ALMA and How She Got Her Name

 

“What's in a name? For one little girl, her very long name tells the vibrant story of where she came from -- and who she may one day be.”

 

This children’s fiction book is about a young girl named Alma and her curiosity about how she got her name.  You see, her name is not just Alma, it is Alma Sofia Esperanza Jose Pura Candela.  How did such a little person end up with such a big name? She is very concerned about her name long not fitting on the paper and approaches her father with. This concern.  He assures her that her name does fit on the paper and how each part of her name is connected to her family members and history.  Sofia comes from her grandmother who loved books and flowers.  Esperanza is after her great grandmother who longed to travel.  Jose is her grandfather the artist.  As she learns about her namesakes, she realizes that her name is the perfect name for her after all.  When she doesn’t hear an explanation for Alma, she questions her father where the name Alma comes from.  Her daddy explains that Alma is her own name and only belongs to her.   This beautiful book will encourage young readers to embark on their own journey of self-discovery and family discovery.

This would be a wonderful book to teach early childhood students about their name and how everyone’s name is unique and special.  This would be a great book companion to Chrysanthemum or The Name Jar.  Students could compare and contrast the books using a Venn diagram.  Students could be assigned a family project to research the meaning of their name and they could share it with the class.  

Click on this link for more lessons and activities to use with this book

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Alma-and-How-She-Got-Her-Name-Lesson-Plan-Google-Slides-and-Docs-Activities-4714622?st=a46d0b4818d0196a1c0f1e4e676e65b2

Check out this read aloud of “Alma and how she got her name”

 

https://youtu.be/Py7_9ATJDkk