Literacy Beginnings | Chapter 20 | Names

The most powerful and effective way for children to begin learning the complex process of learning about letters is by writing their own names.” ~Carol Lyons

Retrieved from Literacy Beginnings on July 25, 2011

Today I am sharing the highlights from Chapter 20 Names: A Powerful resource for Literacy Learning by Pinnell and Fountas. This is one chapter from this amazing book blog party sponsored by Vanessa over at Pre-K Pages.

Names

According to Pinnell and Fountas, “Once children learn that their names are words and that they are made with the same letters in the same order each time, they begin to understand the concept of a word” (Ch. 20, p 194).

Children not only learn to recognize their own names but it isn’t too long before children begin to recognize the names of their friends.  Recognizing names often begins with finding the letters in their first name but once a child begins to recognize his or her name in its entirety, the child is then able to start using his or her name as a “resource” for extended learning of letters and words. For example, a child can find letters that are alike in their name or count the number of letters in their name or begin to recognize the letters of their name in other words.

Pinnell and Fountas recommend several ways for children to explore and recognize their names. Ideas include charts and graphs with children’s names displayed…

Poems and sentences where children’s names are displayed are other ways to foster name recognition as well as games made from children’s names like name puzzles…

Some important tips to keep in mind are…

• Start with children’s first names.
• Use upper case for the first letter and lower case for the remaining letters (Lopez) unless the name requires a different approach (McDonald).
• Keep a simple name chart out and visible for the children to refer to as a model for writing and recognizing their own name.
• Direct the children to look for their name on the chart and refer to the chart when wanting to print their names.
• Integrate name recognition through a variety of activities.

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