Hyson says it's become very popular to turn to the vast amount of information and resources online, but it's more important to touch and feel the pieces of your history. "I would suggest beyond online, you try to get into buildings, graveyards, family houses, and really feel the stuff of history".
Hyson shared with me his vivid memories of doing just that when he was young. He says the children will feel a part of history and realize that their ancestors, no matter how humble, played an important role in history. "That idea that you belong to this tradition and you belong to this history is something that's empowering and exciting".
So, how do you get started? I was frankly overwhelmed with the idea of creating a family tree. I am one of ten children and my husband is one of seven.Our children have thirty-one first cousins! There's no way I'm fitting all of that on our tree!
Most of my grandparents passed before I was born and my father's father died when he was just six years old. So, a lot of our history seemed more difficult to gather.
We started with some easy steps. I made a tree out of felt and passed out old family photos. I let the kids glue them on to the tree, starting with the kids on the bottom and their great grandparents at the top.
I was surprised how much conversation it sparked about our ancestors. Frankly it also sparked some heated fights over sharing the glue!! But, that's the honest way things work in my house!
If you're stuck on how to get started try some of these links:
http://www.archives.gov/
http://www.loc.gov/index.html
http://www.familytreetemplates.net/category/kids
http://genealogy.about.com/od/children/Genealogy_for_Children.htm
There are also lots of commercial websites that claim to help make the process easier. Don't forget to try your local historical societies and museums.
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