Students Tackle Living on Minimum Wage

Why do many people - even those living in our immediate area - live with limited opportunities and choices on a daily basis? This question guided Hawken sixth grade students during an innovative February service-learning experience. In math class, students examined the struggle of making ends meet on a full-time mimimum wage income. They calculated yearly and monthly earnings using different family structures and determined expenses based on average percentages for household budget items. Using online information from The Change Agent, students were able to use a family budget calculator to access average expenses for family types in the Cleveland area. In history class, students viewed and discussed a film, Thirty Days on Minimum Wage. Then the director of the Cleveland Interfaith Hospitality Network, Sarah Cruise, taught a lesson on the pitfalls of full-time employment when the wages cannot meet basic needs. Ms. Cruise brought in grocery items as learning aids, comparing the cost of different versions of the same foods - for example, iceberg lettuce vs. a prewashed and prepackaged fancy lettuce blend - and demonstrating what would be typical purchases for a family with limited income and choices. Students used the budget information to determine what one meal would cost per person on a minimum-wage budget. Armed with this figure, students set out in \"families\" of four on a shopping trip to Marc`s stores, where they had to decide as a family what to purchase for lunch with a maximum of $2.00 per person. The entire lesson, including a written reflection, was built on experiencing a reduced level of opportunity and choice - rather than owning fewer or lower quality material things. The goal of organizers is to fortify character by developing a sense of empathy, compassion, and an attitude that giving is more gratifying than getting. You are invited to read student comments on the experience at http://hawkenethics.blogspot.com.