The Name Jar

The Name Jar was written and illustrated by Yangsook Choi.  This children's literature is a good resource for children in the 5-8 age range.  The book starts out with a young Korean girl named Unhai who moved from Korea to America.  When leaving Korea Unhai's grandmother gave her a red pouch with her name in it on a wooden stick stamp.  Unhai was concerned that american children would not be able to pronounce her name.  When Unhai was introduced to the classroom she told her classmates that she had not picked a name yet.  One day when Unhai entered the classroom there was a glass jar on her desk with pieces of paper in it with names written on it.  Unhai believed that she needed a american name in order to not be different from the other children.

The illustrations on each page of the book helped to tell the story without even reading the words.  The illustrations also help the reader know exactly how the main character is feeling during that particular part in the story.  The text in the book told the story in a way where each child can relate to what the character is going through.  Each child has the feeling of not wanting to be different from their peers whether it be because of their name or if they are left handed.

Discussion Questions:

- Has anyone every felt that they needed to change something in order to be like classmates?

- Should Unhai feel that she must change her name to fit in?

- What would you say to a classmate if they told you they haven't picked a name yet?

- Is there anything about you that makes you feel different from the rest of the class?

- Did Unhai's name make her unique?

Activity:

The students in the classroom would all receive a plain glass/plastic mason jar.  Each individual would put their initials on the jar with sticky letters.  The students would then have to bring in a few different small objects to place inside their mason jar.  The objects that are placed inside the mason jar are objects that explain things about the individual student and what makes then unique.  The students would then have to present their mason jar with it's objects to the classroom telling different things about themselves that makes them different.  Whether it be about their family, their culture, or anything else they feel makes them unique. 

If you enjoyed reading "The Name Jar" here a few other books you would enjoy that are similar:

My Name is Yoon by Helen Recorvitis, Illustrated by Gabi Swiatkowaska (2003)

Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts and Illustrated by Noah Z. Jones (2012)