to think that teachers really shouldn't make a judgement of a child on their name alone?

[Coochicoo]

I was speaking with a teacher at a mother and baby group recently and we got to talking about names. When I told her my daughter's name she said 'ooh, every little girl I've taught with that name is lovely', and when she heard my son's name she pulled a face and sucked the air in through her teeth and said 'they're all buggers in my experience'.

I've heard similar things before about boys with the same name as my son, and it upsets me a little that he may be judged by his teachers before he even gets to class. And if he does do something a bit naughty, as all children do, he'll be living up, or rather down, to the low expectations of him.

I don't expect teachers to pass judgement on any name, whether it be a positive or negative judgement. Surely they should see the children as individuals?

If she were in my class I'd tell her I loved her name!

My sister is a teacher and she says you can generally see what kind of child they are going to be from the name!

Look me in the eye and tell me you wouldn't make judgments, sight unseen, about Charlotte and Chantal, Henry and Tyson, Alicia and Sunset, George and Taliesin, Annabel and Lacey-Rae.

are you dissing Taliesin, Seeker? It's a perfectly good Welsh name with a very long history. Cannot compare it to made-up names with ker-ay-zee spellings. (It's not ds's name, just one I love.)

I work in a school and have had the same conversation with teachers. It appears that my ds's name is on the naughty list. I chose his name as I thought it would be a cool name for when he grows up and goes down the pub with his mates. Apparently it won't work that way as he will be in prison instead

The thread in which teachers were going on about childrens' names was on the TES website - and in fact there was a huge barney between them and MN about it, which is what brought me over to MN. (in fact I mostly agreed with the teachers about the names, but then decided I liked the rest of MN).

Sadly, I can't, can't tell you about the oddest childs name ever, because the one I know is The Only One In The World (I know, I've googled it, all I get are them) and because b) if I tried to change some of the details to give you an idea you either wouldn't believe me, or it wouldn't be as wierd as it really is...

The thread in which teachers were going on about childrens' names was on the TES website - and in fact there was a huge barney between them and MN about it, which is what brought me over to MN. (in fact I mostly agreed with the teachers about the names, but then decided I liked the rest of MN).

Sadly, I can't, can't tell you about the oddest childs name ever, because the one I know is The Only One In The World (I know, I've googled it, all I get are them) and because b) if I tried to change some of the details to give you an idea you either wouldn't believe me, or it wouldn't be as wierd as it really is...

Would you have felt as upset if you hadn't known that the mum sitting next to you was a teacher?
I once had two Jamies in the class and they were both a pain in very different ways. There were 6 Jamies in the school, and they all were challenging. Then I moved schools and met 3 lovely Jamies who changed the memories I had linked with the name.
Started teaching in the early '80s, when the names that had negative vibes tended to be Wayne and Darren. Some of you may be married to them by now.
Personally, a mother and baby group?
I'd never be stupid enough to say something negative about a baby/toddler. Some of those mothers can take your arm off. She is tactless and lacks survival skills in my opinion.

Not dissing Taliesin - just saying that I would put money on anyone meeting a non-Welsh Taliesin would assume midddle class, hippy-ish parents! Judgements based on names!

Not quite connected but on the same lines, the gf of a friend of mine was completing her teacher training degree and told me, in all seriousness, that she just wouldn't ever be able to teach ginger children in the same way as "normal" children . I am a redhead so was pretty appalled by this attitude however this was nearly 20 years ago and I hadn't had any MN training for a suitable reply. She's still teaching AFAIK, I wonder if she's still shunning ginger kids

I think everyone makes snap judgments based on names - perhaps even unconsciously. View the name threads - posters there aren't all teachers. Actually, I think as teachers we have the advantage of having those stereotypes blown apart again and again, so I would say that we are likely to be somewhat less likely to be long term judgy about names. When you have the real child in front of you, that is what you respond to. Doesn't stop us sniggering over new set lists in the privacy of the staff room , but you know, gallows humour...

In this instance it wasn't a teacher saying it, it was a mother, at a group - the fact that she is a teacher is not relevant.

I think most people 'judge' names. There are certain names I wouldn't call a child simply because I've never met a person by that name that has been nice!!

However, we have a teenage Joshua in our family (cousin) and he is delightful. Really, really lovely and not at all naughty - in fact, one of the nicest kids I've met.. actually never heard of a 'naughty' Joshua

we all do it. and our assumptions are often accurate too.

silly woman to say this though...

Mavis just as well there was no MN - we'd've thought it was a troll!

I look at class list and sometimes think, 'hmm interesting, I wonder' when I see certain (generally made up) names. But I am bright enough to realise the child didn't give themselves the name, the parents did, and sometimes children are very different from their parents. Also sometimes children are very different in different schools. So I disregard anything negative I have found out about my class when I meet them. If anything I am more likely to give a bigger smile and a little more encouragement to JJ's, Kce's, and otherwise disadvantaged children when I first meet them.

YANBU to be annoyed, she lacks tact. Most teachers who talk about naughty names are doing so with tongue in cheek (I hope).

I think it is quite common for teachers to judge on names, they just wouldn't tell that to the parents. However she should have kept her thoughts to herself and I am very surprised if Joshua is viewed as a naughty or trouble makers name! Its a very nice name

I remember reading on the tES thread 'Ryan' was the boy most likely to be a hellraiser !Have to say though the few Ryans I have come across have been fine!

I too remember the TES thread. It made for interesting reading.

I'm surprised Joshua is viewed as a naughty name, all the Joshua or Joshs I know are lovely.

I know one Ryan and he is a little terror!

My DS1 has quite a 'nice innocent' name imo but he is a terror too, will prob surprise his teachers

My (otherwise sane-ish) teacher parents were doing this, maddeningly, thirty years ago. We would quake at bringing home any new friends with names any odder than Helen or Mike. Their range of names considered 'normal' was startlingly narrow -- I can remember them judging like mad over Cameron, Alasdair and Aimee ('can't they spell?'!), Desiree, Oliver and Alice (too posh), Josh and Jackie (too common), Sam and Toby ('dogs' names') and Nivek. OK, Nivek is a bit unusual...

Mind you, they have zero taste in names. My sister is called something straight out of the Pony Club Top Ten, I got saddled with an unspellable name of the failed popstar ilk, and the boys are John and Dave. Well, not quite, but you get my drift.

Apparently my DSs name makes him an attention seeker and likely to hold scissors up to his eyeballs? .

here we go

can someone link to the TES thread. I remember reading it at the time and it was quite ing, you look through with dread that your DC were going to be mentioned.....

its 59 pages long