Fifth graders spread hope through micro-lending

Fifth graders finished their reading of “Home of the Brave” by Katherine Applegate, which follows the journey of a young refugee boy named Kek as he flees violence in his home of Sudan and resettles in the United States. The students discussed the different themes of the book and identified hope as the overall theme. To carry on the theme of hope, students in Tracy Hickenlooper’s class learned about a micro-loan program called Kiva. The students researched potential borrowers, presented and debated about which ones would be best, and decided where to make their loans. They picked four micro-loans to low-income entrepreneurs and students in Kenya, where Kek stayed in a refugee camp before reaching America.