Niagara Falls & Wheatfield Courier / Friday, November 14, 2014
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Football players help students with reading, writing
The day before their homecoming celebration, most Kenmore West High School varsity football players could be found reading alongside much younger students at Lindbergh, Roosevelt and Holmes elementary schools. The players – including the iconic Blue Devil mascot – provided feedback to the children, who eagerly showcased their most recent writing and reading assignments. This is the third year that
Matt O’Malley, a special education teacher and assistant varsity football coach at Kenmore West, has brought the players out to elementary schools to read alongside younger children, and it has become an annual tradition, growing each year. “I think it’s important for the players to read to kids, especially since, when they get older, they are going to be reading to their own children,” O’Malley said. It was a coincidence the
event fell the day before homecoming, but that didn’t deter the players from taking part. They started at Lindbergh Elementary School, where they not only read with the children but engaged them in a pickup football game too. At Roosevelt, they worked alongside struggling readers who have been working hard to advance their literacy skills. Finally, they finished the day with two classroom visits at Holmes. The younger students
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Trent White, left, and Gavin Sloan, both Kenmore West High School varsity football players, read alongside a student at Holmes Elementary School.
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were excited to be paired with the players, who wore their jerseys and were accompanied by the Blue Devil mascot. The first year, O’Malley only took his players to one class at one school, but the program has expanded over the past two years when it was so wellreceived. “I didn’t know what to expect at first but it surprised me in a very positive way,” O’Malley said. “These kids do a fantastic job. When we put them in a position to be
successful, they do it.” O’Malley expressed his appreciation toward Brett Banker, district athletics director, and Rich Harris, head coach, for their support for the program. The activity accomplishes a lot. For one thing, it shows the elementary school students that the players on the field are also students in the classroom. It is also a learning experience for the players. “It is important for the younger students to see our
athletes in class,” O’Malley said. “But it’s not just important for the younger kids. We are trying to mold these young men who are probably going to be fathers at some point.” And as for the younger students, it gets them excited about what they are reading and writing in class. “To have a different kind of audience is really exciting for them,” said Rita Klipfell, a teacher at Holmes Elementary School.