Should children take DNA tests? Thought leaders and genetic genealogy experts say yes. In keynote speeches and interviews at RootsTech 2018, Cece Moore, Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Living DNA co-founders David Nicholson and Hannah Morden, reveal their thoughts about the booming DNA industry and how it can benefit children. Overcoming Prejudice LivingDNA is making great strides in the industry, especially in pinning down ethnic origins to specific regions within the British Isles. Yet...
I created another worksheet to go along with the table that helps children gather data about inherited traits from their family members. I figured it would be fun to map out what they know on a family tree! This worksheet allows children to color their own eye color and hair color on the family tree, then check boxes that say if they have a hitchhikers thumb, long second toe, and attached earlobes. Then they...
Looking for a fun activity for children that helps them learn how to use FamilySearch.org? When children look at an online family tree for the first time, it is helpful for them to learn how to navigate around and see what information they can find out about their ancestors. This scavenger hunt does just that! With little clues like, “find a relative with an unusual name” or “find a woman who had more than ten...
With Thanksgiving coming up, I’ve been thinking about ways to teach my children about the history of Thanksgiving. Then I wondered if we are related to any pilgrims. Using Relative Finder, which draws upon the collaborative family tree at FamilySearch.org, I was able to quickly see that I am possibly related to several Mayflower passengers (I haven’t researched these connections). In fact, 17 Mayflower passengers are my direct ancestors, according to the FamilySearch family tree....
When he was 9 years old, my grandpa got shot in the cheek while playing cowboys and Indians. He told us this story over and over, showing us his gold tooth that replaced the one that got shot out. I made the story into an illustrated storybook for my children. I’m going to share how I did it today as part of our “Family History for Children” blog link up. This month’s theme is about...
A couple years ago, I made photo felt family trees for my nephews and niece for Christmas. I glued velcro to the back of each circle so the kids could move the family members on and off of the family tree and play. This is a wonderful teaching aid or storytelling aid that I use often when I’m teaching children about family history and relationships to ancestors. I wrote a tutorial for making your own...
Family Tree Prints is a new service that helps you create custom family tree charts for you to download and print in ten minutes. Jane from Family Tree Prints reached out to me and asked me to try creating a complimentary chart in order to share my experience. I was impressed! There are many features that allow you to customize your chart. I have been frustrated in the past with the way charts turn out...
I recently helped with a neighboring stake’s Family Discovery Day. I was delighted to be contacted about it. We came up with family history ideas to keep the children busy for 3 hours while their parents attended the classes. I was just one of the people who helped, and each person who did had unique and wonderful ideas. The kids all had a great time! My friend who was teaching an adult class heard a...
One of my favorite family tree creations for kids is this felt family tree. What could be more fun for a toddler than moving around pictures of the people he loves and sticking them to a tree?! What’s even better is that this project requires no sewing. All you need is felt, family pictures, glue, fabric scissors, a way to laminate your photos (even packing tape could work) and about an hour and a half....
When my family travels anywhere that has a connection to our past, we do our best to teach our children about their family history. Children can experience family history first hand when they do “field trips” to family sites. Experiencing the places of significance to our ancestors has great potential for being memorable and fun. In the very least, it will be a photo op to help you remember for years to come. Children are...
