Savoir faire — Two genealogy societies create programs for young people

Two provincial Canadian genealogical societies — the Ontario Genealogical Society (OGS) and the Alberta Genealogical Society (AGS) — are reaching out to their communities with lessons plans and activity books for elementary and high school students. And that’s good news.

The even better news for genealogists around the world is that these programs are available online and they are not limited to schools and teachers or to the societies that created them.

Parents and grandparents can use all or part of the programs with the young people in their family. Genealogical societies may be inspired to use the material to engage young people in their community in genealogy or create their own program.

Programs for students are a good way for a genealogical society to give back to the community and perhaps gain recognition for what the society does and attract new members at the same time.

OGS lesson plans
The OGS Family History Lesson Plans Project for elementary and secondary students began this past summer “with the intention of connecting OGS with students by providing educational resources to educators.”

With support from the Archives of Ontario, OGS developed eight lesson plans, aligned with the provincial curriculum. The objective of these lesson plans is to increase awareness and interest of family history through student-driven learning. Where age appropriate, social media and online curation tools have been included, as well as communication activities that encourage students to make connections to current events, and their own family histories.

Primary sources, lesson plan for grade two students who will learn about the importance of record keeping by learning about and creating time capsules, page 10. Source: Family History Lesson Plans, Ontario Genealogical Society, 2015. https://www.ogs.on.ca/lessonplans.php

The lesson plans include family trees and heirlooms for grade one students, family interviewing for grade four, WWI for grade ten, and advertising a museum exhibit through social media for grade twelve.

Each lesson plan includes a survey link for educators to complete after using the lesson plans provided. Through this feedback, OGS hopes to collect data on how the lessons are used and suggestions to improve the lesson plans.

AGS program developed to generate interest in genealogy
The AGS Genealogy for Children and Youth series was created to “introduce the wonders of genealogy and family history, to children and youth.” The society wants to “arouse interest within a young person about his or her family and their past.”

The AGS program is targetted at children and youth ages six to 18 and it meets the provincial school curriculum. Materials can be used for individual family activities, youth groups, and home-schooling.

My Family Now and in the Past!, Unit 1, ages of 6 to 8. Source: AGS Genealogy for Children and Youth series, Alberta Genealogical Society.

Each age-appropriate unit includes 30 to 50 pages of worksheets, charts, pictures, resources, and reading lists.

At this time, only the first activity book for ages six to eight, My Family Now and in the Past!, is available to download, but the second book/unit is well underway.

The first activity book examines the child’s family, looking at the organization of the family unit, its members, and their relationships.

It notes that families existed well back in the past, and introduces the child to the ideas of “ancestors” and “history” as they apply to the child.

After all the units have been posted on the society’s website, a Guide for Adult Facilitators will be developed.

Engage youth in genealogy
To help generate an interest in genealogy among young people, tell your child’s teachers about these lesson plans and resources. Discuss with your society’s board the feasibility and benefits of creating a school outreach program in your community.

Kudos to OGS and AGS!

Follow Genealogy a la carte’s board Fun Genealogy Ideas for Kids on Pinterest.