Children+in+Poverty+and+Their+Readiness+to+learn

Children in poverty and their Readiness to learn  Much research has shown that children from low income families often do not get the support that is needed in order to foster their readiness to learn. They are often exposed to harsh mental and physical environments which makes it harder for them to get motivated to focus on their education when there are so many other things that need to be worried about. When a child becomes homeless they end up being put into situation where they have to live in polluted and unhealthy environments often with another family member in a crowded home with little to no books to read and television becomes a main source of activity. They will attend schools and day care centers that are inadequate if at all. And have little chance of getting the education that they need. There are two different modes to look at when trying to understand a child’s readiness to learn and they are the family stress mode and the investment mode.  The family stress mode focuses on the impact of poverty of the relationships within the people in a family. The stress brought on by a financial situation and material deprivation can lead to anxiety and depression when it comes to the parents which can lead to more hostile parenting hindering the ability to be responsive to children. This hostile parenting has a major impact on children and their development. Warm, nurturing parenting can protect a child from the many harmful effects of poverty. If parents can just take more time in a day to read to their children they will be more learning ready in the future. Also, by incorporating a rich language experience can promote a cognitive readiness for children, but it is hard for low income families to put this into practice.  The Investment mode studies the links between poverty and resources. According to this theory children that live in poverty stricken families have fewer opportunities to learn because their family cannot afford to send their child to school or supply them with the materials they need to learn. Without these things it makes it hard to provide the proper education for the child and won’t allow them to gain the proper developmental skills.  In the last 20 years there have been studies done in the United States and the United Kingdom that showed that child poverty was directly linked with poor cognitive verbal and behavioral outcomes. Children from low income families will be more likely placed in special education programs and are more likely for grade retention as well as dropping out.  In conclusion, children who live in poverty, especially for a long period of time have very limited learning opportunities and it effects their readiness to learn and can result in developmental delays. It is important to make an attempt to invest in learning skills for a child even if finances are tight. It is important to show them how important an education is and to help them in the smallest ways possible. It is important to not allow the adult stress you deal with get reflected on your children because you do not want to ass more stress and anxiety to their lives. It is important to not be hostile to your children and pay attention to their needs even if you may not have the material goods to do so. The children are the future, and even if they don’t have the financial means to do so school is important and having an education will decrease the chance of landing in poverty in their adulthood lives if they get the education on how to manage money and other finances.