Posts Tagged ‘genealogy’
I am happy to report that my Kids Genealogy Lesson Books are on track to sell April 1. Lessons 1-15 are complete and proofs have been ordered! The following titles will be released.
- Branching Out: Genealogy for 1st – 3rd Grade Students Lessons 1-15
- Branching Out: Genealogy for 1st – 3rd Grade Students Lessons 16-30
- Branching Out: Genealogy for 4th – 8th Grade Students Lessons 1-15
- Branching Out: Genealogy for 4th – 8th Grade Students Lessons 16-30
- Branching Out: Genealogy for High School Students Lessons 1-15
- Branching Out: Genealogy for High School Students Lessons 16-30
- Engaging the Next Generation: A Guide for Genealogical Societies and Libraries
If you would like to stay informed of the progress and possibly win a copy of one of the books, you can sign up for my newsletter on this site in the top left column of the page. My newsletter will launch in May where the winner will be announced.
For more information, watch this blog or my Generations site. You can also “Like” us on FaceBook.
Related articles
- Wisdom Wednesday – Learn about Social Media & Online Family Trees (generationsbiz.com)
- Are you Reading other Genealogy Examiners? (examiner.com)
- Online Genealogy Forms from David Haas (examiner.com)
- Kids Genealogy: Where To Begin (examiner.com)
Are you a homeschool parent or teacher? Librarian or scout leader? A parent or grandparent? Are you interested in engaging the younger generation in their family history?
April 1, 2012 I will launch a set of kids genealogy lesson books for first through twelfth grade students.
Stay tuned for more information and where you can find these books and me in April!
Related articles
- Follow Friday – Launching Kids Genealogy Lessons (generationsbiz.com)
- Kids Genealogy: The Family Unit (examiner.com)
- Kids Genealogy: Evaluating Records and Information (examiner.com)
- Follow Friday – Tony’s Genealogy Blog (generationsbiz.com)
- Kids Genealogy: Activity – Write A Story About Your Thanksgiving Traditions (examiner.com)
Thank you to Jennifer Shoer for her second guest post for kids! If you missed Part I, you can still read it here.
Turn the Camera on Your Parents and Grandparents – Video for Family History – Part 2
The holidays are right around the corner. No matter what holiday you will be celebrating, I bet you will be spending time with your family. Sometimes it seems boring to spend time with older people, but when was the last time you sat down and asked them questions about their lives…what they love, what they remember and what it feels like to be X years old?
In my last post I told you about my grandfather, Bubba, who was an amazing family historian. He recorded the details of our lives in both photos and movie film. Bubba died twelve years ago. I will always remember how many years it has been because my youngest son was born the same year. Bubba did get to hold him, make a wish (Do all families make wishes on new babies?) and call him the ugliest baby in the family (the newest was always the ugliest).
I like knowing that Bubba lived to hold all of my babies and I love looking at pictures of him, but do you know what I really wish? I wish I had taken movies (or videos as they are known today). I wish I could hear his voice and his chuckle. He told my sister and me so many stories. I tell my kids the ones I can remember, but how much cooler would it be if they could hear his stories and his chuckle as if he was sitting in the room. Some people might find that creepy and it might have been hard to watch the videos soon after he died, but now twelve years later I would love to hear and see him tell one of his stories again.
Turn the Camera on Your Parents and Grandparents
When you get together with your parents, aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents over the holidays, do me a favor and turn the camera on your parents and grandparents. Borrow a video camera or whip out your smart phone and ask one of them (or the eldest) to sit down with you. Tell them you want to learn more about them and their lives and that you would like to create a video of your conversation.
Create a Video for Family History
- Make a list of questions before the interview or look at websites for questions:
http://genealogy.about.com/cs/oralhistory/a/interview.htm
http://articles.scrapbooking.com/family_history.htm
- Be sure your video camera is fully charged and that you have extra batteries or a charger.
- Ask as many or as few questions as you would like. There are no rules! This is your interview.
- Prop the camera up so that your hands are free and so that your subject does not get distracted by it.
- Let your subject talk without interrupting him or her. If you think of something to ask while they are talking, write it down and then ask it when they finish.
- Thank them for their time and for sharing their stories with you!
- Upload the video to your computer and share it with your family members. Burn copies to DVD or flash drives.
I hope you get a chance to make a video soon.
Happy Holidays!
Scrappy Gen
Let’s Remember!
Photo credits: Jennifer Shoer’s personal collection. Used with permission.
Want to know more about Jennifer? You can find her at the Scrappy Genealogist blog or on Twitter @ScrappyGen. Thank you Jennifer!!
This continues a series of guest posts from my friends around the blogosphere who can offer specialized tips for kids.
