I’ve just finished teaching my reading class. What a great turnout today and it is only week two. A term is usually 9 to 10 weeks which equates to 10 hours of class, only ten hours.

We can only teach on Saturdays because some of us have full-time work, university studies and other responsibilities during the week. Our students came earlier, eager to learn and excited to play.

Today, teachers had the opportunity to connect with their geniuses. Yes, I refer to all students in my reading program as geniuses. It is our responsibility as teachers and parents to find out what those geniuses are. We teach in both languages, English and Samoan but the reading materials are all in English.

All parents want their children to do well in school, and all parents also want their children to speak excellent English but when they are home, 95 per cent of those parents do not speak English to their geniuses. “Fia palagi” is a term given to those parents who are Samoan but speak mainly English to their children. Why? Samoan and English can co-exist. Fail in both languages and you have yourself a real dilemma.

I usually ask my class on the first day if anyone does not understand English or Samoan. Then I cater accordingly. Today, we tested our memory by playing a simple matching card game. Then, we moved on to our guidelines where I shared about my expectations as a teacher and how each genius should treat their peer. It is important to lay that foundation. Respect, focus, important, best, genius, kindness, time and mess were words in those guidelines.

By writing and reading these simple guidelines, we are already developing vocabulary and comprehension. The memory game was a fun one when it came to introductions. I have six geniuses in my class, and our ratio for teachers and students is 5:1 or 10:1. Quality education is what we are about even if it’s just reading. A simple introduction of your name, village and favourite food will get a few laughs from your team. Chicken and chips, fish and chips, apples, bananas, nuggets on rice and pizza were their favourite food. This may seem like a simple exercise, but I get a lot of information about my students simply by asking questions.

I can begin to understand their diet, their parent’s nutrition choices, and their preferences. Recalling that information is crucial when it comes to memory testing and attention span. Engaging with six- to ten-year-olds, one hour every Saturday is a good opportunity to help literacy and Samoa. If you think your future is in your hands, think again. The 300-plus readers we have helped will be future leaders, members of parliament, doctors, farmers in 20 years. They will decide our fate. They will be the policymakers who decide how much tax we pay, where our trash ends up, and every important decision for Samoa.  While we enjoy another Sunday Samoa, remember that a child grows up, we can all decide who we become.

Enid Westerlund is a regular columnist for this newspaper. She is an aviation specialist, business consultant, author and loves teaching children to read on the weekend.