Resilience in Children Experiencing Homelessness

This is the second installment in a series of articles about children experiencing homelessness, written by our dedicated volunteer Sara Stacy. Please see her first article, below this one, for a picture and biography.

Resilience in Children Experiencing Homlessness by Sara Stacy 

Children experiencing homelessness are facing difficult and stressful challenges everyday, such as poverty, residential instability, violence, nutrition imbalance, and often a lack of everyday basic needs.  Organizations such as Faces without Places attempt to combat these stressors by providing them with material aid such as alternative transportation or school supplies; however by doing so, they also provide them with an intangible resource: resilience.

Resilience refers to the ability to “bounce back” from stressful or difficult situations, such as homelessness.  Resilience is particularly interesting because often times, it allows individuals in difficult situations to overcome their troubles or act in a way that improves their situation.  Finding resilience in children experiencing homelessness provides organizations like Faces without Places with hope that their efforts are useful and are helping to fight and prevent homelessness from continuing.

According to the Nation Center for Homeless Education’s research summary report on resilience in at Risk Children and Youth, resilience has been found in children who have certain “promotive factors.”  These factors include: positive relationships with caring adults, intelligence, problem solving skills, achievement motivation, effective teachers and schools and lastly, belief that life has meaning. Their research also concludes that agencies or systems that provide after school and informal learning programs were also promoting factors of resilience.

The recent research on resilience gives us hope that the work we do at Faces without Places is helping to promote resilience in young children experiencing homelessness.  We hope to break the cycle of homelessness and by giving them a better chance at overcoming their situation, Faces without Places is able to do just that.

How to Work with Children Experiencing Homelessness

     This is the first in a two part series of articles written by our friend Sara Stacy. Sara is a psychology major at UC with a passion for helping children. During her freshman year, Sara interned for Faces without Places. She is currently working to co-found a club on UC's campus called REACH: (fund)Raising & Educating About Child Homelessness. Sara is also a dedicated Yellow Bus Summer Camp volunteer. We can always count on Sara, as she is one of our most frequent volunteers.

    

How to Work with Children Experiencing Homelessness

By Sara Stacy

Being a teacher in a public school is surely not an easy job and when a child that is experiencing or has experienced homelessness is in your class or school, it may seem overwhelming or even impossible to deal with. However, it is important for teachers and administrators to do what little they can, because the child may not have anyone else fighting for them. We have outlined three important steps to working with a child that is experiencing homelessness so that you can improve their life in the best possible ways.

The first step in working with a child experiencing homelessness is to be sensitive to them and their situation. Let the child know that you are there to help in any way and make sure they see you as an approachable adult in their life.

The second step is to make the student feel welcome. Create a buddy system for new students and keep the student involved in group activities. Do your best to help them make friends and feel like they belong. Provide a welcoming atmosphere for the parents to become involved as well. Make school a place they want to be.

The third step is to make sure they have enough help academically. Make sure you assess the level the child is at initially and try to help him/her get up to speed with where the class is. If they are having difficulty, offer tutoring or suggest somewhere they can get extra help. Allow students to work on homework during class and ask questions or time for extra explanations.

Lastly, and most importantly, remember to create a trusting bond between yourself and the child. Let them know you understand and are there to help them in any way possible. Remember to make them feel comfortable and welcome!

If you know of students in your school or classroom that may not have the tools to succeed, contact our Program and Outreach Manager, Shelley Werner at shelley@faceswithoutplaces.org.                            

 

 

Stay tuned for next week's installment of the Sara Stacy Series, about the importance of resilience for children experiencing homelessness.

Supporter Spotlight: Caring with Cookies!

 

 

            Faces without Places had a wonderful March Madness Event on April 6th at Willie's Sports Cafe in Kenwood on April 6th. It was made extra special by two young ladies who donated their time and effort to baking cookies to sell at the event to benefit FwP. Hue and Grace, who call their charitable baking venture "Caring with Cookies," are featured in this months Supporter Spotlight. The girls, both 10, got involved because Hue and her mother Janet have been long time supporters of Faces without Places, and good friends with Shelley, our Program and Outreach Manager. Grace is Hue's friend from school at Prince of Peace in Covington, KY. When asked why they wanted to help raise funds for children experiencing homelessness, the girls replied that they want to help other children have what they have each day. "We know how lucky we are and we want other children to be as lucky as we are too." Their proudest moment so far in their volunteer experience with FwP was "after a successful night, handing the money that we earned to Beth," our Operations and Development Coordinator. In the future, they look forward to spending their free time raising as much money as possible. These savvy young ladies are a great example to everyone, young and old. We are proud to count them as supporters and look forward to seeing the growth and learning that will occur as they continue to give back, caring with cookies and compassion. Hue & Grace will be selling cookies at FwP's booth at the Flying Pig marathon on Saturday May 4th from 11 - 3. Come on out to get some delicious cookies and say hi to the girls, and some of our dedicated board members!

