MilkMaid Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 My 13yo DD, 9th grade loves Geneaology stuff..Any advice on using this as an elective?:bigear: I am all ears!..lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 (edited) See if your library has a copy of Bringing Your Family History to Life Through Social History by Katherine Scott Sturdevant and work through a portion of the family tree as a research project specializing in primary sources. You might also look at National History Day. It seems that many projects start as family research. You could decide later if you want to count it as a credit or as an interesting extracurricular. Edited July 20, 2012 by Sebastian (a lady) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilkMaid Posted July 20, 2012 Author Share Posted July 20, 2012 Thanks, that sounds like a good start! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn On the Border Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 That sounds like a lot of fun. I LOVE genealogy! I am completely addicted to it- I don't allow myself to work on it very often, because I get so involved that nothing else matters (school work, dinner, etc.). My kids, on the other hand, could care less. I wish I had more input re. a class. There are, of course, lots of books on genealogy at Barnes and Noble, and perhaps the library. There are (or were) some good videos on YouTube made by a teenage girl. They were on how to organize your research, and I found them very helpful. It doesn't take long to get overwhelmed with paperwork, so it is good to have a system. She could also do interviews with living family members. I wish I had talked more to my relatives while they were alive. It's great to get that info. while you can. Is she on ancestry.com? I know it is expensive, but it makes it a lot easier to search for documents. You can also print out documents (census records, marriage records, etc.). Findagrave.com is good for looking up grave stones. If her research leads to other countries, she could research the history behind immigration from that country at that time. There's also history research in this country, researching the history of a town or county. Sometimes you can find that information through google. Good luck! Shawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaSheep Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 You could see if there's a Family Search Center near where you live, and if so you could arrange for someone there to talk to her about genealogy research and show her how to order and view microfilm records. https://familysearch.org/locations/ They also have some online learning resources that might be useful for constructing a class: https://familysearch.org/learningcenter/home.html And for some hands-on experience, she could put in some volunteer time helping to index the 1940 census: https://the1940census.com/getting-started/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Embassy Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 My kids are interested in it. This year I am incorporating some genealogy research into our history studies. They will primarily be using Geni and Wikipedia for exploring and learning more about family from the distant past. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 I think you might be able to create a class on something like "research methods" if you cover using databases (free and what is available by subscription at libraries and research centers), newspapers, local historical societies, and state and national archives. These are some very real skills for looking at a diverse set of data and piecing together good information. There is a lot available through the National Archives if you know what you're asking for. And the hunt itself can be interesting and educational. For example, a request for one set of military records led us through FOIA requests to both the VA and state archives to try to track down the truth behind the story that one family member had been involved with hunting Pancho Villa (answer, yes, for a while he was assigned to a unit in Mexico, but he soon ended up in the hospital after he was kicked by a mule). I would consider assigning at least two written projects. One a history of the family/person/community being researched. For the other I would assign a paper where she addressed the process and pitfalls of history research, what she had to be careful of and what sorts of resources she found most helpful and most confusing (for example, how did she weigh different records that seemed to contradict like different spellings or birth dates). If you search for historiography you will see that there are different ways of approaching the study and writing of history. This is a worthy topic for consideration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 I spent years digging through information on genforum.com, and it's free. Genealogy is so fun. It's easy to get excited, but I always try to verify the information I find. I've found the genealogy community to be very friendly and welcoming. I've exchanged information with many unknown "cousins" through the years. I've done a couple of roadtrips to family gravesites, that was interesting. I think some worksheet to be filled out by living family members would be great. Maybe making a family tree, looking for photos, even creating a blog or website might be a good activity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaSheep Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 I spent years digging through information on genforum.com, and it's free. Genealogy is so fun. It's easy to get excited, but I always try to verify the information I find. I've found the genealogy community to be very friendly and welcoming. I've exchanged information with many unknown "cousins" through the years. I've done a couple of roadtrips to family gravesites, that was interesting. I think some worksheet to be filled out by living family members would be great. Maybe making a family tree, looking for photos, even creating a blog or website might be a good activity. :iagree: Or you could have her make a book about what she learns about your family history and then publish it through one of the print-on-demand services that are available online these days, and maybe make it available for purchase by extended family members if they would be interested. We have an amazing book on my husband's family that was researched by his great-uncle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MilkMaid Posted July 21, 2012 Author Share Posted July 21, 2012 WOW some extremely great ideas...love them all. I have to put this into action for her...I want to act on her passion not just let it ride. Thanks so much everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaSheep Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 I hope you will post and let us know what you did. I have a daughter who might really enjoy a family history course in a few years. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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