100. Name Change

Diego did not like his name. It was a Spanish name, but Diego didn't even speak Spanish. People always assumed he did though. In fact, Diego wasn't even Hispanic! Diego also didn't like it because it didn't sound cool. Diego wanted to change his name to something like Brandon or Brock.

Diego told his parents that he wanted to change his name. His parents were furious. "This is the name we gave you. By changing it, you're going against our wishes," his mom said. His dad said, "Why don't you just tell people to call you something else? Don't legally change it though." Diego felt that if he did that, people would just ignore him and continue calling him Diego. Diego tried what his parents suggested. 

At school, he told his friends and teachers to call him Brock. His friends laughed at him and asked him why. His teachers were okay with it, but they kept calling him Diego accidentally. Since Diego was already 13, it was hard for people who had known him for a long time to call him by any other name.

Vocabulary Words

No.	Word	Definition	Example Sentence
1	furious	extremely angry	His parents were furious when he wanted to change his name.
2	assume	to think something is true without proof	People always assumed Diego spoke Spanish.
3	Hispanic	relating to Spanish-speaking countries	Diego was not even Hispanic.
4	legally	by law	His dad told him not to legally change his name.
5	ignore	to not pay attention to	Diego thought people would ignore his request.
6	suggest	to give an idea or advice	He tried what his parents suggested.
7	accidentally	by mistake	His teachers kept calling him Diego accidentally.
8	furious	extremely angry	His mom was furious about the name change.
9	continue	to keep doing something	People would continue calling him Diego.
10	cool	stylish or impressive	Diego wanted a cool name like Brock.
11	change	to make something different	He wanted to change his name.
12	ignore	to refuse to notice	He worried people would ignore his wish.
13	school	a place where children learn	At school, he told his friends to call him Brock.
14	friends	people you like and spend time with	His friends laughed at him.
15	teachers	people who teach students	His teachers kept calling him Diego.
16	hard	difficult	It was hard for people to call him Brock.
17	continue	to keep doing something	They continued using his old name.
18	name	a word by which a person is known	He didn’t like his name.
19	wish	a desire for something to happen	He went against his parents’ wishes.
20	known	recognized or familiar	People had known him as Diego for a long time.

Comprehension Questions

Question	Answer
1. Why didn’t Diego like his name?	Because it was Spanish and he didn’t speak Spanish.
2. What kind of names did Diego think were cool?	Names like Brandon or Brock.
3. What did Diego’s mom say about changing his name?	She said he was going against their wishes.
4. What did his dad suggest instead of legally changing it?	To just ask people to call him something else.
5. Why did Diego think people would ignore his request?	Because they were used to calling him Diego.
6. What name did Diego ask people to call him?	He asked to be called Brock.
7. How did his friends react?	They laughed at him and asked why.
8. How did his teachers react?	They agreed but sometimes forgot and called him Diego.
9. How old was Diego?	He was 13 years old.
10. Why was it hard for people to call him by a new name?	Because they had known him as Diego for a long time.
11. What language did people assume Diego spoke?	Spanish.
12. What nationality was Diego not?	He was not Hispanic.
13. Who did Diego first tell about changing his name?	He told his parents first.
14. What emotion did his mom feel?	She was furious.
15. What did Diego’s dad tell him not to do?	Not to legally change his name.
16. What did Diego do at school?	He told everyone to call him Brock.
17. What happened when he tried that?	His friends laughed and teachers forgot sometimes.
18. What did Diego want to sound like?	He wanted a name that sounded cool.
19. Did Diego succeed in changing his name?	No, people kept calling him Diego.
20. What lesson might Diego learn?	That names are part of who we are, and others may take time to adjust.