Supporter Spotlight: Margaret Palmer!

    For this month's Supporter Spotlight, we wanted to share the story of one of our wonderful Board Members. Without our engaged and passionate Board, we would be unable to reach as many children as we do, so we are lucky and thankful to have their minds and hearts on our side. One of our newest Board members, Margaret Palmer, is enthusiastic, dedicated and innovative, and she is also our Secretary of the Board. Please enjoy learning more about Margaret and what she enjoys about being an integral part of Faces without Places.

     Have you ever heard the phrase “invisible homelessness”?  Did you know that most homeless people exist out of our sight, roughing it on sofas of friends and families?  Many homeless children fall into the category of invisible homelessness; it is this that drew me to Faces without Places last year when I was looking for a place to volunteer as a board member.

     I am the mother of two teenage boys and when I told them where I was spending my free time they questioned me; “Mom, we don’t have any homeless kids around Milford.  Why are you doing all this extra work? ” These questions needed good answers.  I showed them the Faces without Places website and they seemed somewhat satisfied.  I asked them to think; ”What would you do if we didn’t have a place to sleep at night?”  They said, “We would go to family.” Their response makes sense.  I told them, in short, kids don’t know that they are homeless because parents and family can do a really good job at trying to keep life normal when the family is in real crisis.  That hit home to them and they both said they knew of someone at school who was homeless.

     I have volunteered my entire life in some capacity.  I remember bringing canned food from our family’s pantry to grade school to contribute to food drives. In high school, I spent afternoons making sandwiches for the homeless shelter. In college, I helped clean out an elderly woman’s basement so that repairs on her foundation could be done.  As a parent, when the boys were young, I helped in their school libraries and cafeterias.  At this point in my life, I felt the need to make more of an impact when I volunteer.  I am fortunate to have the support of my employer, Johnson Investment Counsel, Inc. to make the commitment to be a Board member with Faces without Places

     What I look forward to the most each time I attend a board meeting, fundraiser, or event is making a positive impact on the kids!

 If you can think of a supporter of Faces without Places who you'd love to see spotlighted, please contact megan@faceswithoutplaces.org.

Supporter Spotlight: Allison Smith

    Allison is one of the very first volunteers to be a part of My Little Library. Her enthusiasm, creativity and ability to connect with any child's interests and personality make her a huge asset to the program. For that reason, she is the first person to be featured in our new Supporter Spotlight, that will recognize the individuals who make up our wonderful and varied supporter base. It also allows volunteers, donors, board members and others to say in their own words what they enjoy about helping Faces without Places break down barriers to education for children experiencing homelessness. And with no further ado, here is what Allison had to say about her experience so far reading with kids at Bethany House Services, a homeless shelter on the Westside.
    
"My name is Allison Smith. I’m 25 years old and I’m originally from Oxford, OH—about an hour north of Cincinnati and the home of Miami University. In Oxford, I had been active in a few local causes ranging from volunteering at a food pantry to philanthropy projects associated with my sorority. When I moved to Cincinnati, however, I had trouble finding a service project that fit my schedule and aligned with one of my passions. After sending a few applications around, I was asked for an interview with Megan to talk about The Little Library. That weekend, Megan and I met over a cup of coffee and I knew I had found a great way to give back to my new community.
The Little Library is a fantastic opportunity for children to develop a love of reading and writing. Last week, the group of kids was so full of energy! I had my doubts whether or not we could get any of them to actually sit down and listen to a book. However, one little boy kept running into the reading room and running back out. I knew he had to be curious, so I tried to capitalize on his interest. I opened up a Batman book and acted like every page had something absolutely amazing on it. Soon enough, he was sitting next to me with wide eyes, anticipating what might happen next to Batman. At one point, he told me I had to read the whole book to him. That experience was such a gift—I felt like I had genuinely piqued his interest in reading!
I’m excited to see what The Little Library will do in the future. I understand that there are plans to expand the program and I couldn’t be more thrilled. A big thank you to Megan and Faces Without Places for extending this incredible opportunity!"

    We look forward to seeing the rest of Allison's journey with Faces without Places and feel very luck to have her as a positive role model and friend for the children we serve. 

ZooMates has begun!

