E.P.
This will be my 8th year teaching Religious Ed (middle school) and it's amazing how quickly you learn the student's names. I would personally just do a "simple cross design" so the kids get used to the symbolism that it represents (that can even be an opening lesson!--i.e."What is this? Where do you see it? Do you have one hanging at home?" etc....). You will find that many of these children do not attend Church on a regular basis. Getting a feel for who attends Church, regularly, is helpful to determine the support they get at home, for the program. If the families are supportive of the program - it makes a huge difference in the attitude of the classroom.
They can color & personalize it, too and it has a good, broad horizontal surface for reading a name, which is what you want. I also taught kindergarten VBS. In many schools, they frown upon name tags with knotted ropes that hang over a neck, so taping one piece of the string on the left side of the horizontal cross bar, and taping the other on the right, will make the name tag less "hazardous" and will hold up for a few weeks, if you collect them, at the end of your class.
Best advise is... extra adult hands in your classroom. it is a rewarding adventure. Feel free to Personal message me if you have any other questions.
