a “well-rounded” person. This is the standard for most high school kids. They feel the need to play a sport, show they are artistic, complete enough community service, find a job, and excel at school on top of everything else.

How do kids balance school with all of their extracurriculars? Medfield High School seniors Caroline Richard and Paul Wagenseller shared how they were able to continue all of their activities even when it seemed unmanageable.

What activities were you involved in during high school?

Caroline: I was involved in drama, softball, and Destination Imagination (DI), and I worked at .

Paul: I was involved in Jazz Band, Golf, drama, Jazz Choir, and Honors Band, and worked as a ski instructor in the winter.

Was balancing all of your activities difficult?

Caroline: Yes, because I always had to be in two places at once and I needed to prioritize a lot.

Paul: Not really, I found time for everything. It’s all about finding the right time for everything in order to have fun, which I think I did.

How did you manage to balance everything?

Caroline: I made lists and used my agenda.

Paul: I never used an agenda; that would’ve helped a little bit. I managed to remember just about everything without angering people too much.

Did school tend to come before or after your activities?

Caroline: Although I tried to balance my time between school and my activities, the activities mostly took precedence over my evening while I worked on homework throughout the school day the next day.

Paul: My brain is just a jumbled mess. So school and activities came at the same time.

Underclassmen can surely benefit from the advice of these graduated seniors. With persistence and motivation, it is possible to continue a variety of extracurricular activities.  The class of 2012 has just graduated, but for the rest of Medfield High School, this advice is the key to staying afloat.