Why enrichment activities are just as important as academics

We hear from Hartland International School’s head of primary, Shahida Ibrahim, about the importance of enhancing a child’s confidence, creative skills and analytical thinking through enrichment activities.

Enrichment activities extend children’s learning through new experiences and opportunities that are key to academic success, personal and social development. If we are fully committed to preparing our children for future success, we must offer them an enrichment programme that is rich and varied in activities, enabling them to participate in learning experiences that may not always fit into the curriculum. These activities provide learning experiences that develop their character, including resilience, confidence, independence, and encourages them to pursue their aspirations and dreams.

THE BENEFITS OF ENRICHMENT

Enrichment activities are just as important as academics. They both complement each other to develop well-rounded students and teach them life skills that will prepare them for the future.  There are many benefits of enrichment, below are just a few of them.

• Improved academic performance as a result of skills learnt during enrichment, such as time management, organisational skills, problem solving, critical thinking, public speaking and leadership skills
• Empowers young minds to think creatively, problem solve and think outside the box
• Participation in enrichments boosts confidence and self-esteem
• Provides opportunities for children to explore their interests and discover new hobbies that may influence future career choices
• Children learn to collaborate with others by working in groups and develop leadership skills, whether that is participation in a team sport, a group project or learning a group dance
• Creates social opportunities, by being part of a team, it provides a sense of belonging and helps them build friendships outside of their usual circle
• Additional health benefits when participating in sports, giving children an opportunity to compete in further team events

ENRICHMENT AT HARTLAND INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

The Hartland Enrichment Programme is carefully designed to offer a wide range of choices including academic, creative and sporting options. The programme offered will enhance students’ skills in a wide range of areas encouraging them to have as much fun as possible while developing their confidence, creative skills and analytical thinking. We aim to ignite new passions as well as extending existing interests, all helping to building skill to support future success.

To learn more about the Hartland Enrichment Programme, click here. 

Teacher profile: Shahida Ibrahim (Head of Primary at Hartland International)

Shahida is a passionate education practitioner with 22 years established experience in education, 19 years in Senior Leadership roles, including Assistant Principal, Deputy Principal, Primary Consultant, Senior School Improvement Adviser, Vice Principal and currently Head of Primary at Hartland International School.  She is a primary education specialist in curriculum design, implementation and evaluation, who has advised over 50 schools with the expertise to ensure the standards of teaching and learning continually improve. Shahida has exceptional educational expertise in school improvement, coupled with strong leadership skills and a proven track record of developing and sustaining the highest standards. She has practical and policy experience in opening and developing new schools in the United Kingdom and in the United Arab Emirates.