Many schools offer extracurricular activities and opportunities for students ranging from sports, music, and academic clubs. These options are more common in middle and high schools around Colorado Springs, but some elementary schools have programs for their students.
However, there are some schools that have limited or no extracurricular options for students. Low budget, not enough staff, or lack of space are all possible reasons.
Nevertheless, students benefit from options to increase social skills, pursue hobbies, and experience opportunities outside of school hours. There are several places around Colorado Springs where students can explore interests and gain meaningful skills.
Arts as Part of Extracurricular Activities
The Pikes Peak Artists Collective, located in Old Colorado City, offers a range of options for interested young artists. Families can choose a seasonal membership in fall, winter, and spring or they can choose to sign their child up for a one-time workshop.
For the seasonal memberships, students spend 14-15 weeks learning a variety of fine arts skills with an expert to teach and assist along the way. Artwork demonstrating painting, drawing, and pottery techniques will be the result of these experiences. Ages range from 6-11 depending on the class.
One-time workshops allow kids to explore one art medium at a time, creating a final piece by the end of the class. The focus of each class ranges from working with felt to painting or even throwing clay on a pottery wheel. Children have a chance to explore their creative side and produce work that is special to them.
On the corner of Academy and Montebello, families can find the Rocky Mountain Academy of Music. Comprised of staff passionate about music, they offer drum, piano, and guitar lessons. The instructors also conduct classes for jazz ensembles and rock bands.
Children have the chance to learn a new talent or advance their skills. Their mission is: “At Rocky Mountain Academy of Music, our mission is to provide quality music education for all ages and ability levels in a fun, safe environment. It is our passion to share the joy of music with everyone while doing all we can to support the Colorado Springs local music scene!”
Athletics
Gripstone is a rock-climbing gym favored by many. Located off of Tutt, it offers four-week youth programs each month with options for kids ranging from ages 4-14. The program for 4-6-year-olds is Kids Climb! This teaches younger children about climbing and the gear used, as well as contributes to the growth of their motor skills.
For 7 to 14-year-olds, the programs offered are the Homeschool Climbing Club and the Afterschool Climbing Club. Both programs are more structured and progress through climbing techniques as they build on skills learned and mastered by the students.
Children over the age of 14 are able to attend Gripstone with a day pass, a membership, or a family pass. The gym also offers multiple climbing and fitness classes for attendees, though the minimum age for some is 16.
Tracy Goodwin, Operations Director at Gripstone, started all of the programming when the gym opened in 2019 and now she oversees it all. Goodwin said, “If the kids are first-time climbers, we see improvement in their skills and understanding in those four weeks. Another benefit for the kids is the social interactions with each other and the staff, and they also get to observe the adults around them.”
The staff at Gripstone love to see participants enjoy the sport of climbing, and they thrive on the opportunities to share their passion with all age groups. Climbers have the option to try bouldering, auto-belays, top rope, and even lead climbing. Goodwin noted that there are also private lessons offered for all ages.
Donna’s Dolphins and Safe Splash are two locations in Colorado Springs that offer swim lessons. For students in elementary school or above, Donna’s Dolphins offers private and semi-private lessons. This swim school also has a speech therapist and their staff loves to create an environment to support those with special needs. As stated on their website, “We love to work with the special needs population at Donna’s Dolphins because of the vast improvements in both swimming and daily life skills that occur as a result of swimming and deep pressure ‘therapy,’ including better transitioning skills, less ‘stimming’ behaviors, better eye contact, and increased language development.”
Safe Splash offers a range of swim lessons for children of all ages, including private and semi-private lessons.
Sports Teams
Colorado Springs Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Services Department offers many youth sports including football, soccer, boxing, lacrosse, softball, baseball, and T-ball. Teams practice and compete each fall and spring at locations all over Colorado Springs. These teams support students’ social awareness and social skills, communication, gross motor skills, and an understanding of healthy competition.
Another youth sports program in town is i9 Sports®, which is a national program coaching millions across the country. The teams offered include baseball, soccer, basketball, and flag football. “We believe youth sports should be about more than skills and scores. While teaching kids to play the sport is important, we also develop player character by teaching sportsmanship values and celebrating players who demonstrate good sportsmanship,” according to their website.
The opportunity to grow talents and explore interests should be offered to every child. Colorado Springs has an array of programs and passionate instructors ready to help school-age children expand their understanding of a variety of skills- a little research can help you find the best fit for your family and budget.
