It’s common knowledge that many students take advantage of extra time during school breaks to catch up on sleep. With no school, they have the opportunity to sleep in later than they may normally would. Yet having school five days a week does have its benefits for students.

For example, working on a schedule helps students learn how to organize. Sports or part-time jobs in combination with school are also helpful, in that they allow students the chance to learn how to better manage multiple activities in their time. This prepares them for a future where they’ll need to manage their schedule.

Time management isn’t the only added benefit of having school five days a week. Other skills also inadvertently affect students without them realizing how school has changed their lives in the long run.

A psychologist at Washington University in St. Louis, Henry Roediger, claimed that “decades of research has shown that making yourself recall information helps strengthen your long-term learning.” Recalling information is exactly what students do when taking test or quizzes. Roediger goes on to explain that taking tests on a regular basis helps in retaining information in long term memory.

Terri Babers, Life Coach and Speaker with The John Maxwell Leadership Team, tells her clients that “when you consciously set goals for yourself, you are more confident about making things happen, and you are more effective in life.” Constant deadlines and assignments provide the ideal opportunity to set small goals for yourself.

Many people don’t do New Year’s Resolutions because it seems tedious to write goals out. It’s easy to forget the goal or task without it being written down as a reminder. In school, deadlines or assignments are constant reminders of what you have to get done. Babers made the argument that “setting goals goes a long way toward making positive changes in your life and toward creating abundance and prosperity.”

University of Washington released an article on the importance of “learning how to interact with people.” School provides the opportunity to interact with people you may not have otherwise known. The article goes on to mention how people become dependent on others career wise: “We live and work in a world where groups of people solve problems- especially in the areas of science, math, and engineering.”

Education is the main focus in schools, but there are other undeniable benefits. As the University of Washington says, “Yes, you learn academically, however, the social skills learned are more important.”

Disclaimer: Articles designated as “Editorial” represent the views and opinions of the author, not the 2016-2017 Periscope staff, CHS Administration, or the CHS student body.