March 2nd is the birthday of everyone’s favorite author, Dr. Seuss. In honor of his contribution to reading, Read Across America has been a tradition in elementary schools across the country. This year, we (Thank you Kathryn Starke for this initiative) have kicked off an event entitled Tackle Reading Across America, in which NFL teams and athletes will be promoting reading for kids and elementary schools in their community. You don’t need to have an NFL team in your city in order to participate. Here is how you can Tackle Reading with us March 2, 2017.
- Wear the apparel of your favorite NFL team.
- Invite former NFL athletes in your community to be a guest reader for the day.
- Invite your local high school football team to read books by Dr. Seuss to your elementary school classes.
- Set reading goals on the big day for students to work toward until the end of the school year.
- Complete language arts and math based football assignments throughout the day.
- Read football themed children’s books. Some examples include the following:
- Where is Pidge? by Michelle Staubach Grimes
- Beyond the Laces by Bob Salomon
- Smitty Hits the Books by Wade Smith (former Houston Texan)
- The Little Linebacker by Maria Dismondy and Stephen Tulloch (Philadelphia Eagles)
- The Magician’s Hat by Malcolm Mitchell (New England Patriots)
- Math and Football by Johnny Rutledge (former Arizona Cardinal)
- Order a copy of Tackle Reading (available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble) for the teachers and parents. Over 45 contributing writers have provided tips, stories, and activities to motivate children, support parents, and inspire teachers to love literacy at home and in school.
- Share your Tackle Reading day story and pictures with us March 2, 2017 on Twitter #TackleReading @MariaDismondy or @MariaDismondyBooks on InstagramsTh
Let’s combine a love of literacy with a passion for football. Together, we can #TackleReading! Follow Facebook.com/creativemindspublications for updates and information.
Check out the Line Up of athletes and teams participating here.
