How to Combat Pandemic ‘Learning Loss’

Social distancing, masks, hand sanitizer…learning loss?

Since the Coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S. last year, we’ve heard several terms more times than we could’ve ever imagined. And now it seems ‘learning loss’ could be one of them. 

With sudden school closures and transitions to online learning, educational access quickly changed for so many children around the country. It seems as if sunnier days could be ahead – vaccines are here and most schools have reopened. But now we’re seeing how that time affected our children’s academic performance. 

Studies are showing that children’s math and reading skills suffered in 2020. For example, a preliminary study that shows second graders were behind in their ability to accurately and quickly read aloud by 26% compared to what would be expected.

How can we combat ‘learning loss’ from the pandemic?

Because some studies are showing that reading could be an area in particular that children are struggling with in our post-pandemic world, working hard to improve skills in this area could be a good start. 

We know that practice reading aloud – often – can help improve a child’s skills. 

You can easily increase how many books your child has in their home library giving them a Join the Story Box subscription! Giving your child more options means he or she can be more likely to find a book they really like. Leading to more motivation and cooperation to read at home. 

Switching things up and lowering demands when it comes to books can also keep your child motivated to practice their skills. Take turns reading pages in a book, for example. Or you read one book and your child reads the next!

Our Parent Guides included in your story box can also help combat learning loss by targeting specific speech and language skills through activities tied to your books. 

With extra practice and exposure to literacy at home (especially with Summer Break on the horizon), we can help our kids combat learning loss from the Coronavirus!

Amy Yacoub, MS, CCC-SLP | Speech Pathologist

Proud Member of The Story Box Family