Are you a high school student who wants to get involved? Getting involved lets students belong. Belonging is very important so that a student does not feel lonely. When a student belongs, he can make friends, be happier, and do better in his classes. There are a number of activities to choose from, such as cheerleading, sports, Beta Club, or the Quiz Bowl team. You can also write for the school newspaper. There are a number of reasons to choose this activity.

If you already enjoy writing, writing for the school newspaper will allow you to continue pursuing your passion. Instead of writing just short stories and poetry, however, you can expand your portfolio to include news stories. Adding news stories to your portfolio will show college admissions officers and future employers that you are capable of writing in other styles. It will also help you to improve your writing.

Another reason to write for your school newspaper is to keep up with what is going on at school and in your community. As a student, it is important that you know about school events such as picture day, prom, homecoming, and major tests, such as the California Achievement Test (CAT Test). If you know about these events, you can be prepared. By writing for the school newspaper, you can write news stories on these events and pass the information on to other students so that they can be prepared as well.

A third reason to consider writing for your school newspaper is to help you manage your time. Students live very busy lives. It is recommended that they put in two hours of study time for every hour that they spend in class. Any time left over after that is what is available for activities and socializing. Therefore, if a student wants to be involved in an acitvity that meets after school from 3:30 to 4:30, he can participate in the activity. However, when he gets home form school, it would be wise for him to immediately get started on homework. That way, he can get the homework finished within a reasonable time so that he will not have to stay up late to finish it. Sleep is very important and affects so many parts of life, such as work, health, and relationships. By getting homework done early and getting to bed at a reasonable time, the student can succeed at his job (if he has one), do well at school, stay healthy, and maintain good relationships.

Finally, writing for your school newspaper may make you eligible for scholarships. When you begin researching the scholarships that are available to help you fund your college education, you will discover that there are many scholarships available. Scholarship committees often look at students' extra-curricular activities when determining who to award a scholarship to. When the committee notices that a student has written for his school newspaper, they may look more closely at this student. If you are a high school student with a high grade point average, you may be eligible for scholarships. Contact your school guidance counselor for more information.