Name+Inquiry

This wiki page features ideas for incorporating names, naming, and name inquiry into ELA teaching and learning, as well as name resources. Please post your ideas and resources that you completed for Class 4 below!

**Our Ideas...**

 * One idea is for a multigenre paper or mini-multigenre paper based on a student's name research that recognizes different aspects of their heritage, name formation, and history/location of the name. Students could, for example, write a poem about their ancestors' homeland, a creative story about a distant relative, a visual representation of a coat of arms they would create for their name, or a digital piece about their name. Any genre could be considered, but as part of the assignment they would only be asked to include 3-4 genres or so, instead of the 8-10 or more usually included in a multigenre paper. [ADD NAME]


 * Students will research names for meaning and history. Studnets will interview relatives to find out why names were chosen and other family lore about the choosing of names in their family. Students will present a multimedia project reflecting on this journey and any personal insights. (Terry)

> Students interview family members and conduct research on their first and last names then choose one of the names for which to create a VoiceThread Oral History. (Michael) > === ===
 * Exploring our perceptions of how names define us (or not) and how our names affect our perceptions of who we are: Once students have done research on the meaning behind their names they then use the meanings they found and compare how they think their real names fit with their personalities. If they feel that their current names do not fit with who they are then have students find a new name and subsequent meaning. With their new names have them compose a short writing piece written from the perspective of a person with that other name and then have them compose a piece written from the perspective of someone with their real name (using the meaning of the name to define the personality of the perspective). For students satisfied with the meaning of their name have them write a piece that shows how the semantics of their name reflects their personality. Then have them find a different name and write a different piece from a person with that name. Explore sterotypes associated with certain names. Discuss emotions and perceptions surrounding our names. (Christina)

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**Other Ideas:**

 * **Names & their importance related to works of literature:** e.g., Shakespeare’s //Romeo & Juliet//, Alex Haley’s //Roots// and //Queen;// Fyodor Dostoevsky’s //Crime and Punishment// (the fact that each name in Russian has something to add to the theme of the book is helpful); //The Crucible// by Arthur Miller (the last scene is particularly moving, when John Proctor is about to be executed and the only way he can get out of it is by signing his name to lies about other people. He shouts, "But it's my name! I'll never have another!"); //The House on Mango Street// by Sandra Cisneros; //Charlie and the Chocolate Factory// by Roald Dahl; //Ruby Holler// by Sharon Creech (names which mirror the characteristics of the characters); //A Gathering of Old Men// by William Gaines (has many character-appropriate nick-names).


 * Explore the History of Names. How we came up with names. Where did surnames come from? Naming in other cultures. How does naming work in other cultures? Examples: Japan, South Africa, Native Americans, etc.


 * Connection to Gloria Naylor’s //Bailey’s Café:// African-American character who struggles with effects of his given ethnic name and the discrimination he faces because of this in the world of work.


 * Have students research the meaning behind a relative’s name that they are interested in; allows for interviewing activity


 * Students develop a creative response to their name’s meaning


 * Students research their “signed” name or make up one of their own (sign language)


 * Students create a pseudonym for themselves that they can then use in their writing


 * Develop a class book of names which incorporates each student’s name “story”


 * Research name and background as bridge for researching a particular culture and an author from that culture. Also, choose literary work by that author to read and write a review. Make a copy for every student in the class (a type of culture notebook.).


 * Cultural and historical events/shifts and their effects on name changes (i.e., how names change in some way—gender, spelling, degree of popularity, power, etc.; Do names help determine a person’s destiny? Do names match personality types?)


 * Use name inquiry to bridge to //Romeo and Juliet// and a discussion of the lineage and cultural themes of the play; other texts for juxtaposition here might include the modern film version of //Romeo and Juliet//, the musical //West Side Story//, or the story of the Hatfields and McCoys


 * Use name inquiry to bridge to a unit on autobiography: have students create a memorable events timeline, write a phase autobiography, read published autobiography (-ies); juxtapose with biography


 * Use name inquiry to bridge into look for examples of naming and “nameplay” in literature (e.g., the excerpt when Pippin & Merry meet Treebeard in Tolkien’s //The Lord of the Rings Part Two: The Two Towers//; the characters in Dicken’s //Hard Times//; etc.)

**Resources:**
**//Text-Based Resources://**

Dictionary of Proper Names, Oxford University Press

Evans, C. (2008). A note on U.S. immigrants' choice of baby names. Names: A journal of onomastics, 56(1), 39-40.

Hanks, P., & Hodges, F.. A Dictionary of First Names and A Dictionary of Surnames.

Lansky, B. (1991). //The Best Baby Name Book In the Whole Wide World.// Deephaven, MN: Meadowbrook, Inc.

Levitt, S. D., & Dubner, S. J. (2005). Ch. 6: Perfect parenting, p.ii; or: Would a Roshanda by any other name smell so sweet? Freakonomics: A rogue economist explores the hidden side to everything. NY: HarperCollins.

Macleod, I., & Freedman, T. (1995). //The wordsworth dictionary of first names//. Chatham, (Michael)

Stewart, G. R. .American Given Names.

Toynbee, P. (1914). Concise dictionary of proper names and notable matters in the works of Dante. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

Kent: Wordsworth Editions.

**//Online Resources://**

// Behind the Name: The etymology and history of first names // : [|http://www.behindthename.com] (Michael, Christina) // Dictionary of American Family Names // from Answers.com: [] (Christina) The Internet Surname Database: [] (Michael)

//Oxford Concise Dictionary of First Names:// [] (Christina)