Jennifer Shoer talks about Recording it for Posterity – Video for Family History – Part 1
Have you ever thought about creating videos of your family? If you are over the age of ten, you probably already have made at least one video of yourself or your friends. Many of you even have phones that video. Let me tell you about my grandfather and his videos.
My Grandfather, known to his grandchildren as Bubba, recorded thousands of feet of video tape during his life. He recorded his children, his siblings, his nieces and nephews and of course his grandchildren. It is possible for me to view in video most big events in my growing up years right through and including my wedding. Bubba taped that too.
If you listen to the later movies after Bubba bought a video camera with sound, you can hear his chuckle, or his quiet prompts for you to do something for the camera. I loved his chuckle. If we ever complained about being taped (I remember not loving it when I was a teenager.), he would remind us that we were “recording it for posterity.” At the time I didn’t know exactly what posterity was, but Bubba said it, which meant it was important.
Posterity means all future generations. How cool that Bubba recorded our lives as they unfolded for our children and our children’s children and their children. He was our family historian, creating an amazing record of the lives of his family members.
Bubba recorded his movies on film. Digital didn’t exist yet. His first sound camera was immense. Now, video cameras fit in your pocket. At the holidays this year, whip out your video camera and try recording your family members. Ask them questions about what they are doing. If they have a special skill, ask them to perform it. Ask them how they celebrated the holidays when they were younger. If they complain, tell them you are recording it for posterity. Your children’s children’s children will thank you.
Scrappy Gen
Let’s Remember!
Photo credits: Jennifer Shoer’s personal collection. Used with permission.
Want to know more about Jennifer? You can find her at the Scrappy Genealogist blog or on Twitter @ScrappyGen. Thank you Jennifer!!
This continues a series of guest posts from my friends around the blogosphere who can offer specialized tips for kids.
Lorel Kapke on using Sort Your Story
Finding your grandparents name listed in a document can be very exciting, not just for you but for your parents as well. My dad Raymond Kapke, was 5 years old when his father Walter Kapke died and he new little of his fathers life. He took the train from Milwaukee to Cedarburg, WI to visit his grandparents, John Kapke and Mother Marie Nero but they passed away when Ray was 7 and 8 years old. Ruby Toll, Walter’s wife, was left to raise Ray and his three older brothers, this left little time to discuss their family history. Ruby and her mother Bertha Gilbert ran a boarding house and while cooking and baking they would talk about family with little Ray under foot, this was during the 1930’ and 1940’s, during troubled times.
So back to finding those documents and forming a picture of your family as you put the pieces of your puzzle together.
I went into Ancestry.com and entered my grandfathers SURNAME (last name) and First name and found my grandfather in the 1920 Census. Walter was listed with Ruby and dad’s older brothers but my father would have to wait until the 1930’s census as he was born in 1923. Each Census offers different data and 1920 Census offered this information.
I transcribed and placed this valuable information into the Sort Your Story Profiler and included thumbnails of both the 1920 Census and the Ancestry.com 1920 Template Census for reference.
Now it is time to print out this data and add to the KAPKE PROFILER BOOK!
I’ve acquired valuable information to continue the search for more information about my grandfather.
Walter A KAPKE.
Have you found a Census of your grandparent???
Thank you Lorel for sharing your story about Walter Kapke!
Today I have an another activity for you. Let’s break down your family. Write a story about your mom, dad, aunt, uncle, grandma and grandpa that includes the following information:
Their name
Date of birth
Place of birth
How big they were at birth – both in length and weight?
What color are their eyes and hair?
Where did they live when they were born? Who lived with them?
What is your father’s full name? What is his date of birth?
What is your mother’s full name? What is her date of birth?
Name all your aunts and uncles and write down their dates of birth.
Did your family attend church? Which one? Did they have any special roles in the church?
Where did your parents or grandparents go to school? Who were their teachers? What were their favorite subjects?
Have they achieved anything? Won a contest? Received an award for something?
What hobbies do they have?
Did they play any sports?
Who were their best friends? What did they like to do together? Where did they hang out?
Make a timeline of important events in their lives.
Add important historical events to that timeline.
Ask them how much things were when they were growing up.
Save your responses in your notebook. Check back next week for a guide to write about your parents and grandparents.
This is the first in a series of guest posts from my friends around the blogosphere who can offer specialized tips for kids.
Michael Katchen on using 1000memories.com
Have you ever wondered what your parents looked like when they were your age? Wouldn’t it be cool to see photos from your grandparents wedding? That’s what 1000memories is all about. Helping you save those amazing old photos forever and share them with your family.
While all of your photos are probably already on Facebook, it’s only been around for 7 years! The first photograph was produced in 1826 – that means there are tons of photos that haven’t made their way online… yet.
