The 1920's: Sight Words and Basal Readers

Bert Brown, who learned to read in the 1920's

In the '20s, kids were learning to read by being taught to memorize sight words. Basal readers were used in schools. My 93 year old grandmother learned to read in Philadelphia public schools the 1920s. She remembers words being written on the board for memorization. She remembers reading aloud from basal readers (while seated two to a seat) as the teacher walked up and down the aisles making sure they were following along. There were lots of spelling words assigned for homework.