Rock Canyon basketball players coach Special Olympics elementary athletes in Colorado
Connecting those with different abilities through sports. It's what the Red Shirt Rookies is all about.
The elementary school program is part of the Special Olympics' Project UNIFY. After taking a hiatus during COVID, the rookies are back this year at Timber Trail Elementary in Castle Pines. On Tuesday, both special and general education students got to workshop their basketball skills.
Passing, dribbling, and shooting. Those are the skills athletes like Grace Creeden are learning at the Red Shirt Rookies basketball clinic.
"Bounce pass! Chest pass!" said Grace.
Grace gets to learn from the best, her brother Owen, and the rest of the Rock Canyon High School varsity basketball team.
"Our whole team comes out and we kinda like get the kids to play a game or do these stations where they can learn and practice different parts of the sport," said Owen Creeden.
"The cool thing about Red Shirt Rookies is that everybody is included, and we don't discriminate based on ability or differences. We really celebrate everything that our students bring to the table," said head coach Jennifer Di Capo.
Athletes with developmental or intellectual disabilities are joined by their gen-ed classmates on the court.
"We practice shooting hoops and it counts points at every hoop," said peer coach Luana Moreira, "and then we just get to bond with the kids cause they're really great."
Timber Trail fifth grader Moreira says her favorite part about being a peer coach is making friends with other kids.
"These kids might not have the opportunity to play competitive sports, stuff like that, so just getting involved and showing them that we care means a lot to them," said Owen.
Taking shots and making connections.
"It's really been great to see the interactions, both here in our group, and on the playground, in the cafeteria, in classes. Really just developing those true friendships, not just that mothering you always see," said Di Capo.
In the fall, the rookies practiced soccer every Tuesday, and after they wrap up basketball, flag football is next.