Why is that a problem? Well, paper photos are fragile. They decay over time, they can be destroyed in floods and fires, or lost in moves. Most importantly, there is usually only 1 copy that gets split between family members.
ShoeBox, 1000memories free iPhone app, is changing that. ShoeBox turns your iPhone into a social photo scanner that let’s you quickly digitize old photos, tag the people in them, and share them with your entire family. You can use ShoeBox to help your parents and grandparents save and share their old photos and all the amazing stories behind them forever.
Want to know more about 1000memories.com? Read their About page. You can also follow them on twitter @1000memories and Facebook.
Thank you Michael for your post!
Related articles
- Treasure Chest Thursday – 1000memories.com (kidsgenealogy.generationsofstories.net)
- Creative Writing at 1000memories.com (examiner.com)
- Holiday Time at the Museum of Science and Industry (examiner.com)
Today I have an activity for you. Let’s break down your life, family, and interests. Write a story that includes the following information:
Your name
Date of birth
Place of birth
How big were you at birth – both in length and weight?
What color are your eyes? Your hair?
Where did you live when you were born? Who lived with you?
What is your father’s full name? What is his date of birth?
What is your mother’s full name? What is her date of birth?
Name all your siblings and write down their dates of birth.
Do you go to church? Were you baptized? Who are your godparents?
Where have you gone to school? Who were your teachers? What were your favorite subjects?
Have you achieved anything? Won a contest? Received an award for something? Earned an A in a subject you did not like very much?
What hobbies do you have?
Do you play any sports? Are you on any teams?
Do you have pets? If you do not, what pet would you have?
Who are your best friends? What do you like to do together? Where do you hang out?
Make a timeline of important events in your life.
Add important historical events to that timeline. For example: My oldest son was born January 2001. I would put that in. I would mark his birthdays each year. I would mark the date he started school. I would mark the date he did something important. Then I could go add history – 11 September 2001 was an important day in history. He was only 8 months old but it happened during his lifetime.
Write down how much things cost that you use all the time. This could be gas for your car, how much a loaf of bread is or a gallon of milk. How much did you pay for your computer? What kind of computer did you buy? Those sorts of things.
Where have you gone on vacation? What trips did you like best?
Save your responses in your notebook. Check back next week for a guide to write about your parents and grandparents.
Hey kids! Have you heard of 1000memories.com? This is a free site that helps you share your family history with your family or the world. There are several ways to create privacy within 1000memories.com. You can create a family tree here, upload pictures, videos, stories and more. Just create a free account and get started. Then tell family about it and let them follow you on 1000memories.com to see what new information you have been working on.
So how do you start?
- Get a free account.
- Click “My Shoebox” on the top of the page.
- See the “Share a Memory” box on the page that loads? Choose something there to share. Follow the process to finish.
It is very easy to use 1000memories.com. Want to see what I have started putting out there? Type “Jennifer Holik-Urban” in the search box at the top of the screen and see my Shoebox. I’m just getting started but there will be more added. But do you see how easy it is to share your photos and stories with family?
There are many other features of 1000memories.com but start with the Shoebox and share your memories.
Give it a try. Leave a comment and let me know if you do and what name to look for.
Related articles
- Creative Writing at 1000memories.com (examiner.com)
- Treasure Chest Thursday – Czech Records (chicagofamilyhistory.wordpress.com)
Today I gave two short presentations for my son’s 5th grade teacher. He teaches two groups of sciences classes. Today I talked about starting genealogy research. Their teacher, Mr. Blair, was very excited after the first presentation and wants to start researching his family! I even caught him looking at Ancestry.com while I gave the 2nd (repeated) presentation to the other science class. That is very exciting for me that he is interested.
The kids in both classes had many great questions about filling out their pedigree chart and family group sheet. They talked about family records they had at home, like a family Bible which contained names of the family members with births and deaths going back to the 1830s! That is a treasure! And the best part…..they all seemed very excited about doing the work.
The kids are now supposed to go home and through Thanksgiving break next week talk to family members and write down the information. There will be an assignment given after the break. I was even asked if I would come back and hear the results of the kids’ research. Of course I said yes!
And if any of the kids from the class are reading this blog – make sure you look at the records on Familysearch.org because those are free records.
Thank you Mr. Blair for giving me the opportunity to come speak today! It is exciting to see young people taking an interest in their family histories.
Related articles
- Kids Genealogy: Where To Begin (examiner.com)
- 2012 Conference Tracking Your Ancestors’ Footsteps (dupagecountygenealogicalsociety.wordpress.com)
- Follow Friday – Genealogy Lists and Message Boards (chicagofamilyhistory.wordpress.com)
