🚀 Quick Summary: Poverty affects many, and how we define it varies. It can deeply impact children's development, from health to cognition and behavior.

• U.S. Census Bureau (2004): 12.7% of US residents lived in poverty.

Fun Fact! 🎩

In a room of 100 people, almost 13 of them would be living in poverty, based on this statistic!

• USA: Uses the Federal Poverty Threshold, based on:
  • Food expenditures
  • Cost of living
  • Consumer price index

But Wait! 🤔

• Other countries might use a % of median income.
• Critics argue such measures are too "black-and-white". They don't reflect the varying degrees of poverty below the threshold.

🍕 Real-World Example

Imagine ordering a pizza. The federal threshold might define whether you can afford a pizza or not. But it doesn't show if you can only afford a slice or the whole pie. Same with poverty – there are levels.