Homeless Children Defined:
The McKinney-Vento Act (Section 725) defines “homeless children and youth” (school-age and younger) as:
Children and youth that lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. This also includes children and youth who are:
Children and youth that lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. This also includes children and youth who are:
- Sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason.
- Living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations.
- Living in emergency or transitional shelters.
- Abandoned in hospitals.
- Awaiting foster care placement
- Children and youth who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.
- Children and youth who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings (Homeless Children)
What defines poverty?
Homeless mother and child from Elev8, 2009
According to our U.S government, a family of four that makes less than $22,000 a year lives in poverty. Based on that standard of living and with rising unemployment, its assumed our country's percentage of kids in poverty will hit 25 percent. The Great Depression was the last time a generation faced these equally difficult hardships.( Anderson, Young, Ruetenik)
Implications of Children affected: Stated from the National Center on Family Homelessness
Vegan Magazine, 2013
Reported from the National Center of Family Homelessness are the findings that homelessness has a severe impact on both the physical and mental health of children.
HEALTH IMPLICATIONS
Homeless children are sick four times more often than other children.
Children without a permanent residence have:
Experiences of Violence
Violence occurs often to daily in homeless children's lives.
Mental Health
Among the children able to attend school:
HEALTH IMPLICATIONS
Homeless children are sick four times more often than other children.
Children without a permanent residence have:
- Four times as many colds.
- Twice as many ear problems leading to infections.
- Five times more stomach/intestinal problems.
- Four times greater chance of having asthma.
- High rate of becoming obese because the lack of nutritional food.
- Three times the rate of emotional and behavioral problems compared to non-homeless children.
Experiences of Violence
Violence occurs often to daily in homeless children's lives.
- By age twelve, 83% of homeless children have witnessed at least one serious act of violence.
- Almost 25% have seen acts of violence between their family members.
- 15% have seen their father physically assault their mother by hitting her.
- 11% have seen their mom abused by a male besides their biological father.
- Children who see violent acts on a regular basis are more likely to act aggressive and antisocially. They often times have increased levels of fear, anxiety, and depression, and resort to violence as the only way they know to solve conflicts.
- Children have three times greater prevalence of emotional and behavioral problems when compared to non-homeless children.
Mental Health
Among the children able to attend school:
- 47% have problems such as anxiety, depression, and withdrawal issues where only 18% of other school-age children suffer these problems.
- 36% have noticeably problematic or aggressive behavior, compared to 17% of other children their same age.
- Four times more likely to show academic deficits and delays. They also have twice the rate of diagnosed learning disabilities compared to children who are not homeless.
- McKinney-Vento Homelessness Assistance Act provides greater educational stability among children that are homeless.
- 85% of homeless children and youth regularly attend school since this act was enforced.
- When looking at elementary school student who are homeless: only 21.5% are skilled in math and 24.4% are proficient in reading abilities . High school students results showed even greater variations where only 11.4% are proficient in math and 14.6% in reading abilities (The National Center of Family Homelessness)
Summary of the Impact Homelessness has on a Student
All the negative effects of homelessness act as a negative domino effect on the student. When the child has a diet depleting them of crucial nutrients their growth becomes affected. When their growth is affected, their physical health deteriorates as well. Mental health problems can develop, behavioral problems increase especially at school and their focus and ability to concentrate at school is compromised. When they can not focus at school or are absent often from other circumstances out of their control, their academic achievement severely suffers.
Misconceptions:
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Reality:
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Differences by Race
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Differences by Age
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Differences by Sex
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