PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT |
Children that lack resources are at risk for problems with their physical development. When adequate resources are not present, children experience delays in growth and development. Nutritious and adequate food is not typically abundant.
Starting in utero, children that do not have access to proper nutrition are at risk for growth retardation as well as impacts on the developing brain. The first 6 months of life are so crucial, as improper nutrition coupled with inadequate maternal caregiving can affect growth patterns and outcomes in the developing child. As one can imagine, having poor nutrition and compromised physical development can affect other areas of development, such as cognitive, social emotional, and academic. No area is isolated when it comes to poverty's effects. |
physical development
cognitive development social development |
academic growth and performance
emotional development attachment to parents |
how poverty affects the brain
Cognitive DevelopmentChildren that live in poverty and lack resources are affected cognitively. A lack of nutritious food and nutrients during development both in the mother's womb, and into infancy, toddlerhood, and childhood can affect brain development. Children that are below the poverty line score lower on cognitive tests than children with adequate resources. A child's birth weight and general health affect a child's cognitive scores. Poverty also appears to alter the physical makeup of a child's brain. Children exposed to poverty at an early age had smaller volumes of white and cortical gray matter, as well as hippocampal and amygdala volumes. "Growing up poor doesn't just change the way you see the world. It changes your brain." -Newsweek Magazine Family poverty was related to scores across cognitive and academic readiness in preschool-aged children (ages three to four), even after controlling the effect of mother's education, family structure, ethnicity, birth weight and gender. 56 percent of the children had below average IQ scores. suggests that half of the sample performed below expectations compared to their same-aged peers (base rates for disorders). Other disabilities are impacted by cognitive or neurological issues that can impact learning. Children with a history of poverty and neglect were more likely to be diagnosed with developmental delay, ADHD , & Learning Disabilities |
Academic Development & Progress
Children with a lack of resources have risk of poor academic progress over their peers that are not living in poverty. Decreases in math and reading scores and increases in antisocial behavior are more likely, in the school setting for children living in poverty. Children facing the challenges of poverty and neglect — demonstrated below average scores across measures of intellect, academic ability, memory and executive functioning. Our results are consistent with what would be expected if the brain functioning of these children was disrupted during early childhood, which is a time of significant brain growth and development of foundational academic skills. Moreover, the likelihood of long-term implications both educationally and occupationally for children who are of low-income families and victims of childhood neglect. A solution: Early childhood education is found to produce lasting effects on achievement and academic success, but not on IQ (with some exceptions). Head Start and public school programs can help children have better academic outmodes and are well worth it. Cost-benefit analysis based on one randomized trial finds that the economic return from offering early education to children in poverty far exceeds the costs Afterschool programs can also provide support in academic performance by providing homework support and assistance and motivational strategies to keep children focused in school and provide a healthy environment with supervision. |