Relationship Building and Student Names

I have had many students over my years of teaching and I have had some with similar names.  Some of my students have had unique or less common first or last names, regardless they are those students' names and my first job is to pronounce it correctly.  

If I am going to foster a relationship with a student, my goal from my first encounter with the student is I must get their name right.  Being a culturally responsive educator is one who values all aspects of that student and there is a lot in a name.  Over the years I have witnessed educators casually make mistakes with student names, the intention was not to hurt the child, but it can.  I am by no means an expert orator or a master of various languages to better pronounce words.  My students hear my mistakes but they also see my desire to ensure I say their name correctly because what I ask for is their feedback.  I don't want to take a mispronunciation and run with it for the year because a student wasn't asked for feedback.  Once I master their pronunciation I look to them to confirm this after I use their name, for me it normally takes the entire first week of school.  

Kids are kind and they are willing to let you off the hook and not correct you if you make a mistake with their name, don't let this occur, speak with them about why its important to you (they'll be busy hearing why they are important to you) and how much you value them.  This isn't just about a student's name that might be more difficult to pronounce, its also about the relationship building when a student asks you to use their preferred name.  If you find the name odd, that's not for you to judge, in fact I challenge you to ask them about that name.  I have had several preferred name requests and when I learn the student's story I see how special they hold that particular name.  Plus these kiddos light up when you have the respect to use their name.  Elementary teachers, you can take it a step further and remake them a name tag with their preferred name, don't insist they use that one, just give them the option.  A little extra work pays dividends to the relationship building between you and that student, it also might just extend to the parent.  I have had many parents privately thank me for not dismissing their child's preferred name even if it doesn't always match a nickname for their formal name.  Names matter, if you don't believe me, read more on this topic here.