One of the more sensitive issues a teacher may have to deal with is a student
with poor hygiene. It is not an issue you easily can ignore, especially if it
results in a student being ridiculed and rejected by her peers. If the child does
not learn good hygiene by the time she leaves elementary school, she likely is
in for a rough time in middle and high school.
Poor hygiene can take a variety of forms, including disheveled hair, dirty
clothes, and body odor. Because of the potentially significant social and health
implications of poor hygiene, you cannot sidestep those issues with students;
you must deal with them with honesty and directness, and with sensitivity and
concern for the student's emotional well being.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Make
hygiene a regular part of your health curriculum. A variety of materials are
available for teaching hygiene, including curricula, videos, and books. You might
ask a kindergarten teacher, who often is used to dealing with those issues, for
some tips on teaching hygiene. You will especially want to encourage the following
behaviors among all your students: showering or bathing regularly, shampooing
their hair, brushing their teeth, wearing clean clothes, washing their hands after
using the bathroom, covering their mouths when coughing, and using tissues to
wipe their noses.
Talk
privately with a student with poor hygiene. Help the student understand that
poor hygiene can cause illnesses, and that it can cause other children to avoid
her. Talk with her about the basics of good hygiene; then zero in on her particular
areas of need. You may need to give the student very specific instructions for
good hygiene, and to teach behaviors we take for granted in most children. If
you are uncomfortable talking with the student about those issues, you might ask
the school nurse to meet with her.
Monitor
the student's hygiene. Provide the student with a checklist of hygiene activities
she should do on a daily basis, such as taking a shower or bath, washing her hair,
brushing her teeth, combing her hair, putting on clean clothes, and so on. Have
the student write those behaviors in a notebook, and tell her that those tasks
are part of her homework assignment. For the first couple of weeks, meet privately
with the student for a few minutes every morning to review how well she did her
"homework," and praise her for any additional evidence of good hygiene.
Have
some hygiene items handy in the classroom. You may find that a student with
poor hygiene does not have some basic hygiene items at home. For occasions like
those, keep a variety of basic items -- such as brushes, combs, tissue, soap,
shampoo, deodorant, toothbrushes, and toothpaste -- in your desk. Let the student
know that she can take what she needs as long as she makes good use of them. Check
to make sure the student knows how to use the items.
Work
out a private signal to cue a student who is picking her nose. Few behaviors
turn off peers more quickly than a student who picks her nose. If you have a child
who is a frequent nose picker, meet with her privately and let her know that other
children find this behavior unpleasant and may avoid her as a result. Tell the
student that she needs to use a tissue instead and provide her with a pack of
tissues to keep in her desk. Work out with the student a subtle, non-verbal signal
to alert her when she begins to pick her nose.
Make
hygiene a regular part of your health curriculum. A variety of materials are
available for teaching hygiene, including curricula, videos, and books. You might
ask a kindergarten teacher, who often is used to dealing with those issues, for
some tips on teaching hygiene. You will especially want to encourage the following
behaviors among all your students: showering or bathing regularly, shampooing
their hair, brushing their teeth, wearing clean clothes, washing their hands after
using the bathroom, covering their mouths when coughing, and using tissues to
wipe their noses.
