gunmajet.net

This isn't really so much a plan, but something that seems to be working well, and is enjoyable for students and teachers alike. Essentially students pick new names for themselves and make name cards, from that point on they'll be referred to as that in class. Teachers may also pick names (I currently teach with Scarlett-sensei and Xavior-sensei). It might also be fun to pick out a new Japanese name for yourself (I'm 'Akira').

I grabbed a list of the top 100 baby names from last year in the US and 'translated' them into katakana. I had a couple Japanese teachers go over it, but they may have missed a few... so some of the names might not be 100% accurate. In any case I suggest reading the list out loud so the students can hear the names.

I also made tried to make it clear that this was optional, and I knew lots of people with Japanese names in the US. If they didn't want a new name that was okay. In addition they were free to pick names not on the list. I was expecting to get a few kids to want to be named "Spiderman" or "Jack Bauer", but only one student picked an odd name: "Pork" (he was clear he wanted it to mean 'pig-meat').

As a fun side-activity I've begun researching the meanings of the names they've chosen. Xavior-sensei (for the record, he chose that spelling) was disappointed to find out that his name actually means "New House". I think he was expecting something more sinister.