Living in Poverty means more than just having money issues. While that is a big contender when dealing with poverty it’s just not the only thing in play. It is extremely hard to understand something you haven’t gone through, and typically the teachers that teach students living in poverty are from the Middle Class. This can be extremely discouraging to the students, but also for the teacher as well because they don’t understand what the student is going through, or what they need from you as their teacher.
Schools are helping in the ways that they can, either by BuddyPacs (an organization that supplies food for children over the weekend), some schools are now even providing laundry services to student who either don’t have running water at home, or have to go a laundromat where it could cost upward of 5 dollars per load. Another thing that I have seen schools do is have travel size hygiene products for those student that may not have shampoo or soap at home. Schools wants to provide students with the resources they need to succeed no matter the socioeconomic status of the child
We see our students for a few hours everyday, and we may have no idea what their home life is like. We may not know if that child has a good support system or even if they have one to begin with, they may not be able to channel their emotions in a healthy manner because they may not see the adults in the their life handle their emotions,, the student may not know where their next meal is coming from, if they will return home only to find they are being evicted. All of these situations takes a toll on a child in their mental and physical development because their day to day needs aren’t being met.
Its heartbreak as a teacher because if you are aware that the student struggling because of living in poverty, you don’t know what you can do to help them both in and out of school. I can’t attest to what teachers can do outside of school, but during the school day be the students champion, show them that they matter to you, that you care about them, take their life into consideration and what may or may not be a trigger to the student. Overall, just be kind, welcome them in the morning with a smile on your face even if it is met with a tinge of anger, be that positive person in their life that keeps pushing them to be the best person that they can be. Let them know that you are there for them, and choose kindness.
