K12-Powered Schools Help Young Athletes and Musicians Make It Big

What do you want to be when you grow up? It’s an age-old question asked of kids once they hit school age. Playing music or sports for a living might feel out of reach, but it certainly doesn’t have to be. Online school might be the place to give your child an edge.


Flexibility 

Practice makes perfect when it comes to musical and athletic ability. Nothing boosts motivation more than playing when operating at peak energy. The issue is that your child might miss out on the best times to practice by sitting in a brick-and-mortar school. With online school, families can create a schedule allowing their little athlete or musician to fit more activity into the day. K12 student Demonty plays basketball at noon and baseball at 5 PM, thanks to the flexibility of his online school schedule.


Finding a Balance

The online school schedule ensures your child can operate at full capacity in their extracurricular activities. With online classes allowing for plenty of breaks, they can be well-rested when getting on the field or into the recital hall. A study published in Reuters suggests that one to two hours of playing each day provides the largest positive impact on teen mental and physical well-being. Having the opportunity to intertwine sport and music with the regular school day makes for better performance and greater academic success from not sitting all day long.


Take School with You

For kids to reach their full potential, a demanding schedule for training and travel comes with the territory. Those requirements don’t fit into a typical school schedule but might awaken leadership skills and passion that can be applied to all aspects of life. Though your child might thrive in that setting, that doesn’t mean the foundational academics should suffer.

There’s often a negative correlation between student-athletes and grades. The main reason? Balancing music and sports and school are undoubtedly a challenge. But online school schedules can significantly simplify the balancing act. School can come with them to out-of-state tournaments and performances. Online school’s emphasis on personalized instruction means a teacher can better accommodate a demanding schedule to make school equally important rather than a burden.


Greater Possibility 

It’s certainly not a coincidence that many teen Olympians were online school students. In a message to K12 2020 graduates, Olympic medalist snowboarder Arielle Gold credited her online attendance at Destinations Career Academy of Colorado for getting her to the Olympic level of competition. Your child could be the next future Olympian or pro-athlete, but that potential might only be realized with the space and time to explore the possibility. Instead of postponing natural talent and ability, their schooling can meet them where they’re at when dream opportunities come up.

David Devine is a high school senior at Wisconsin Virtual Academy and an organist. He says online learning allowed him to train in other musical instruments and the organ since middle school. With his busy schedule, if he misses a class, he can go back and watch the class presentation to get himself caught up.

“WIVA has offered flexibility, which has allowed David to take lessons on multiple instruments- piano, organ, and saxophone. The teachers have been very understanding regarding this over the years. This flexibility has also allowed him to work part-time to save money for college,” says his mom.

Even if being an athlete isn’t the final career path, an early focus on athletics might secure a path to a college out of reach. Statista reports that 152,000 athletic scholarships were offered for the 2020–2021 school year. The extra time to demonstrate competitive talent might mean a huge difference in educational opportunities and future career opportunities.

If you notice natural talent or excitement whenever your child plays their favorite sport, it might be the perfect sign to get them on the right path to greatness and invest in their abilities.


Is your child a student-athlete? Consider enrolling them in a K12-powered school to allow the perfect training schedule.

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