IMK in Action – How Kids Can Help Reduce Poverty

What’s The Deal?

Most people have what they need. They have enough food to eat, clothes to wear, and shelter to call home. But some families and their children live in poverty and experience hard times.

You may think that not having enough money for things we want is tough. But poverty means not having money for things we need. This includes clean water, electricity, food, clothing, or a roof over your head.  For example, you might not have proper clothing to keep warm in cold weather, medicine to help if you are sick or food when you are hungry.

Did You Know?

• Nearly half of the world’s population lives in poverty.
• 1 billion children worldwide live in poor conditions!
• Poverty leads to families not having a home, limited access to hospitals, and neighborhoods that are not safe.
• Children living in poverty are at a higher risk for stress, anger, and depression.
• Poverty also effects children’s schools and the education they receive.
• Children living in poor communities also have a higher chance for health problems. This includes injuries, obesity and diseases like asthma.

What Can You Do?

All over the world there are people and groups helping the poor get the stuff they need! Poverty is everywhere! But there are ways we, especially you, can help! You can help those in need in your local community or in other countries. Here are some ways you can take action:

Change your thoughts about poverty:

• You can treat people for who they are on the inside. Don’t avoid someone because of their appearance. Take a stand and be their friend!
• Research the issue of child poverty in the United States. You can use newspaper articles and online resources to learn more.

Take action on your own:

• You and your family can volunteer! You can take food to the elderly, help at a food bank, or serve meals at a shelter.
• Donate! You can clean out your closets, books, and toys to give them to kids in need. You can give those items to local churches, goodwill, or other charities.
• Write a letter to fight hunger! Start by encouraging friends and family to contact your local representatives. You can write a letter on the causes of children poverty and what we can do to end hunger!
• Organize a food drive at your school. Create posters and flyers to raise awareness on the problems of poverty. Ask others to fight hunger by donating food! Here, Zach raised awareness by walking across the United States!

Join a cause:

• Contact a poverty-relief organization to see how you can help! A relief group comes together after a natural disaster, like a hurricane.
• Sign a petition to help change the world! TheHungerSite has petitions you can sign to help kids’ education and health!
• Poverty is everywhere! Including the city or town you live in. You and your family can volunteer with a local charity to make a difference!

Get Inspired!

Remember that you are not alone! All over the world kids are teaching others how to build a better life and you can too! Here are some stories to inspire you to make a positive difference:

• Here, an African children’s choir uses the power of music to change lives and offer education.
• At a young age, Hannah saw a homeless person eating out of the garbage. After seeing this, she created a non-profit business to help the poor and homeless.
• A New York girl realized that a pair of shoes could change a person’s life forever! So she set a goal to give thousands of shoes to people in need around the world.
• Click here to read more InspireMyKids stories on poverty and ideas for you to help make change happen!

Additional Resources:

To find out more information and ideas to help, check out the list below! Here are a few great organizations who make a difference to fight poverty:

• Millions of children don’t know if they will be able to attend school. Global Fund for Children provides money to small organizations improving education for children.
• Not everyone has a safe home! But Habitat for Humanity has built thousands of homes. Providing shelter for nearly a million people worldwide! These houses are all built by volunteers!
• Every child deserves a healthy start. Save the Children is a program to help needy children with donations, sponsorship, and mentoring.
• There are so many reasons to care! And that’s why CARE helps people have the food, safety, education, and health care they need.

We hope this was useful! If so, please tell your friends and family and together we can fight poverty!