Unusual focus enhances summer experience for homeless children

Making math fun for homeless children who temporarily live at Holy Family Shelter in Indianapolis is the goal of Lillian Sanders, a tutor for the Indianapolis Algebra Project and a junior at Marian University in Indianapolis. (Photo by John Shaughnessy)

By John Shaughnessy

Their days have been filled with the joys of summer that every child should experience.

The children at Holy Family Shelter in Indianapolis have splashed in the pool and run through sprinklers in the park, shouting and squealing in delight.

These children from homeless families have laced on skates, dipped brushes in paint and dribbled across a basketball court.

There have even been special classes in cooking and rocket-making as Holy Family Shelter—an initiative of Catholic Charities Indianapolis—has tapped into the summer camp that’s being run by the nearby Christamore House, a multiservice facility that also tries to improve the quality of life in an economically struggling part of the city.

Then there is the other, unusual focus of the summer months for the children who have found a temporary home in the shelter that serves homeless families, married couples, expectant mothers and single parents with children—summer lessons in math, with an emphasis on the fun of learning the subject.

The children are enjoying the lessons, according to Emily Able, the director of community and youth services at the shelter.

“We were a little bit afraid that we were taking these kids out of camp to bring them back for tutoring,” Able says. “But after the second day, it was the exact opposite of what we expected. They definitely look forward to it.”

Able credits that enthusiasm to the fun, energetic instruction that is provided by the youthful tutors from the Indianapolis Algebra Project, a community-based effort that seeks to improve math literacy among young people who range in age from 4 to 17—an age group that is represented at the shelter.

At 20, Lillian Sanders is one of those energetic instructors who give math lessons at the shelter for about 90 minutes every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon during the summer.

“The majority of the kids enjoy it,” says Sanders, who will be a junior at Marian University in Indianapolis. “We play math games with them, and try not to make it boring. It’s fun to see how differently kids learn, especially at a young age. This helps keep the kids current on their math. When they go back to school, they will have a leg up on what they need to know.”

That goal is especially important to children who come from homeless situations.

“Studies show that each time a homeless child or a transient child transfers schools, they lose an average of six months of education,” Able says. “If we can provide extra educational enrichment, hopefully that fills the gaps that come from being so transient. The Indianapolis Algebra Project is a huge part of that effort.”

If the children can be reached at younger ages, it helps all the more, Able notes.

“Kindergarten through third grade is a very important time,” Able says. “That’s the time when they’re learning to read. If they miss that part, it hurts their learning in the fourth-, fifth- and sixth grades. And that increases the possibility of them dropping out of school.”

Challenging children from homeless situations is part of the approach at Holy Family Shelter, according to Bill Bickel, the archdiocese’s director for crisis relief and shelter services for Catholic Charities Indianapolis.

“This is a group that absolutely needs to have the bar raised,” Bickel says. “They have the ability to meet high expectations. We have to emphasize the education of homeless children, especially in math and science. We have to make that opportunity available to them.”

The smiles of the children being taught by Sanders and the other tutors have convinced Bickel that education and fun can go hand-in-hand during the summer.

“They’re enjoying it,” he says. “They’re gravitating toward something that some people might think is beyond them. They’re responding wonderfully.” †