March 19, 2024
Hello Hair
Hello Hair Founder, Anita Grant took two decades to embrace her natural hair so when her daughter was born, she was determined not to let her have the same experience. Anita wanted her daughter to love her hair, and every other part of herself too, so she wrote a book, Hello Hair, and created a Workbook filled with activities for readers to learn about their hair type and best practices for healthy natural hair.
The beautifully illustrated Hello Hair book features 100 children’s hairstyles ranging from afros and braids to twists, locs, and more! Through enchanting visual representation, this inspiring picture book encourages little Black girls to learn, love, and build a relationship with their hair. The characters in the books all have their own stories, lives, identities, and styles which make them easy for young children to connect with and relate to.
Along with the books go four styling dolls with a variety of hair textures that learners can choose from and use to practice their new hair-care skills.
It took me nearly 20 years to love my natural hair; when God blessed us with a daughter, I promised to break the cycle.
Understanding the Audience
Little Black girls all across the world are brought together by the common experience of their complicated and beautiful Black hair story. The audience is these little girls whom Hello Hair strives to teach, protect, support, and celebrate.
Many people with natural Black hair don’t have ready access to reliable information on hair care. While there is an overwhelming amount of information online, because everyone’s hair is different, it can be difficult to know where to start. In addition to this, natural hair care products can be expensive and are not something everyone can afford. There are many harmful myths and misconceptions about natural Black hair and how best to care for it, and identifying the right products and techniques for different hair types and textures can be challenging.
Anita’s journey with her natural hair led her to want to improve that experience for her daughter and others who may not have the experience, support, or resources they need to learn.
Developing the Learning Solution
Through mutual discovery, Sidekick and Hello Hair identified an opportunity for Enable Education to add capacity to Hello Hair’s learning and development team and to enhance course design, content development, and preparation for delivery on Sidekick.
Course Design
Working closely with Hello Hair, Enable’s learning experience designers helped clarify the learning objectives for the course (what the learner audience will be able to do or know by the end of the course) and designed a course structure to meet those objectives. Together, Hello Hair and Enable compiled and created hands-on activities, reflective group discussions, best practices, and resources from experts in the field.
Content Creation
When Enable and Hello Hair began their collaboration, Hello Hair already had an extensive library of compelling content that included books, videos, workbooks, and hands-on workshop activities. Through discussion and analysis of the existing content, gaps in the material were identified and a plan was made to fill them.
With guidance from Anita in the role of Hello Hair’s subject matter expert, Enable created additional learning components to fill in gaps. These components include branded presentation slides, reference resources, group discussions, and polls.
Delivery Methods
Using the Sidekick platform to deliver virtual instructor-led training (VILT), Hello Hair’s workshops are fun, interactive, educational, and practical, and offer a safe place for people to connect on their hair journey. Sidekick transforms all subject matter experts into live learning experts by providing the tools, structures, and strategies they need to create inspiring learning events - in-person, virtual, and hybrid. Sidekick combines best practices in adult learning, gamification, innovative engagement features, and data collection in a very easy-to-use package.
The Learning Solution
The Hello Hair Sidekick Learning Solution includes eight events covering four topic areas: Roots and History, Research, Hair Journey, and Growth. Each event is self-contained and ranges in time from one hour to a two-and-a-half-hour hands-on workshop. Most of the modules follow a similar structure that leans heavily on storytelling and includes personal connections, reflection, community building, and practical tips and experiences.
Delivering the learning experience on the Sidekick platform facilitates Hello Hair to scale, allowing Anita to grow her business without having to be in multiple locations daily. Scalability is important to investors who want to see that a compelling idea has traction and a market share.
Conclusion
Sidekick Training and Enable Education have journeyed alongside Anita Grant and Hello Hair, through the creation of a groundbreaking educational program. This collaboration is a testament to the power of understanding, innovation, and heartfelt storytelling in education. Through engaging course design, comprehensive content creation, and interactive delivery methods, Hello Hair’s learning experience empowers and celebrates people with natural Black hair.
Want to learn how Sidekick can help you scale your business through education? Reach out now and schedule a call!
