English Live
1377. Holly King-Mand
Holly King-Mand, from Bedfordshire, is an English teacher providing daily live lessons for free on Facebook to over 40,000 followers worldwide.
Holly King-Mand started hosting live 30-minute sessions on Facebook at the start of lockdown to help parents managing home-schooling for children aged 7-14, covering basic subjects such as spelling and grammar. Within days, her following had increased from just 74 to over 20,000 people worldwide, which has since increased to over 40,000 users.
In a personal letter to Holly, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said:
“Every day I take a moment to say thank you to someone in our country for their service to others by recognising them as a Point of Light in our lives.
“So on National Thank a Teacher Day, I wanted to write to thank you for the ingenuity with which you have captured the imaginations of thousands, supporting parents managing home-schooling and helping to educate children from across four continents.
“As our country comes together to win this battle with Coronavirus, I am lost in admiration for the courage and dedication of our teachers – from those in the classroom looking after the children of other critical workers, to those like you who have helped to reimagine education for the online world.”
Holly said:
“I’m absolutely flabbergasted to have won a Points of Light award! I feel privileged to have reached and inspired so many learners and their families around the world during these strange times; I’ve enjoyed every moment of teaching in this new way. Thank you so much for recognising my efforts.”
Pictured below: stills from Holly’s online lessons; above – photo credit Brad Gommon.
