Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Lizara]

We had a real beauty this morning. The puddle on the floor under her nose was a good six inches across. *shudders*

The thing is, I never had nosebleeds as a child, and I can't remember seeing them in any of my own elementary classes, but it seems like here they happen all the time, especially with the kindergarten kids, for no obvious reason. One second everybody's doing workbooks, more or less happily, and the next I have a screaming terrified girl with blood all over her face and hands. Does anyone know why this is so common?

[peppermint]

The air here is exceptionally dry, and I think the gas heaters in schools (well mine anyway) aggravate the problem.

[betak]

I'm Korean and I used to get nosebleeds all the time when I was little. My parents and doctor suggested it was because I am lactose-intolerant and was not getting enough of some kind of nutrient that people get from dairy (I'm not sure if it was calcium, or what it could be). Most Asians are lactose intolerant (most people that are not of European descent, actually).

[plattwaz]

I used to wonder the same, and after 4 years of teaching kindies, the first one to admit the reason was this week -- when I asked her why her nose was bleeding, she motioned shoving her finger up her nostril and digging....

[ajuma]

I'd go with betak's idea. My son (American) is also lactose-intolerant. He used to get nosebleeds all the time. He just learned to deal with them. I used to use non-dairy creamer on his cereal! If the kids who have noesbleeds often have dark circles under their eyes, you can be pretty sure that lactose-intolerance is the problem. Sure, milk is healthy for SOME people, but yoghurt is a LOT better!

plattwaz and peppermint also have valid points!

[I-am-me]

Those kids sound scary. I have taught 2 years with only one kid bleeding about a month ago. Are you sure you are not hitting the books too hard or hitting them with the books?

[Big Mac]

My students got a lot of nosebleeds too.

But I don't think it is just a Korean problem. I'm from Canada and used to get nosebleeds a lot at home and at school. Sometimes they were very serious. Actually, I still get them from time to time today. I never figured out the reason, despite many visits to the doctor.

I think the difference is that we are a little more discreet about it when it happens to us than Koreans are. Maybe that's why you never noticed.

I mean, I NEVER would have came back to class with a piece of Kleenex shoved up my nose. I'd wait until it was over before returning. But my Korean students do that every time.

[pet lover]

I think that picking of the nose can be a culprit. I've noticed several of my kids getting a nosebleed right after I'd already admonished them for digging around. They can get those fingers REALLY far in there--the experienced ones, I mean.

[Old fat expat]

Peppermint:
Gas heaters put lots of moisture into the air. Water is a by product of burning gas. Quite a problem in NZ in the winter months. But I take your point, dry air results in irritation.

Pet lover:
had a student leave a decent sized booger on the desk of his sister just two days ago. I was both disgusted and impressed.

Lets put the two togeather. Dry air results in crusty nasal growths. Young fingers yet to master the fine motor skills required of picking. Over excavation = nose bleeds. Now that is science.

[Lizara]

Hmm. I can see the nosepicking theory being valid sometimes, but I've also seen some nosebleeds, like the one on Friday, that could well be described as "gushing" and I can't imagine the kid could do enough damage with a finger to cause that...

I-am-me: wait... you mean I'm NOT supposed to use the books to hit them.? I thought that's why they gave me an especially big Teacher's copy...

[pet lover]

Old fat expat,

I've got two repeat offenders who dig on a regular basis. Usually, when I catch kids digging around, I make them go wash their hands. But these two kids, well, I've caught each of them numerous times and JUST as I'm opening my mouth to say something, they open THEIR mouths to insert the newly flavored finger. *shudder* kids can be so~ gross!

[Mills]

[ajuma]

One thing that occured to me today: If your kids spend a lot of their class time in classrooms with chalkboards, that could be the cause. 2 days a week, I'm exclusively in rooms with chalkboards. I always bring a bottle of water, but by the end of the day, my skin is SOOO dry!

If they're not nosepickers, this could be the problem.

[Ekuboko]

When I was a child, I often got sudden nosebleeds.
I don't think I made a habit of picking my nose in class, so I would rule out that reason. The only thing I can think of for me is temperature changes, like if I got really hot in the classroom my nose would start bleeding. I'm Chinese, and I'm wondering if it had anything to do with not having a higher bridge on my nose!
The teachers used to tell us to pinch the top of my nose to stop it bleeding (ie encourage clotting), but my Korean students would rather stuff a tissue up their nostril...

[Troll_Bait]

In the West, we are told since early childhood that "picking your nose is disgusting."

I'm not sure if Koreans are taught that.

I've taught adult students for a long time, and so many times I've seen middle-aged "ajosshis" openly sticking their fingers way up into their noses and digging around.

When I looked at them, there was no reaction, as if they didn't see anything wrong at all with what they were doing.

So basically, I'm concurring with plattwaz and pet lover.