Kevin Hart reflects on his own kids and parenting style while supporting an education initiative to help other children affected by the pandemic

Kevin Hart may tell jokes to audiences numbering 20,000 people, but it’s his 22-month-old daughter who makes the comedian laugh.

While chatting with PEOPLE exclusively about his partnership with The Children’s Place on Tuesday, Hart, 43, shared an adorable story about his daughter Kaori Mai, who he says hasn’t quite mastered the art of FaceTime.

“My daughter Ori makes me laugh daily,” he shares. “She’s talking a little bit now, but her new thing on FaceTime is she doesn’t know how to hold the phone out so you can see… so she just walks with it.”

While the youngest Hart doesn’t know how to keep the phone upright, she does know she wants the undivided attention of her dad, who can’t help but indulge her. Hart adds with a laugh, “You’ve got to stay on there until she’s done talking.”

He continues, “It’s all over the place. It genuinely makes me laugh — her inability to just look at the phone — but she’ll run with it, she’ll want to show you stuff, but she doesn’t know that she’s not showing you.”

Along with Kaori, Hart also shares son Kenzo Kash, 4, with his wife Eniko Hart. Additionally, the comedian shares daughter Heaven, 17, and son Hendrix, 14, with ex Torrei Hart.

When it comes to parenting, Hart says, “I think what’s most important is me being hands-on with my kids. My kids are sponges, they see what I do.” This approach encapsulates Hart’s philanthropic work, specifically his partnership with The Children’s Place.

At the reveal of a newly renovated learning area at the Thomas Jefferson Recreation Center in East Harlem, New York, Hart spoke about his hope for the back-to-school initiative to inspire children who may not otherwise have the proper resources or support available to them.

“Sometimes you need that added push, you need the extra boost of knowing that people do want to see you win, people do want to see you succeed. In my household, my kids are extremely lucky to have a parent that’s hands-on, that’s there, and that they get daily doses of. Some other kids don’t have the same,” he says.

“It’s about being there, being present, and sparking the world of ‘Oh my god, you know what, people do care, people are out there that want to see me, that want to see us, succeed in life,'” he adds.

The Children’s Place 2022 back-to-school campaign will launch “a series of 10 dedicated children’s reading spaces that will serve as fun and engaging areas to learn located in deserving neighborhoods across the country,” a representative for the company tells PEOPLE.

Community growth and interpersonal interaction among children is an aspect of education that is often overlooked and became increasingly infrequent during the pandemic. As underprivileged communities have been heavily affected, due to a lack of available spaces for collaborative learning, Hart says this initiative has never been more important.

“It can’t just be about the schooling system,” he explains. “I think there needs to be added components around. So what [The Children’s Place is] doing is just adding another tier, another branch, to the tree of possibility and expanding a child’s mind. Providing books, providing tools that are very necessary.”

He continues, “It’s something that I think should just be done more, so hopefully other brands, other corporate companies, other people in general will follow suit and do more of what [The Children’s Place is] doing.”

Source: people.com