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I found this book very difficult to read so I can't imagine actually experiencing the devastation of living in deplorable conditions afraid to do anything about for fear of eviction. I think mostly what I came to think about during this portion of the book is the inadequacy in the diversity of resources available to one depending on your race and socio economic status. I think it would be very interesting for the students to do some "case" studies similar to what the author did into social class- it would both enlighten kids living in poverty who often don't know they are impoverished and see their only way out is being lucky and it would enlighten kids that have resources just how much easier it is for them to access opportunity. Knowledge creates understanding! I also think it creates some imperative on the adults in our kids' lives to educate themselves on trauma and the effects on the brain. This link takes you to a test called the ACE test.  Where do we fall vs some of our kids?
http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2015/03/02/387007941/take-the-ace-quiz-and-learn-what-it-does-and-doesnt-mean

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Photos of bedrooms from around the world!

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Photos of bedrooms from around the world!

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/bedrooms-around-the-world_us_57eaf4c0e4b0c2407cda5ca5

http://justsomething.co/where-children-sleep-20-powerful-photos-of-kids-bedrooms-from-around-the-world/

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Reading the first section of Evicted over the last few weeks has been difficult for me. The book is engaging, but often difficult to swallow, as it engages in the harsh realities of a broken system. This has been compounded by visiting the homes of many of our potential students over the last few weeks.

As we visited many of these homes, one couldn't help notice the differences in neighborhoods and living conditions. Some live in quiet areas, others just off major avenues. Some are just blocks from our school, while others are 30 minutes or more away. Some houses are clean with fresh paint and well groomed landscaping, while others are dilapidated. Many streets have the green boarded up windows and doors talked about in the book. Despite being someone who prides themselves as having lived and visited nearly every area of Milwaukee, we did indeed drive into neighborhoods I have never visited and even had trouble identifying the location of. This exposed just how underexposed I have been to parts of Milwaukee.

However, despite the many different living conditions of students that we visited, when families where home and invited us in or spoke with us - I always felt welcome, and a profound sense of (often guarded) excitement from students and their parents. The students all have interests and dreams that come seeping out one inquiry at a time. Many were interested in getting a job, others wanted to know about preforming, doing sports, making art, or what kind of computers we would have available. In short, they are all just people and in this way we are all the same.

So where do our differences come into play? The book and this experience opened my eyes to circumstances that may arise for students throughout the year. I think we as a staff need to remain vigilant in employing empathy when considering what others may be dealing with, and remember to extend a helping hand when possible. If a family has to move from one house to another, can we encourage the students to help with the move. If a family is low on income for essentials like food, clothing, etc - how can the school or others within our community help lighten this burden.

I also think that is important that our students are trained in empathy, openness to discuss circumstances (with staff and peers), and that they have a similar experience to mine, exploring our differences in a safe space. For this I suggest we schedule time during our on-boarding for some activities to help facilitate this process. Potential activities and discussions might result from activities like...

- Students shoot photographs and caption photographs that document what an average day looks like through their eyes.

- Students take a self portrait in the place that they sleep.

- Students write about a true story that happened in their neighborhood.

- Students photograph, illustrate, or write about what they have for dinner each night for a week.

- Students construct a simple map (either physically, or digitally) with pins showing approximately where they live and/or show what the view out of their front door looks like.

- Students write about their goals, talents, fears and struggles.

Other ideas?

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Poverty in Milwaukee Affects All Milwaukeeans

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Poverty in Milwaukee Affects All Milwaukeeans

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Among the may things that have stuck with me since reading this book (I'll admit, I read it awhile ago and have just had time to skim through this time around so far) - everyone in Milwaukee is touched by the poverty that some in our city experience first hand.

Some of our students will live day-to-day with issues surrounding poverty and will need empathy from staff and other students.  Others may have been sheltered from these experiences and will have a great chance to learn more about how many Americans live and about the ways that poverty affects their own lives.

I completely agree with Mike's call for a focus on empathy for both staff & students. I see the diverse by design element of our school as one of the most promising aspects of what we are doing and a great way to combat the segregation that exists in our city and subsequently our schools.
I hope we can create a safe environment for everyone to get a glimpse into other people's lives, and really understand where we all are coming from.

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What does this quote from the author mean to you as a teacher that will be working with kids from every socioeconomic status?“Poverty was a relationship, I thought, involving poor and rich people alike. To understand poverty, I needed to understand that relationship. This sent me searching for a process that bound poor and rich people together in mutual dependence and struggle. Eviction was such a process.”

After reading just part one, how do you think learning about what many of our kids might face will impact your work at Pathways in terms of teacher-student relationships and student-student relationships?

You can record your voice, add a text box, create an infographic, etc. in order to reflect on these questions.  Please reply to others!