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Directory Detectives

1/29/2018

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Directory Detectives // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
This month's Family History for Children Blog Link-Up theme is Teaching Children Genealogy SKILLS. This is a subject near and dear to my heart, because this is mostly what I have blogged about for the past four years or so. I am ALWAYS looking for new, age-appropriate ways in which to introduce kids to skills that, as a genealogist, I use everyday (sometimes without even realizing I am doing so). 

My kids are a little older now (10 and 7), so I want to encourage them to start looking at more actual record sources I use in my research. However, I don't want to overwhelm them with complicated documents and difficult-to-read handwriting. So, I thought we'd do a little something with city, town, and county directories. Directories are one of the most valuable sources of data for genealogists, and they are also one of the most simple to understand, which makes them perfect for kids to explore.

Most children today have probably never even seen, let alone used, a telephone directory. So, the first step in this activity is to explain to them what a directory is, how it was used at the time it was printed, and what important information we can learn from it. The best way in which to do this, I believe, is to physically SHOW a child an actual directory. Now, I'll be the first to admit that when we receive our local directory, it usually goes straight into the recycling bin. But, if your area still prints directories, show one to your child, or make it a point to look at an older one during your next trip to the library.

Because names and words are sometimes abbreviated in directories and those abbreviations needed to be deciphered, I decided to approach this with my kids as being a 'detective.' My daughter wanted to dress the part, and honestly, the magnifying glass came in handy, because the print in these directories can be so small.

I sat down with my daughter and gave her an 'L' page and the Abbreviations page from a 1936 Cleveland directory. I explained that this page was part of a list of people who lived in the city that year, and that they are listed in alphabetical order by last name. (She is familiar with 'ABC' order, because her classmates use it to line up in school each day.) I wrote down the surname we wanted to look for (Licciardi), and helped her find it.

Then, I showed her how she needed to decode some of the information. The first name after the surname was the husband's name, followed by the wife's name in parentheses (I had to explain what those were). I showed her how to look up 'embdr' in the abbreviations page, which she learned stood for 'embroiderer.' (I explained it as 'fancy sewing.') And, of course, I told her that this was the entry for her great-great-grandparents, Louis and Adele Licciardi. (If you have photos of the ancestors you are looking up in the directory, this is a great time to bring them out, so the child can make the connection between the faces and names.)

Directory Detectives // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Next, to contrast the urban directory, we looked at a rural farmer's directory from my husband's side of the family. My daughter enjoyed decoding this one more than the other, because it told her how many kids, horses, and cattle each couple had. She went down the page trying to figure out who had the most of each. I do think it's a good idea to have kids look at different directories from different types of areas, just to show them that one directory may offer certain information that another one does not. And what's included in a directory may be indicative of what was important to a particular community at the time it was published.
Directory Detectives // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Searching around in directories is a great activity for helping kids practice their knowledge of alphabetical order. I volunteer with 3rd-5th graders once a week in our school's library, and they  still struggle (a lot) with using alphabetical ordering. It's a skill that is learned through practice.

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Once your kids master the straightforward information contained within a particular directory, go a little deeper:
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- Ask them if they see multiple entries of the same surname living at the same address. Chances are those people are either immediate or extended family members.
- Talk about some of the different occupations you see. If a job is unfamiliar, look it up to learn more about it. Talk about which jobs still exist in modern society and those that do not. 
- Encourage them to type a street address that they find into Google Maps. They may find an image of an ancestral home on Google Street View!

Thanks for reading, and I hope you encourage the children in your lives to explore historical directories!

©2018 Emily Kowalski Schroeder
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Learning About The Census

4/27/2016

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Learning About The Census // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Some of the most important and powerful tools genealogists use to learn about our family histories are census records. But have you ever tried showing a 100-year old census form to a child? Take my word for it, it doesn't go well, and their eyes glaze over quicker than you can explain what a census is.

So, I was on a mission to find a simplified, interactive way to introduce my kids to censuses, which includes teaching them WHAT a census is and WHY we have them. Fortunately, there is a great children's book that helped me to do so. It's called Tricking the Tallyman by Jacqueline Davies and illustrated by S. D. Schindler. The story takes takes places in Vermont in 1790, during the nation's very first census. The story follows the experiences of Phineas Bump, the census-taker,   as he attempts to collect an accurate tally of the town of Tunbridge. First, the villagers hide people because they think it will mean more taxes and conscription. Then, on his second try, they inflate numbers because they hear it will be more government representation. When the villagers realize it will bring both more taxes and representation, they cooperate with Phineas and he does get an accurate count in the end. There is a lot of mischief going on in this book, which makes it fun for kids, plus the illustrations are very educational in teaching kids about what people wore and about the types of homes in which they lived back then.

I made two worksheets for kids who want to 'play census.' One is geared towards older children who can read and write independently, but it is still a simplified version of a census form. The other form is much simpler still, and is meant to be used by kids who are not yet reading independently. An adult or older sibling will still have to help a young child out, but the pictures above the columns (for house number, adult men, adult women, boy children, and girl children) will help the child better visualize what he/she is counting. There is even a place for them to do some simple adding of their tally marks. (Click on each image to open the PDFs.)

