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88-Year-Old Math Tutor Says Teaching Kids On Social Media During Pandemic Is 'A Wonderful Experience'

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) - When the COVID-19 pandemic forced most schools to close in-person learning, an 88-year-old math teacher and tutor stepped up to the plate to help families around the world.

"It's been a wonderful experience to reach out to so many people," says Delores Spencer, who has taught and tutored math for more than six decades.

"It's so great when you see the light come on in their mind [and] they say, 'Oh!' And that's [when] they got it," she tells CBS affiliate WTKR.

When the pandemic hit, Spencer and her godson, John Wilson III, brought her classroom skills to Facebook Live with "Mrs. Spencer's Math Lab," tutoring every Tuesday night from her home in Hampton, Virginia.

"My thing is emphasizing and understanding the concepts, because that's what transferable when you go to another level," she says.

The sessions quickly went viral.

"I've had students from everywhere," Spencer says. "All over the United States, and even the Bahamas."

"We've had over 100,000 views," Wilson says. "Teachers are sharing this with other teachers who are saying, 'Listen, this woman knows how to teach math.'"

Spencer's videos are also archived on her YouTube channel. In addition, she will hold a free Zoom meeting in April to help students and teachers returning to the classroom as schools re-open.

"It is a transitional piece to say now we're moving from our virtual environment, and now we're going to go back to in-person learning," Wilson said.

Spencer doesn't plan on slowing down anytime soon. At 88 years old, age, for her, is just a number.

"As long as I can do this - as long as it's helping - I'm really willing to do this," she says.

"Mrs. Spencer cannot retire until she's 103; that's part of our contract," Wilson says.

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