'It's hard to focus': Schools say American kids are hungry

When students don’t have enough to eat, it can affect their ability to learn and perform up to their ability. Schools typically are places where kids can count on access to meals, but there is growing concern about children going hungry, especially since the lapse of pandemic-era federal benefit programs. School meals were free for all students under the federal program, but since that ended this school year most states have gone back to charging all but the neediest kids for meals. Educators around the country have been taking steps to address how they see hunger affecting their students.