Eugene M. Lewit and Linda Schuurmann Baker

Although the number of homeless families and children is difficult to gauge, claim Eugene M. Lewit and Linda Schuurmann Baker in the following viewpoint, evidence suggests that homelessness and extreme poverty among families has risen dramatically since 1975. The increase in poor households led by single parents is the main cause of homelessness among women and children, contend the authors. Lewit is the director of research and grants for economics at the Center for the Future of Children, an organization that supports research and policy analysis in three areas: health, child development, and child abuse and neglect. Baker is a research analyst at the Center for the Future of Children.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. Who makes up the typical homeless family with children, as stated by Lewit and...