Reflect: Okay so this is an extremely hot topic, especially as I think about some of the ELLs that I have taught in years past. Most recently I had a student who decided midway through a year that he wanted to be called "Moses" because that was actually how his name was pronounced in his language, so we went along with it. Then, he comes to school in September the next year looking at us like we had 6 heads when we tried to call him "Moses"....turns out that was totally not the way to pronounce his name and he just decided he wanted a play a "game" on the teachers. But, we went along with the initial request to call him this name because we thought we were respecting him and his culture and obviously wanted to get his name right. It was from that moment on that I realized I need to have an open line of communication with parents and families to deal with these types of thoughts from students. However, it's never ok to give a student a nickname because you found their first name to just be "too difficult" for you. Also, it's good to simply just ask every student in your room if their given name is preferred or if they want to be called something else!
Opportunity to Grow: Simply take the time to form relationships with both students and the families to foster a greater relationship of respect and honor. When we take the time to get to know our students better and understand even the stories behind their name, we are able to create a strong classroom environment and relationships.
Opportunity to Grow: Simply take the time to form relationships with both students and the families to foster a greater relationship of respect and honor. When we take the time to get to know our students better and understand even the stories behind their name, we are able to create a strong classroom environment and relationships.