Hi Sue,
I recorded an oral history of my grandparents a few years ago. I used my video camera and the questions from WTM. I burned it onto DVDs and gave them as Christmas gifts. My grandfather died 2 months before Christmas so it was a very special gift.
A few things I learned:
-- audio is great, but video is priceless. Watching my grandparents interact--complete with the eye rolls :001_rolleyes: and hand gestures--was wonderful. It will also be helpful for my daughter to get a sense of who her great-grandparents were when she watches it someday.
-- I hate video editing. It is very time-intensive. Lucky for me, I had no children and an easy day job at the time.
-- my voice sounds awful (see pointer 2, below)
-- a question is just a jumping off point. During our interview, my grandfather got off on many tangents. One of his *best* was political in nature. Although it wasn't part of the original questions, it was entertaining enough that I kept it and even added a "BONUS: Grandpa's political views" graphic on the DVD cover I made. People love to talk about themselves. Once they get started, you will likely have a hard time stopping them.
Some pointers:
-- if you use video, make sure it is digital. Having a digital camera makes the copy/burn process much easier.
-- I bought a video editing program (around $100) that allowed me to add transitions, menus, titles and such. It was probably overkill. My finished DVD was Frasier-esque--white text on a black background. I faded the questions in and out before the segment my grandparents were answering. That way, those watching didn't have to hear me talk. :tongue_smilie:
-- Windows Movie Maker is available free as part of Windows XP sp2, I think. That should work well enough for editing and burning.
-- break the interview out over multiple days. My grandparents got tired after a few hours of talking. Also, when we came back each day, my Grandfather would say, "I was thinking about __________ we talked about yesterday. I have something more to tell you about that." (Makes for more difficult editing though.)
I am so glad I did it. You and your kids will have a great time.
Heather
P.S. I'm going to move this to the general board since it isn't necessarily curriculum-related.