June 15, 2021
By Emily Melleno
Staff Writer
When Covid-19 struck last year, my role as a big sister changed immediately. With school buildings closed, I had to step up to take care of my younger sibling Sofia. My parents helped my sister with her schoolwork, but there were many times when I had to go over it with her as well since learning methods have changed through the years.
One of the main assignments Sofia struggled with was reading. Reading is difficult for a lot of children, but Sofia’s dyslexia has posed an extra challenge for her, and not having a teacher right next to her to guide her was hard. Last spring, when she was in third grade, my parents and I worked with Sofia on her reading, but we were unsure about how to help her.
Watching my sister struggle was heartbreaking. She continued to be frustrated and upset because no matter how hard she worked, she still had a hard time reading. To make matters worse, the library was closed due to the pandemic, so we had to make do with the books we had at home. I knew Sofia could overcome the obstacles she was facing because she is such a creative and smart girl. However, she did not share that confidence and continued to tell us that she would never be able to read with fluency.
In addition to helping Sofia with her reading, I also assisted her with her writing because her dyslexia made it tough for her to spell out longer words and piece together a sentence. Sofia found most of her assignments difficult because she was not able to read what the question was asking and could not put together complex sentences. After helping her write out each sentence, I would have to help her check it because she would sometimes mix up her d’s with b’s and m’s with w’s. I would always feel sorry for Sofia because after I would correct her, she would get upset. I tried to help her understand that her skills would get better with practice.
I knew Sofia could overcome the obstacles she was facing because she is such a creative and smart girl. However, she did not share that confidence and continued to tell us that she would never be able to read with fluency.
Soon after virtual schooling commenced on Zoom in September, I began noticing major improvements in my sister’s reading and writing. She is working with an amazing group of professionals at Jefferson School that consists of teachers and a speech-language specialist. They guide her and instill useful routines. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, Sofia focuses on spelling and pronunciation. On Fridays, she and her peers mainly focus on reading.
Throughout this school year, my parents and I have read with Sofia every night, and once stores started opening back up, the first thing my parents did was take her to go get some new books.
At the beginning of the pandemic, my parents would have to beg her to read even a little bit, but now she loves reading. I have also noticed that her self-esteem has grown tremendously over the past year. Previously, Sofia would put herself down or talk about giving up, but now she tries her best and is determined to become better. Watching Sofia’s confidence grow has made me so proud of her. I knew that if she just put her mind to it, she would be able to do anything.
Online schooling is new and hard for everyone, but it has been especially challenging for her and other students with learning disabilities.
I have helped my nine-year-old sister learn, but she has taught me a lot as well. Sofia has helped me realize that I should never let anything or anyone keep me from achieving my goals. Sofia taught me that in the end, it is up to each of us to rise above our defeats to reach our full potential.
