Give students a copy of "Poverty & Inequality in the World's Richest Nation: A Resource for Study & Citizen Action," by Alan Shapiro, and assign them the student reading sections. Have them write a response to the assigned reading. Assign each student a research assignment. Students choose a poverty-related issue to research. Issues such as homelessness, hunger, despair, crime and lack of income make good choices. Have the students research how poverty plays a role in each area of research.
Divide the class into two groups. One group are the social workers, and the second group are the low-income people trying to get assistance. Pull the social workers to the side and assign each one the role of either a kind, helpful social worker or a rude, mean, aggressive social worker. Have the poor people fill out a form, and go to an interview with one of the social workers. After the first interview, make the students have a second interview with the opposite type of social worker. After the interviews, have a class discussion on how it felt being interviewed by each type of social worker. Put the students in situations so they feel how a social worker can affect lives. Let them know their negative or positive actions may make disadvantaged people try harder or give up on life.
Let students design their own versions of the game "Monopoly" or "Life," adding things that can impoverish a person. Throw in cards showing, for instance, that penalize accidental pregnancy with a $5,000 doctor bill, loss of your job, do not collect your next four paydays, or go back to school and pay $10,000. Get creative and add cards for good things too. Students see how things happen in life that can make you lose or gain money.
Assign each student a budget of $50 and have them create a list of activities costing $50 for a family of four for a month. Give each student a list of food items and prices. Then assign the students a second budget of $50, and have them create a grocery shopping list that doesn't go over the budget. After they finish, discuss their feelings on living within the assigned budgets. Have students figure out how much money a family of four needs to eat for a month.