Extracurricular Activities in Canada

Keeping kids active and challenged is an essential part of the Canadian way of life. That is why extracurricular activities were introduced and why many schools have made them compulsory for all learners.

The activities can occur during the school day, lunch, or after school. This may be the best part of a child’s day as they enjoy a sport or cultural activity that can sometimes become a big part of their lives.

Canadian Extracurricular activities

Extracurricular activities are essential for children to learn about teamwork, sportsmanship, and respect and enable them to make friends and maybe even develop a love and passion for one of the activities.

For children new to Canada, extracurricular activities can be a good way to practice their English skills while learning and becoming part of the community in a fun and exciting way.

Universities and colleges are always looking for applicants who show that they have hobbies and interests outside of their academic lives and some kind of volunteer experience.

Canada is also loaded with, family recreational and community extracurricular activities for young people and adults.

Cultural Activities

Almost every school in Canada must provide some form of after-school extracurricular activity outside sports. The school’s extracurricular programs come mostly in the form of themed cultural clubs e.g. the book club.

These clubs provide the basis for Canadian youth to find each other through a mutual interest in a subject, topic, or field. Some of the more common and popular school cultural youth clubs include

• Book clubs
• Chess Clubs
• Technology clubs
• Cross country clubs
• Culinary clubs
• Dance clubs
• Music clubs
• Painting clubs

Sporting Activities

Canada is one of the coldest nations in the world. The landscape is generally snow-capped for the better part of most years. Therefore, if people want to amuse themselves with an outdoor sporting activity, they have to resort to one that requires skates to navigate the snow. As such, the most popular sporting activities, generally across all demographics, are:

• Ice hockey
• Figure skating
• Curling
• Skiing
• Lacrosse
• Snowboarding
• Dog sledding, and
• Snowmobiling.

Entertainment Activities

The number of entertainment activities in Canada is monumental. Young people, in particular, have plenty of opportunities to be entertained along with their friends; most of it is age appropriate.

Depending on their interests, the youth of Canada can go to any music, film, book, and art festivals in Canada’s major cities. Besides there are also a host of playful activities that the youth can do together to entertain themselves, including:

• Hiking
• Camping
• Climbing
• Mountain biking

Youth Development Activities

Extracurricular activities in Canada that are targeted towards developing the youth are plentiful. Schools, businesses, and the local, provincial, and federal governments are all highly invested in ensuring that Canada’s youth are properly educated and equipped with all the socioeconomic and sociocultural tools they need as the nation’s next generation of leaders.

To this end, there are many youth developments that Canadian youth can enroll and take part in as viable extracurricular activities that will eventually benefit them and their country's future. These programs include but are not limited to:

• Young Canada Works
• Volunteering and internships abroad
• Students on Ice Foundation
• Languages at Work
• Canadian Conservation Institute internship programs
• Parks Canada Youth Ambassador program
• Odyssey - language assistant program
• Canada Service Corps – Youth volunteer opportunities

Family Recreational Activities

Canada is a nation that puts a lot of value on the family unit as the cornerstone of society. As such, it puts a lot of emphasis on making sure that families are taken care of by providing the best possible amenities and benefits they could have. These governmental provisions extend to recreational activities as well, particularly ones that are experiential like:

• Family Theme parks
• Family themed museums
• Recreational urban parks
• The National Heritage and Conservation Park System

Family Recreational activities are one of the few instances in which the youth can enjoy an extracurricular activity with their families.

Community Activities

Canadians are some of the most welcoming and friendly people in the world. To foster a sense of belonging among each other and the inflow of new immigrants that the country periodically receives, they have created a host of extracurricular activities and programs geared towards developing and enhancing their communities. One of the most prominent of these programs is Canada Connects.

Canada Connects is a program that assists newcomers to Canada to be able to settle in Canadian society by matching them with citizens or longtime community members.

This allows for two-way street integration where everyone can get involved to build communities that are welcoming.

With Canada Connects, you can volunteer to:

• Foster a sense of belonging among newcomers
• Facilitate an increase in understanding and communication skills across cultures
• Learn about the challenges newcomers face and the contributions they can make

Canada Connects assists newcomers by:

• Enabling them to connect with people in their community and build relationships that are meaningful
• Increasing their communication skills and comprehensive understanding of Canada

How to Participate

These steps will enable you to make a difference in someone’s life or find help in settling in Canada.

• Find an organization offering services to newcomers. You will be provided with a form that you need to fill out.
• Indicate on the form how you want to get involved and when you will be available to help.
• You will be matched by the organization with a newcomer or volunteer in your community.

IEC: Working Holiday Visa

Should you be interested in experiencing some of these extracurricular activities for yourself, then you can do so temporarily using the IEC’s Working Holiday Visa Program. To ensure you’re eligible to apply, we recommend checking whether or not your county has an international mobility program and consulting the IEC Working Holiday Eligible country list.

The Benefits of Taking Part in Extracurricular Activities in Canada

Taking part in Extracurricular activities comes with a host of benefits that are not limited to and include:

• Developing a sense of belonging among friends and family
• Fostering a sense of social cohesion and synergy with other people
• Individual skills development (physically and mentally)
• Engaging in fun and entertaining activities improves overall well-being

Experience Canada’s Extracurricular Activities Today!

Deciding to take the plunge and go to Canada to experience some of its major extracurricular activities can be quite the challenging prospect. To guide you through some of the major hurdles and make sure that you avert the pitfalls that can lead to the delay of your application or cause it to be unsuccessful, we recommend patronizing the services of one of our certified Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultants.

FAQs

What is the Best way to Immigrate to Canada?

Express Entry is the most popular and easily accessible immigration program in Canada. Its popularity is mostly based on its fast-track application processing which can be as fast as six months.

Which Extracurricular Activities are Most Beloved in Canada?

The most popular extracurricular activities in Canada are usually sporting activities such as ice hockey and ice skating.

Which School Extracurricular Activity is the Most Popular Among Young Canadians?

Young Canadians, much like the rest of the country, are madly in love with Ice Hockey which in some circles is considered the national pastime.