Are you struggling to balance school and sports? Is it overwhelming to fit in study time, workouts, practice sessions and hang out time with your friends? Do you feel stressed out just thinking about it?

Kids and teens have to be aware of how they spend their time after school to fit everything into such a tiny amount of time. Time-management is key.

“I do a lot of homework in school so I don’t have as much when I get home,” ninth grader Jayla Reilly said.

On a daily basis, many students have track or other sports they contribute to that can take up to two hours a day. Many kids do sports because they love them, to carry on traditions of past generations, because they consider it an honor or to just pass time.

“I’m usually tired after basketball practice so I take naps afterwards,” ninth grader Manny Moss said.

Having different times for practices and games means students should probably be organized with schoolwork and activities. Nobody wants to miss practice or forget to do an assignment. School should come first before any situation because if a student’s failing a class they can’t even participate in the activity.

Some kids have after school clubs to contribute to such as drama club. Being an actor/actress, part of props, or part of costumes can take up time. Drama club works very hard with their performances for only being in junior high.

“We would get together for props and set them up for the plays. Practice would usually last two-three hours so I would do my homework between breaks,” ninth grader Tyler Carter said.

Having a calendar, agenda, planner, or even getting an app on a phone can help maintain getting to games, practices, homework and getting enough sleep. The last thing anyone wants is stress.