PARENTAL CONTROL:
TEACHING STARTS IN THEby Brenae HOME Inge
TEACHING READING AT HOME During
the pandemic, education became a talking point. School closings meant parents had to add “teacher” to an already long list of hats to wear. Zoom sessions provided little solution as educators struggled to keep the attention of their students. Online learning demanded a lot and was unable to provide individual care for the kids who needed it. Failing grades and declining test scores were among the factors for reopening the economy and getting children back in classrooms. With American school systems playing catch-up, are there some things that can be taught at home? We asked parents, students, and educators alike, what they thought.
40 BLAC • MARCH 2022 • BLACdetroit.com
Faydra Hewitt is a wife, mother and full-time professional. She has a young son who is barely school age, but, for Hewitt, learning begins at home. One of the skills she believes can be taught at home is reading. “[You can teach] by reading to your child daily and making sure you use conversational terms, so asking your child open-ended questions that fill their vocabulary,” she says. A major tool in her arsenal are flash cards — pairing words with pictures. She uses them to teach reading and word association. During the pandemic, she learned creative ways to teach other things — including math.
“I used blueberries and I count them out as I put them on his plate. [You] can also teach addition and subtraction,” she explains. Along with her husband, Hewitt turns lots of things into learning opportunities. Even walking up the stairs can be a lesson in counting. In addition to the basics, Hewitt encourages teaching history, culture and heritage through storytelling. “Whatever your heritage, you can give your own cultural history lesson. You can have your own little circle time,” she says.
