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  Case: Smelly Kid
I guess I am still considered a novice teacher because I have been teaching for four years only. I am an elementary school teacher who teaches in a mostly White suburban setting. Couple of weeks ago a new student joined my classroom. He and his parents recently moved from Eastern Europe. His father works at the local university as a music professor. I am not sure what his mother does. He is a wonderful child. Although he speaks little English, he tries to participate in class activities and to make friends with others in the classroom. Couple days after he arrived, I noticed a strange smell around him. I was sure that it was body odor. The other students in the classroom started noticing it too. They started making fun of him. I learned in my multicultural classes when I was at the university that not all cultures promote taking showers everyday, and that body odor is not considered a problem everywhere in the world. Now I have a big dilemma. If I tell my student about it, I might embarrass him. If I sent a note to his parents, I may appear disrespectful toward their culture. But the way he is treated in the classroom by the other students is becoming a real problem. What should I do?
Solution: (Rates are posted for this solution!)
Students within any classroom have the right to be comfortable and welcomed. This being said, the student is in danger of being put in a situation in which he is not comfortable because the other students around begin to pick on him. While taking showers and baths may not be promoted in his culture, it is important that he understands that, in the United States, showers and baths are promoted. Now, I do not advocate embarrassing the student in any way, but I would at least have your counselor have a conversation with the student about this. While it may embarrass him for a short time to have this discussion, I feel that it will be less embarrassing than getting harassed by other students because they do not understand.