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IF KIDS COME TO US FROM STRONG, HEALTHY, FUNCTIONING FAMILIES, IT MAKES OUR JOB EASIER.
IF THEY DO NOT COME TO US FROM STRONG, HEALTHY, FUNCTIONING FAMILIES, IT MAKES OUR JOB
MORE IMPORTANT.
-BARBARA COLOROSE

INTERACTIVE QUIZ REVIEW

What surprised you?
How well informed do you feel

about the issue of socioeconomic

disadvantage in schools?
How do the facts presented in the
quiz relate to the task of creating
classroom community?

STUDENT ATTENDANCE

Children living in poverty have been found

to be eight times more likely to drop out
before completing high school
Students as young as 11 have been
forced to miss school in order to take care
of younger siblings
Lack of affordable housing and relocation
makes attending school difficult
Poor academic outcomes leads to
suspensions or expulsions
Failure to complete HS was 57% for youth
in families receiving income assistance

STUDENT ENGAGEMENT
Canadian School Boards Association - inadequate
nutrition can lead to long term negative effects
on student achievement in school
Lead to difficulties in attendance,
concentration, and continue marginalization
35% of children from low income families have
delayed vocabulary development, versus 10% in
higher income families
Calculated that 1 in 6 children in Ontario live in
poverty

STUDENT SUCCESS

Parents often work teaching moments into their games with

their children. This impacts a childs learning ability within
9 months after birth.
Parents who live in poverty have less time to interact in this
way with their children, which often leads to them being
behind when starting school.
Children from higher income families are also more likely to
visit places like museums and zoos with their families.

STUDENT SUCCESS

If a student from a low income family has been at a disadvantage since

kindergarten, by the time they turn 16 or 18 (the legal dropout ages in Canada,
province dependant) it is understandable they would be extremely discouraged
and consider dropping out.
Student who are able to succeed in school often dont consider post secondary
education if they fall below the poverty line. Theses students dont often bother
to take proper courses, or dont know how to find and apply for scholarships.
Low socioeconomic schools have high student to teacher ratios, which makes
forming relationships more difficult
Students who feel like no one would care if they werent there (a teacher, coach
or administrator) are less motivated to stay in school.

CONCLUSION: WHAT CAN WE DO?

Poverty affects children on every step of their academic journey. In order to ensure
that children living in poverty are offered the best supports possible, it is paramount
that we educate ourselves about its many facets: what poverty looks like, who it can
affect, and how to help children from low income backgrounds become happy, healthy
learners.

CONCLUSION: WHAT CAN WE DO?

-Provide resources in class: books ,writing implements, magazines, computers.
-Build classroom community and empathy by maximizing the number of group activities.
-Set high expectations but understand the challenges students living in poverty face in meeting
these goals and in following the rules of social behavior.
-Recognize the literacy challenges of low income students and engage them to apply purposeful
reading strategies to all literacy-related activities.
-Provide extra assistance and coaching wherever necessary, and model desired behavior.
-Assist students who may not have opportunities to go on family vacations in broadening their
horizons by discussing various cultures in class.
-Be kind!

BREAKAWAY ASSESSMENT
1.In the context of the material youve seen and experiences from your

practicum, think about the following question: What might poverty look like in
the classroom, and what can we do to help?
Split up into groups of 4 or 5 to discuss what youve learned and how you can
develop your knowledge into strategies for building safe classroom
communities.
Using the materials provided, create a visual representation of your answer to
the above question.
When you have finished, share your work with the class.

2.
3.
4.