Do you have pioneer ancestors who joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) in the 1800’s and came west to join the saints in Zion? The LDS church began emphasizing family history about 1890, so you may think that those branches of your family tree are complete and accurate. Just looking at your fan chart on FamilySearch’s Family Tree, it might seem that there are no more family members to discover. In reality, our pioneer lines may be reasonably accurate up to a point, but the dates, places, and relationships are often based on family knowledge and...
Our stake has been focused on teaching the primary children ages 8-11 how to do family history, and our youth consultants are taking charge of teaching them. So I created a lesson plan for our youth family history consultants to use as they teach at the children’s homes. The lesson invites the children to become explorers and discover their family’s past. Four tools from an “explorer’s backpack” are used to explain family history concepts. The compass teaches the children to get started in the right direction by creating an account on FamilySearch.org. The map is used to teach children about...
Our ward is working on a temple challenge to find a family name for temple work by the end of November. I think it’s important to talk about the difference between searching for a name and surfing for a name. Searching: Finding records that reveal relatives not yet in Family Tree. Adding them to the tree, checking for duplicates, and reserving their ordinances. Surfing: Clicking around family tree until you find a relative with a green temple icon, then reserving their temple ordinances. When I really search for records about my ancestors, instead of just surfing for green temple icons, these ancestors start to...
This post contains affiliate links. If you click the link and purchase the item, we receive a small commission. This doesn’t change the price of the item. Homeplace by Anne Shelby, 1995 A Grandmother tells her granddaughter the story of the home she lives in, starting 100 years before with the girl’s 4th great grandfather who built the house. The Jan Brett-like illustrations with lots of farm imagery invoke a very homey, country feeling. Each generation builds onto the “homeplace” and improves the property. Each generation is introduced by saying “ONE of the babies was your…” This book is filled with planting...
Do you know of a diary or journal of a pioneer ancestor that used to be in the family and no one knows what happened to it? Would you like to hold the original and see your ancestor’s actual handwriting? If you suspect you might have an ancestor who left a diary or journal you can follow the same steps I did to locate, view, and share it. My ancestor, William Henry Kelsey, joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in 1843 in England. During the 1850’s he traveled the area as a missionary. He kept a detailed journal...
So you want to teach your children about great aunts, first cousins once removed, and great-grandfathers? Here is a list of books that will help you explain the sometimes tricky concept of family trees. This post contains affiliate links. If you click the link and make a purchase, we receive a small commission, but it doesn’t change the price of the item. Thank you! What a Family by Rachel Isadora, 2006 What a Family highlights characteristics and physical traits that people have in common with their family members. It shows a large descendancy family tree chart with cousins names and birth...
I’ve been gathering up all the children’s books about family history that I can find. There are lots about family trees, and some about family heirlooms! My Mother’s Pearls Story and art by Catherine Myler Fruisen My Mother’s Pearls was originally published in 1999. It’s out of print now but you can still find used copies on amazon. I got a copy from the library. The inside flap reads, “A young girl’s love of an heirloom opens a door of discovery to her rich and wonderful heritage. … My Mother’s Pearls beautifully evokes the special bond between mothers and daughters,...
Do you need a fun activity to help the youth in your ward get interested in family history? How about a Family Home Evening or Sunday activity for the whole family? Try MISSION POSSIBLE and see that it is possible to do family history! I created the MISSION POSSIBLE youth activity in response to Elder Anderson’s Find, Take, Teach Challenge. Purpose We wanted to give the youth in our ward an opportunity to teach their families about family history. After discussing this in our family history committee, we decided to train the youth with FamilySearch.org and some of the great apps associated with...
For Christmas last year, I hosted a craft night for my friends. We made these easy, quick photo pendants! I first saw these at a family reunion, where some of the adult granddaughters had created them for the girl cousins. I thought they were so pretty and so symbolic of keeping memories of family close to our heart. These photo pendants make unique, affordable gifts. For the girls in my husband’s family, I made six of the same pendant with a photo of their grandmother. I made one for each of my grandmas with pictures of their mothers. Later, my ward asked me to...
Let’s make a simple picture pedigree chart! It’s perfect for printing at home, displaying on the wall, sharing with your kids, or impressing your cousins at the next family reunion. Read about how I printed this 36″ x 24″ chart for my family reunion here. Ready to get started? Here are the steps: 1. Create a folder on your computer with copies of the pictures you want to use. Crop your pictures to be tall rectangles, like the portraits in the picture pedigree. 2. Download one of these PowerPoint files: 24 by 36 Picture Pedigree Template – pptx file or 24...
