Raising the Next Generation: Engaging and Instilling an Appreciation of Family History in Children

Future genealogists are born every day.  Some may not come to the field until they are adults because they just stumbled upon their roots.  Others will be intrigued from the moment they can ask questions and will look to the family story tellers for guidance and help.  It is up to all of us to plant these seeds early.  In this presentation I will go through ways that you can talk to the youth in your life, help them learn (in their own ways) genealogy, and if it turns out not to be a passion for them you will at least have provided them with an appreciation for their family history.

Keep in mind what works for one child, teen, or young adult may not be the way for another.  These are tips, guidelines, and idea starters for you to use as needed.  As with a lot of things it may take some experimentation to unlock that spark for some people.  Unfortunately, some may never come around.

Many of the examples given are techniques I have used with my own children and the children of my relatives and friends.  I am very lucky in that the members of my family are naturally curious people and we love studying history.  This makes my life easier since both of my children want to learn more about their family as long as I don’t overload them with too much information.

Getting Their Attention

How many times have you attended a presentation where the person at the podium droned on and on and on?  If it was at a large conference right after lunch I bet you were struggling to keep your eyes open!  Now, put yourself in a child’s shoes where you don’t understand half the words or concepts that are said to you.  How quickly would you tune the person out?       

The key to starting an appreciation or love of something is to get the kid hooked.  Think about these things:

·        What are their interests? Do they like sports, history, reading, horses, etc?

·        Do they have a favorite time period?  Do they love learning about knights, WWII, Old West, etc?

·        Is there a type of story that fascinates them? Do they like biographies, fiction, poems, etc?

·        How do they learn? Do they need to see it, read it, hear it, etc?

Knowing the interests of the child or young adult in question can make this a lot simpler.  Take your answers from the questions above and see if you have any ancestors that fall into those categories.  Do you have an author, scientist, athlete, or soldier in the family? If one of those ancestors shares a common trait with them casually throw it out into a conversation.  Essentially you are putting out ancestor bait and then reeling them in with the story.

This is a technique I use frequently with my 2 children.  My oldest in is middle school and my youngest is in lower elementary.  With 6 years between them I have never been able to draw them in the same ways.  Also, not all children are the same and if you ever meet my kids you will see that while similar they truly are very different!  I must cater what I say, how I say it, plus the way I present it differently or I will get the dreaded shrug of indifference.  Just as with adults you can give them too much information and then they will avoid you.

Of course what you say and how you will say it should depend on their ages.  Preschool children can be told stories about their ancestors while holding a picture of them for instance.  As they get older you can add other facts into their continued curiosity about those earlier stories.  When they are a teen or young adult you can then transition into conversations surrounding social history, records, or other bits of information that only a mature person would understand about the nitty gritty details of the times.

It’s Never Too Early for the Basics

One of my childhood memories is researching at the library with my mother.  When I was 8 she went to medical school and one of the only ways I saw her on the weekends was to spend hours at the library with her.  However, it was hours well spent because I learned basic research techniques in addition to spending time with my mom.  No matter the subject good research techniques and being comfortable in a library or archive can help you later in life.  For the record, I was ahead of the curve with my college peers.

If the youth in your life show interest in family history it is never too early to show them the correct basic research techniques.  While we may no longer rely on the photocopier like we once did the same principles of documenting a book still apply to digital copies.  Source citation requirements are still in effect too.  Elementary aged children and older like to help if it is a topic they enjoy so take advantage of the assistance when offered.

Remember to temper the activity to the level appropriate for the child’s age and abilities.  I firmly believe that exposing youth to libraries, archives, or other places of learning through research helps establish in them a respect for these institutions later in life.  Learning what is and is not allowed, why these sites are important to future generations and how to treat the items held within their walls will stick with them for a life time. 

Here are a few ideas on what you can do with those budding researchers at a facility:

·        Teach them to use the catalog search at an institution and let them go wild

·        Encourage them to research a topic that interests them while there

·        Have them take the digital documentation images of books (or photocopiers if they have them)

·        Ask them to find the microfilm rolls in the cabinet that you need

Here are a few ideas on what you can do with those budding researchers at home:

·        Let them have access to your online accounts and encourage them to research an ancestor of their choice

·        Ask them to help you file your records (perfect time for stories and record analysis lessons)

·        Ask if they will do data entry tasks for you in your family tree software

·        Encourage them to sign up for an indexing or transcription project

Seize Every Opportunity

Teaching, exploring and discovering is easier to do when you live with the youth you are trying to teach your family history to.  If you are not the parent but another relative who only sees them every so often realize that you must seize every opportunity present to show them this amazing world.  The easiest way is through road trips.

Now I am not suggesting you take a family vacation a ’la Clark Griswold but even a short trip around an ancestors town can be an opportunity to bring history to life.  We take our kids to museums, battlefields, and historic sites a lot because that’s what we enjoy doing so we drag them along.  Lucky for us, or because this is what our family does, they enjoy it too.  It also means that I have a perfect opportunity to bring their ancestors to life before them.

I take every opportunity to point out something that one of our ancestors may have lived through, experienced, seen, or done every chance I get when we are on a family road trip.  Drawing that connection between their family and a historical event brings an added layer to the picture.  For many that is all that was missing to make either their ancestor more real to them.  

Also, don’t be afraid to bring young adults and kids to genealogy conferences, meetings, or lectures.  I do this every chance I get with mine and each time I am surprised at what they get out of the lectures and the experience.  Yes, I have received nasty looks and unfavorable comments.  Yes, I ignore them because thankfully my kids tend to know how to behave in public.  However, and this is something as the responsible adult you have to know, I realize when they are done and remove them from the area.  When a tired or hungry kid gets cranky I need to be the adult and take care of the situation.

Remember, if you have a child or young adult who is interested in learning more about their heritage encourage them and lead them in the right directions.  Don’t discourage them.  Stand up for them to other adults who might.  With more and more people joining in the genealogy search the ages are dropping and we don’t want to literally run away our future

Websites:

·        FamilySearch.org wiki has a lot of great activities and information for kids and adults.  https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki

·        Family Tree Kids by Family tree Magazine http://kids.familytreemagazine.com/kids/default.asp

·        Getting Our Children and Teens Interested in Genealogy http://www.geni.com/projects/Getting-Our-Children-And-Teens-Interested-In-Genealogy/4858

·        Cyndi’s List: Kids, teens and The Next Generation http://www.cyndislist.com/kids/general/

·        Genealogy Activities for Kids on Pinterest by Ancestry.com https://www.pinterest.com/ancestrycom/genealogy-activities-for-kids/

Books:

·        Zap the Grandma Gap Series by Janet Havorka https://zapthegrandmagap.com/

·        The Branching Out Series by Jennifer Holik http://www.jenniferholik.com/books.html

Articles:

·        Feiler, Bruce. "The Stories That Bind Us." The New York Times, March 15, 2013. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/17/fashion/the-family-stories-that-bind-us-this-life.html?_r=0.

·        Genealogy.com has a large series of article about using family history in the classroom and teaching children. http://www.genealogy.com/articles/

Groups:

·        NextGen Genealogy Network is an organization for young genealogists who want to go professional.  While the target audience is anyone under 40 all ages are welcome and they encourage genealogists over 40 to act as mentors. http://www.tnggn.org/