School Clubs & After-School Activities in Chinese 课外活动
kèwài huódòng
Extracurricular activities in Chinese is 课外活动 (kè wài huó dòng).
Also searched for as: school club, extracurricular activities, after school club.
What do you do after lessons? 15 essential after-school clubs words in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.
After-school clubs in Chinese are usually called 课外活动 (kè wài huó dòng), literally 'activities outside class', and it's the phrase Chinese parents and teachers use for everything children do once lessons end. You'll also want 俱乐部 (jù lè bù) for a club, 兴趣班 (xìng qù bān) for the hobby classes many children attend at weekends, and 报名 (bào míng), the verb for signing up.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 课外活动 | kè wài huó dòng | extracurricular activities |
| 俱乐部 | jù lè bù | club |
| 兴趣班 | xìng qù bān | hobby class |
| 合唱团 | hé chàng tuán | choir |
| 乐队 | yuè duì | band |
| 舞蹈 | wǔ dǎo | dance |
| 辩论 | biàn lùn | debate |
| 运动会 | yùn dòng huì | sports day |
| 比赛 | bǐ sài | competition |
| 报名 | bào míng | to sign up |
| 练习 | liàn xí | to practise |
| 志愿者 | zhì yuàn zhě | volunteer |
| 春游 | chūn yóu | spring outing |
| 夏令营 | xià lìng yíng | summer camp |
| 奖 | jiǎng | prize; award |
Usage tips
- 参加 (cān jiā) is the go-to verb for joining a club, activity or competition: 参加合唱团 (cān jiā hé chàng tuán), 参加比赛 (cān jiā bǐ sài). To sign up to take part, say 报名参加 (bào míng cān jiā).
- At Chinese schools and universities, a student society is more often called 社团 (shè tuán); 俱乐部 (jù lè bù) suggests a sports club or a members' club outside school.
- Prizes are ranked with 等 (děng): 一等奖 (yī děng jiǎng) is first prize and 二等奖 (èr děng jiǎng) second prize. The usual verb is 得 (dé), as in 她得了一等奖.
Common mistakes
- Reading 乐 the same way in 乐队 and 俱乐部 → it's yuè when it means music, 乐队 (yuè duì), and lè when it means joy, 俱乐部 (jù lè bù).
- Saying 玩足球 for "play football" → Chinese uses a different verb for each activity: 踢足球 (tī zú qiú), 打篮球 (dǎ lán qiú), 弹钢琴 (tán gāng qín).
Mini dialogue
- A你放学以后参加什么课外活动？Nǐ fàng xué yǐ hòu cān jiā shén me kè wài huó dòng?What do you do after school?
- B我参加了合唱团，每个星期三练习。Wǒ cān jiā le hé chàng tuán, měi gè xīng qī sān liàn xí.I'm in the choir. We practise every Wednesday.
- A我想参加足球俱乐部，可是不知道怎么报名。Wǒ xiǎng cān jiā zú qiú jù lè bù, kě shì bù zhī dào zěn me bào míng.I'd like to join the football club, but I don't know how to sign up.
- B你去找体育老师吧，下个月还有比赛呢！Nǐ qù zhǎo tǐ yù lǎo shī ba, xià gè yuè hái yǒu bǐ sài ne!Go and see the PE teacher. There's a match next month, too!
Example sentences
- 你参加了什么课外活动？What after-school activities do you do?
- 我参加了足球俱乐部。I joined the football club.
- 周末孩子要上兴趣班。The kids have hobby classes at the weekend.
- 她在合唱团唱歌。She sings in the choir.
- 我们学校有一个乐队。Our school has a band.
- 我女儿在学舞蹈。My daughter is learning dance.
- 他是辩论队的队长。He's captain of the debating team.
- 下周学校开运动会。Our school has its sports day next week.
- 我们赢了比赛！We won the competition!
- 我想报名参加。I'd like to sign up.
- 每天放学后练习两个小时。Practise for two hours every day after school.
- 我在当志愿者。I'm volunteering.
- 下周学校组织春游。The school is organising a spring trip next week.
- 暑假我去了夏令营。I went to summer camp in the holidays.
- 她得了一等奖。She won first prize.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The After-school clubs speaking island has 8 everyday questions about after-school clubs to prepare your own answers to.