Tag: Gen Y

Faces of NextGen: Meet Jana Greenhalgh

Jana Greenhalgh, 33, Utah

What five words would you use to describe yourself? Mother, genealogist, busy, busy, busy.

Why genealogy? My grandfather inspired me as a teenager. He introduced me to genealogical research, and that led me to a BA degree in Genealogy at Brigham Young University. Genealogy makes me happy, and I’m especially happy when I’m teaching it to others or involving my six kids in my research!

What’s the coolest discovery you’ve made? Not long ago, our family discovered a beautiful old photograph of one of our ancestors. We’ve studied and admired her for years but had no idea what she looked like. A distant cousin had the photo in their possession and had recently posted it online.

What are you working on this week? A movie script with my kids. We’re using censuses and other records to tell the story of their great-grandfather.

What’s the number one secret to your success in genealogy? Enthusiasm.

What superpower would you want to help you uncover your family history? I’d like to be able to research all night long while the baby sleeps (without feeling the effects of sleeplessness the next morning).

What are we most likely to find you doing when you’re not researching family history? Laundry, dishes, carpools, kid-homework, and maybe gardening or knitting.

Anything else you’d like to share? My kids would be ecstatic if you’d check out our movies at The Genealogy Kids YouTube Channel and our blog. More views means more motivation for these kiddos! They especially like “likes,” comments, and subscribers.

The NextGen Genealogy Network is made up of young genealogists with diverse backgrounds, interests, and experiences. Faces of NextGen will showcase a different member of our community each month. If you would like to be considered for an upcoming feature, simply complete our questionnaire and submit a selfie.

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Faces of NextGen: Meet Michael Melendez

Michael MelendezMichael Melendez, 25, Utah

What five words would you use to describe yourself? Shy, old soul, unorthodox, observant, ambitious.

Why genealogy? Because it brings family stories and historical events into cohesion.

What’s the coolest discovery you’ve made? That NextGen exists!

What are you working on this week? The Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree.

What’s the number one secret to your success in genealogy? Gleaning more information from a record than the average person.

What superpower would you want to help you uncover your family history? Time travel.

What are we most likely to find you doing when you’re not researching family history? Political activism.

The NextGen Genealogy Network is made up of young genealogists with diverse backgrounds, interests, and experiences. Faces of NextGen will showcase a different member of our community each month. If you would like to be considered for an upcoming feature, simply complete our questionnaire and submit a selfie.

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Teaching Young Children About History Through Travel

Over spring break, my husband and I took our two children, ages four and seven, to visit Washington, D.C. While there, we saw many school groups also visiting the historical sites and museums. For the most part, the groups consisted of teenagers, teachers, and parents. Some of the kids were genuinely interested in the monuments and museums, but many others were obviously bored, constantly looking at their phones, and wondering when they’d be done. For a lot of these kids, this trip came too late in their educations. Kids need to experience historical places at early ages.

Why travel to historical places with young children? Young children are naturally curious and they ask questions without hesitation. Because young children learn best through utilizing all of their senses, experiencing historical places first hand is an important way to develop their basic cognitive understandings of history. Children will come to enjoy learning about history if it is taught by combining interesting stories with real places.

Child enjoying historical monument

Kids need to experience historical places at early ages to gain a full appreciation of their significance.

How young should you start taking your child to historical places? Believe it or not, the toddler years are a great time to begin. Vocabulary development during this period is explosive, and it is a time when children are learning about the world around them by associating spoken words with tangible objects. When my son was two years old, we visited the Castillo de San Marcos in St. Augustine, Florida and Ft. Pulaski National Monument in Georgia. During both visits, we told our son we were in a fort, which was a new word for him. Better still, he was able to associate that word with a real place in real-life dimensions. A fort was not just a blanket-covered table to play under or some toy; a fort is huge, and made of stone or brick, which he was able to physically touch. A fort has room for lots of people and supplies inside and special spaces and windows made just for large cannons – another new word he was able to associate with real-life objects.

As children grow into preschool and elementary ages, the vocabulary associated with historical places can be built upon with stories. Visiting historical places makes the stories of history come alive for kids. For example, we visited Ford’s Theater while in Washington, D.C. While in the theater, we told our kids the story of President Lincoln’s assassination (another new word for them). We could literally show them where the “bad guy” came into the Presidential Box, shot Abraham Lincoln, and jumped from the balcony onto the stage. We told the kids he broke his leg when he fell, but still got away. Our daughter remarked, “He must have hopped,” which showed me that she was actually picturing it happening! These days, so many historical sites have character actors who young children just love to interact with, and who are able to make learning about the history of a place enjoyable and engaging for all ages. So, don’t hesitate to travel to historical places with young children – they will enjoy it more than you think!

Emily Kowalski SchroederEmily Kowalski Schroeder is the author of the blog Growing Little Leaves, which is dedicated to sharing ways to educate young children about family history. Learn more at GrowingLittleLeaves.com.

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Faces of NextGen: Meet Caitlin Gow

Caitlin GowCaitlin Gow, 24, Australia

Why genealogy? I just love it! I love knowing who my ancestors were and where they came from. I love finding out their story. Doing genealogy has also made me feel closer to my Grandma who died before I was born. She was the genealogy queen in our family.

What’s the coolest discovery you’ve made? I solved the 100+ year mystery of my Great Great Aunt Jeannie Gow. That was pretty amazing. You can read the story here.

What are you working on this week? I’ve been researching my best friend’s family history for a couple of weeks now. A few years ago I discovered that we have a connection. We’re not cousins, but there is an odd connection! Her family history is very interesting.

What superpower would you want to help you uncover your family history? The power to travel around the world without any restrictions – I guess that means flying! I could go to cemeteries and ancestors’ hometowns whenever I wanted.

What are we most likely to find you doing when you’re not researching family history? I’m either reading, watching a few of my favorite TV shows, or spending time with family and friends. If you asked me last year, I would have said studying at University, but I just graduated. Woo!

The NextGen Genealogy Network is made up of young genealogists with diverse backgrounds, interests, and experiences. Faces of NextGen will showcase a different member of our community each month. If you would like to be considered for an upcoming feature, simply complete our questionnaire and submit a selfie.

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