    Our 2013 ZooMates program is up and running.  This year we have partnered with The Eigel Center for Community-Engaged Learning at Xavier University to provide weekly mentoring opportunities for 22 elementary students from St. Francis de Sales.  During our first encounter, mentees and their parents were introduced to their college mentors at our annual Meet and Greet.  A week earlier at the mentor training, I had alerted the college students that their first encounter with the mentees could be “awkward” and that they should be prepared to keep the conversation going.  I’m happy to report, they were all chatting up a storm.  Mentees and mentors not only shared their hopes for future successes but they also shared their greatest concerns about being in the program.  By far, the mentees were most worried about animals at the Zoo escaping their habitats and running around wild during one of their visits!  Smiles and laughter filled the cafeteria as we got to know each other through interviews and games.   The evening ended with everyone enjoying a meal together.

 

    On our next encounter, the kids and I traveled to Xavier University where we met up with our mentors and equipped ourselves with goggles and gloves in order to explore the world of Chemistry with Dr. Mullins.  Liquids boiled, flowers exploded, colors combined and evil gummy bears were dissolved as the ZooMates looked on with excitement and wonder. 

 

                            

     I just have to say, I love this program.  Being with the children as they build positive relationships, explore their community and delve into hands on educational activities is what keeps me so passionate about my work with Faces without Places.  Stay tuned for more adventures; our next encounter will be at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens!

    - Shelley.

 

My Little Library: A Place for Young Bookworms!

         Often, children who are experiencing homelessness are staying in homeless shelters with their families. It is difficult for these children to do their homework, or even to just read a book. It might be too noisy, busy, or they may not even have a book to read at all. Additionally, their parents may be dealing with housing, employment, financial and health issues, and reading books with their children may become less of a priority.  

      Many children are lucky enough to take for granted having someone to read with them, to help them spell out words, read in silly voices, and turn the fresh pages of a brand new book they’ve never read before.  Do you remember your favorite books when you were a child? There are probably too many to count. The choice a child makes in choosing his or her favorite book is one of the first ways of establishing each unique personality and a love of words.  The world becomes theirs to explore.

     All children deserve the opportunity to choose their favorite book. The more choices you give a child, the more likely they will be to have options to choose from later on in life, and to know which option is the most positive. One-on-one reading time is also linked to higher reading comprehension later in life. Reading comprehension is incredibly important to every subject a child will learn, even mathematics.

      “Children who have not already developed some basic literacy practices when they enter school are three to four times more likely to drop out in later years.”   National Adult Literacy Survey 1993.

     There is substantial research linking one-on-one reading hours with reading comprehension.  One reading expert, Dr. Connie Juel, found that “only 10% of students who read poorly at the end of first grade ever read proficiently in later grades.”    

       Faces without Places is committed to breaking down barriers to education for children experiencing homelessness and lack of access to books and one-on-one reading time outside of school is one of those barriers. As an action towards that initiative, I am putting together a reading program in which one on reading experiences will be provided to kids in transition at local homeless shelters weekly by FwP volunteers.

     Barnes & Noble in Kenwood was kind enough to do a book drive for the program and their customers picked out and donated over 300 brand new books. As I sort through them, I am coming across books that were my favorites when I was a little girl, like Goodnight Moon, The Hungry Caterpillar, and many more. They are all so beautiful and I can not wait for the kids to comb through them and connect with different characters and narratives.  I am naming the program "My LIttle Library" so that the kids and volunteers will feel like they are borrowing books from a library that is just for them. There are also books like the Hunger Games, Charlie and the Chocolate factory, and Harry Potter for the last twenty minutes of the session so that kids will have a chance to hear their volunteer friend read from a book that might be a little too challenging (but not for long!) for them to read themselves. "My Little Library" will not be just about reading, but will also incorporate fun experiences with art, writing and drawing  their own stories, acting out their favorite books and expressing themselves in many different, fun ways.

       Over the next few weeks, little libraries will open for "business" at Bethany House Services in Westwood/Cheviot, followed by IHN Cincinnati, and then First Step Home, both in Walnut Hills. Others will follow but these three will be the first to get up and running. Each shelter is very different and is looking for different times and days, and also for different experiences. First Step Home houses many infants and would love for "My Little Library" to incorporate early childhood literacy elements and other creative tools.

     I am looking for volunteers who are interested in reading with children one-on-one inside homeless shelters. Skills required include: Patience, a sense of humor and a love of words. If you are a retired teacher, or in high school or college, this could be the perfect match for you! Please contact me at megan@faceswithoutplaces.org to receive a Volunteer Application. Stay Tuned to hear more about the "My Little Library"program and its impact on children experiencing homelessness!