The interests of students always vary, and sometimes students may struggle to find an extracurricular activity that they feel is right for them. One co-curricular activity that all students can find happiness in is fine arts.
Whether you are a beginner or an advanced musician, every student is able to participate in fine arts classes at De Soto High School. Choir teacher Mindy Fry highlights the advantages of participating in these courses.
“We have a tiered program here at DHS,” Fry said. “We have an entry level group for those that don’t want all the extra requirements. And then we have a mid-tier group that wants to sing a little bit harder music. Then we have our top-tier group that’s audition-only and get pushed. There is a place for everybody in our choir program.”
Music is a way for people to express themselves and break out of their shell. “Music is for everybody at some level,” Fry said. “Whether you are a highly trained musician that’s in the best orchestra in the world or you are a person that only sings in the shower,” Fry said.
Singing is not the only outlet for self-expression. According to The New York Times article, “How the Arts Can Improve Your Mental Health (No Talent Required),” Christina Caron covers Dr. Frank Clark’s use of poetry as a way to cope with stress during medical school.
“Back then, he was struggling with depression and had been relying on a number of things to keep it at bay, including running, therapy, medication and his faith,” Caron said.
Although those other options of stress relief can be beneficial, Dr. Clark himself explains how the arts helped him during hard times and how it continues to help him now.
“All that clatter that is in my head, everything that I’ve been feeling, I can now just put it on paper and my pen can do the talking,” Clark said.
Fine arts on mental health is a topic that is more noticeable than most people would think. Fry has certainly noticed this throughout her time teaching at DHS and how her knowledge has pertained to her observations of students as they create music.
“Creating music is an activity where both sides of your brain work together,” Fry said. “There’s been lots of studies done about how your kids that score higher on standardized tests are often musicians.”
At our school, academics come before co-curricular activities. Fry points out how this may affect some students, but not necessarily in a negative way.
“Students have to be academically eligible to perform in our competitions and stuff, and that is a large motivator for our students that struggle with a will issue,” Fry said. “Sometimes being in a co-curricular activity that they love does encourage them to keep their grades up.”
The activities of fine arts may differ in complexity, but the influences and benefits of them allow students to realize the importance of being involved and how it positively impacts your life.
