In this episode of The Filter podcast, you’ll hear from Annie Watson, who uses her expertise in early childhood education (and as a parent of four) to share insight about lessons learned during the past year. Watson adds context to education statistics and what the pandemic taught us about the lack of support for working parents like herself.

Host Ieshia Downton also recounts her parenting journey, from pregnancy in the early days of the pandemic to homeschooling chronicles. Kansas City School District Superintendent Mark Bedell and digital campaigner at ParentsTogether PaKou Her also chimes in.

What we read and listened to: Here’s our reading guide to learn more about parenting, education and unfilled needs. Dig in and let us know what you think.

• This Pew research article illustrates the trends in child care and parenting during the pandemic.
• In this report, Vicky Diaz-Camacho spoke to experts and parents to learn more about waitlists and access to child care for our engagement series curiousKC. What does this reveal about the structure of the child care industry? And how does it support parents?
• According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study, one in 500 kids have lost a parent or grandparent who cared for them in 2020. Notably, almost seven out of every 10 people who have lost parents or caretakers during the pandemic are Black, Hispanic or Native American. Learn more here.

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Production team credits: Ieshia Downton, Vicky Diaz-Camacho, Naina Rao, Felicia Diaz, PJ Kelly and Ana Parra.

Theme song credit: Aysia Berlynn and Primary Color Music.

Production support for this podcast is brought to you by The Post Haus, a full-service post-production audio agency. Find more information here. (Courtesy) Vicky Diaz-Camacho covers community affairs for Kansas City PBS. Ieshia Downton is the social media coordinator for Kansas City PBS.