One of my best friends growing up had the last name Radoccia...it became the norm to laugh about how all the teachers got it wrong every year. She did not make a big deal about it, but I knew that it bothered her. It is so much easier to learn all our friends' names because we hear them pronounced many times, even before we necessarily see them in writing. Now from the teacher point-of-view, I realize how hard it is to pronounce names without ever hearing them first. My maiden growing up was easy to pronounce, but my married name is butchered regularly and misspelled by colleagues and students alike. Honestly, at this point, it does not bother me...I work at pronouncing and spelling my name for those who are just learning it. I show where the mistake is typically made. I try to make it easier for others, so they do not feel embarrassed.
