Riverside football players visit to spread "love of literacy" among K-5 students

May 22—Riverside High School football players recently visited most of the district's elementary school classrooms to read stories and continue a more than decade-long tradition intended to promote literacy.

The 2024 Literacy Linemen program included 21 football players who had to meet academic, behavior and attendance criteria, said district K-12 social studies and literacy coordinator Richard Schmidt in an email. Their May 14 visit covered classrooms in all four of the district's elementary schools.

Schmidt said that organizers' "ultimate goal" for the elementary-aged students was "to spread a love of literacy and create a culture where reading and writing are the norm."

"Literacy is the foundation of solid individuals, schools and communities," he said. "If we make a difference for one student, we'll consider that a win."

Schmidt added that the younger elementary students treated the football players like celebrities, and the older elementary students learned more about them in a question and answer session.

He said that the program provided the football players with an opportunity to participate in the district community. They also learned about strategies for reading to elementary-aged kids and interacting with them.

"We are at that great point where our football players remember being in elementary school and being visited and read to by players of the past," Schmidt said. "Just like other traditions, it continues to improve because our guys want to equal or better the experience they had as elementary students."

He said that high school educators Nick Schussler and Jeremy Ishmael have also impacted the program.

"Both are veteran teachers and coaches that have had a great impact on the program and prioritizing and creating student-athletes," Schmidt said.

He added that visiting football players read fictional books from authors like B.J. Novak, Peter Brown, Adam Rubin and Jon Klassen, as well as informational works from author Steve Jenkins.

"Across the district, we continue to push the importance of reading informational text, and show how fun that can be too," Schmidt said. "Carefully selected text in combination with an interactive, engaging read aloud, typically has the younger students hanging on every word."