Learning About The Census with FREE Roleplay Worksheet from GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Census Roleplay Worksheet (Independent Reader)
Learning About The Census with FREE Roleplay Worksheets from GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Census Roleplay Worksheet (Younger Child)
I played census with my 5yo daughter on our front porch. She was the census-taker. We dressed her up in old-time 'fancy' clothes and I gave her a clipboard and a pencil. She took her job very seriously.
Learning About The Census // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Learning About The Census // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
If you are friends with your neighbors, ask if your child can come to their door as well to record their family. Or, set up little 'households' with dolls or stuffed animals, so your child will have more 'families' to record.

Once they understand what a census is and how it was accomplished, THEN you can start showing kids actual census schedules on which their ancestors are recorded and talking with them about all the helpful information that we can learn from those records. 

©2016 Emily Kowalski Schroeder
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Ancestor Puppet Theater

4/27/2015

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Ancestor Puppet Theater by GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Ancestor Puppet Theater
Putting on a puppet show is a fun, interactive way to engage young children in storytelling. Why not make those puppets and stories about family ancestors! 

Supplies needed:
Small cardboard box (10.5" x 13.75" x 5")
Glue
Tape
Scissors (a box cutter is also helpful)

Popsicle sticks
Family photos
Computer with Internet access and printer
Scrap fabric and wooden dowel (optional)

This activity requires a bit more preparation on the part of the adult than many of the other activities featured on this blog. First, you will need family photos. These may be more recent photos of people your child(ren) know, or you may choose to use older photos of long-gone ancestors, which is what we did. I found full-length photos of my grandmother and her family members, but I honestly don't think most kids would care if you used torso or head shots. 

I printed out these photos and glued each of them to an index card, in order to make them a little more sturdy. Then, I glued the photos onto popsicle sticks.
Ancestor Puppet Theater by GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Ancestor Puppets
Next, I looked for background images to help us tell a story, and for this I turned to the Internet. First, I used Street View on Google Maps to find an image of the house in which this family lived during the late 1930s (about when these photos were taken). Then, I Googled around for other images that would help us tell a story. My grandmother and her sister worked for The May Company Department store in Cleveland, Ohio, and thanks to The Cleveland Memory Project I found an older image of the exterior of that building, as well as some interior images. I also found an image of a Cleveland streetcar, which was the main mode of transportation into the city at that time.

I printed out copies of the images onto normal computer paper, and taped them together in a line. These images would serve as the 'scenery' for our puppet show.
Ancestor Puppet Theater by GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Puppet Theater Background Scenery
For the box, I used a small Amazon delivery box (13.75" x 10.5" x 5"). It was a great size because the paper backgrounds fit just about perfectly in it. Stand the box up on its side, and cut a vertical slit towards the back so that the backgrounds can slide through.
Ancestor Puppet Theater // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Ancestor Puppet Theater // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Now, I added a wooden dowel with a scrap-fabric curtain to make it look more like a theater. This step is not necessary, but I will tell you that my kids LOVED it, and made them SO much more excited. (You may also choose to cut off those side flaps, but we found that they actually help the 'theater' to stand up better.)
Ancestor Puppet Theater by GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Ancestor Puppet Theater
Now, it was time to play! We arranged the background images so that we could tell a story about my great-grandmother and her daughters going shopping. They started at their home and took the street car downtown to the department store. Inside the store, it was very crowded in the accessories department, but there were fewer shoppers in the shoe department. They bought some shoes. Then they met up with my great-grandfather, who had been at one of his Italian War Veterans meetings. They all got back on the street car and went home. The older the child, the more detailed you can be with your storytelling. Let the child run with it; my daughter remarked that she liked the clothes they wore back then. My son was much more interested in the concept of a streetcar than anything else. Whatever their interests, they're looking at family photos, learning about their ancestors, AND learning a little bit about what life was like in the 1930s and 40s.
Ancestor Puppet Theater // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Family History Storytelling
Ancestor Puppet Theater // GrowingLittleLeaves.com
Family History Storytelling
Be sure to check out all activities that have been featured on this blog at Growing Little Leaves.com

©2015, Emily Kowalski Schroeder
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Dressing Up For Family History

7/25/2014

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The credit for this little activity idea goes completely to my six year old son, who declared this morning, while standing on my bed, that he was the Statue of Liberty.  He went to our dress up bin, got out the crown and "torch," and wrapped the blanket around himself.  Never one to miss an opportunity, I asked him the basic "Who, What, Where" questions about the statue, taught him what he didn't know, and then he 'performed' this video. (You may have to turn up your volume to hear it.)

Young children love playing dress-up, so what not try to direct their dress-up play session in a way that can help teach them some aspect of their family history.  Seven out of eight of my immigrant great-grandparents came through the port of New York between 1890 and 1920, so the Statue of Liberty is a huge part of my (and his) family's history.

Whether your family's ancestors were farmers, soldiers, doctors, teachers, factory workers or anything else in between, try using role-playing and dressing up as a way to spark their interests in their ancestors.  Your 'costumes' do not have to be anything complicated or extravagant. Bed sheets, belts, ties, aprons, ribbons, as well as old sport coats, buttons, hats, and boots can go a long way into creating dresses, military uniforms, and trade uniforms of the past.  Use the Internet to look up what an ancestor in a particular time, place, and profession may have worn, and use your imaginations!

©2014, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder.
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    Emily Kowalski Schroeder

    Founder and Author of Growing Little Leaves

    Emily Kowalski Schroeder / Founder and Author of GrowingLittleLeaves.com

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