"Biel, who is ten years old, does extracurricular English classes three days a week; kung fu, two days; parkour, one day, and music, three days. As part of his music activities, he plays piano, trumpet, musical theory, and two combos," explains Anna Aparicio, his mother. Biel dedicates between 11 and 12 hours to extracurricular activities per week. He is one of the 83% of children in Catalonia between the ages of 6 and 15 who participate in them. the study The pros and cons of extracurricular participation, published in 2023 by Aliança Educació 360. On the contrary, only 17% of children do not participate in any activity, 140,000 children in Catalonia. "These activities outside of school improve self-esteem, children can discover things they are good at and that make them feel better, they improve their social skills and have a better self-image," says Sylvie Pérez, a professor in the psychology and educational sciences department at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC).