What's In A Name?

A Personal Quest

A Students Guide to Family History.
Spanish Version

Discovering your family tree - doing genealogy or family history research - can be an exciting experience.  Many people just like you have discovered who their ancestors are. You have been learning how to do research on the internet.  You will be using family history as a way to improve this skill. Family members or guardians, please help your students to answer the following tasks in this project.  Each student will use this information from their family or information about a famous historical person to do this project during library time.

TASK:  You will collect information from your family, then, place the information into an easy to read form. You will prepare an interview with an older family member, and see if any new information can be found about your family name. Follow the instructions for each job and do each step.  You or your teacher will select a research buddy to work with when doing parts of this quest.  Use the Links to find answers to your research project. Ask your family for help along the way.  They will be your best source of information. You will work individually and with a partner to complete the following task:

PROCEDURE:                                                          

NOTE TAKER:  Each person prepare a notebook with a Research Calendar, Source Log, Research Note Log, and several sheets of lined paper. You can print more forms if  you need them. Record the information requested on the logs for sources and summarize what you find. When you find enough write a story. You will use people, books, and Internet links during your search. Work with your buddy and both record the information found during your individual research.  Exchange your papers and check each others work to make sure you are recording correctly.

HISTORIAN: You are a historian about your family or guardians name. Go to BUILD YOUR TREE  http://disney.go.com/ads/sponsors/ancestry/index.html.  Fill in your name, then your parents or guardians names to be able to print from this site.  If you know more, complete the chart before you print.  You must print out your chart to take home and ask for any information not filled in. Put this in your project notebook to use with the next step. Prepare a Timeline starting with the oldest date and going to the most current date you collected. Select a month and day of birth from someone on your chart into the next link and record events that happened on that day on the lined paper. See if any event happened on the exact day, month and year. Fill in your chart by going to Anyday-in-History http://www.scopesys.com/anyday.htm.  Print a Timeline, record historical events based on the dates on the tree you started earlier. You should have five pages filled out in your notebook (a tree chart, timeline, logs from previous task, plus any written notes.) Alternate project: Select a famous historical person and research using search engines in next link to complete assignment.

Dr. Alice Christie's Internet Search Engine Page http://www.west.asu.edu/achristie/sengines.html  

COLLECTOR: What is the oldest family object?  What is it, how was it used, and who used it?  You will be encouraged to make a photograph of the object (use the digital or regular camera) or draw a picture. If you draw a picture or take a regular photo, use the scanner to save the picture as a file, also.  This will be used to make a presentation in PowerPoint of the information you have found at the end of your project..  Have your buddy researcher review your notes. Are the notes complete with the date you did the search, title of  the site, URL or address.  Give your Research Notes a page number and place this number on the Research Calendar. Your Calendar is just like an index in a book.  Your notes become the pages in the book. It is important that you state "nothing found" in page number area.  This will tell you that a search was made on a certain date but maybe you can do it again at another time.

Alternate project:  Selected a famous historical person, research on the Internet about the individual to see if there is any historical items they owned. Select one object to collect information about. Use the search engines listed in this Quest. Record your information on your logs.  Use reference books in your library for your historical figure to complete the object research. Ask the librarian for help. Use your OPAC.

INTERVIEWER: You must present your teacher with a signed permission slip to do this assignment.  With your buddy brainstorm questions you might ask an older person. Both of you interview an older person, they do not have to be connected to your family, but they need to be a least 20 years older than you.  Possible questions can include: politics, family history, customs, memories of childhood, occupations, places of residence for at least 20 questions.  Write a paper listing the question you asked and the responses. Type this report and include the report in your folder. It should be several pages in length. Use a tape recorder to record the interview if possible.  (Be polite and make an appointment with your selected individual. Tell them the assignment and ask if they would be willing to help. You and your buddy may go together if possible, but a family member or guardian must be with you when interviewing.) Have your buddy review your interview report before placing it in your notebook. Give the person you interviewed a copy of the interview as a thank you for their time. To make this easy - interview your parents, grandparents, or guardians.

Need Ideas:

Oral History Questions http://www.rootsweb.com/~genepool/oralhist.htm

RESEARCHER: Using the Internet, select a name from your family tree chart that is a great-grandparent or use the name of your historical person.  This person should have been born at least 100 years ago. Print another Research Calendar.  Go to the following links to see if anything is listed for that name.  Write down the name you selected and list all the sites where you searched this name. Do the same with your own name. Print off information that is new to you. What did you discover? Were there many people with the same name? How many? Did you find the person you were looking for? List these questions on your notes and answer them. 

FAMILY SEARCH   http://www.familysearch.org  (For best result, enter one complete name.)

ANCESTRY   http://www.ancestry.com  (Look at the Social Security Death Index listings or SSDI.)

LINEAGES  http://www.lineages.com 

ENCICLOPEDIA HERÁLDICA HISPANPO-AMERICANA  http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/hispanic/hbrowse/geneal/index_gc.html  

FAMOUS HISPANICS http://coloquio.com/famosos/alpha.htm 

AFRO-AMERICAN http://www.afrigeneas.net/surnames 

HERALDICA PORTUGUESA http://www.terravista.pt/nazare/1455/index1.html

FEDERATION OF EAST EUROPEAN FAMILY HISTORY SOCIETY http://feefhs.org/index/indexsur.html 

CHINESE ROOTS  http://www.chineseroots.com/xungen/english/main.jsp 

CYNDI'S LIST  http://www.CyndisList.com/surnames.htm 

ROOTSWEB SURNAME LIST http://resources.rootsweb.com/~clusters/surnames/index.html 

WORLD CONNECT  http://resources.rootsweb.com/~clusters/surnames/index.html 

PRESENTER: Prepare your folder with a summary of what you did during this quest, how you did the tasks, and what you learned.  Type this in the word processor. You may make a PowerPoint presentation or story board to share with your class on what you learned. Include family tree, timeline, picture of old object, interview, and logs listing dates of search, source titles, and summary of any stories or information you have learned in your notebook. Need help preparing a PowerPoint presentation go http://www.actden.com for instructions. Buddies are to review the notebooks before the presentation.  Hand in your notebook and share with the class your presentation. 

Researcher Rubric

When you have completed this Quest you will know how to start researching your name. You will have the research skills to do any research project and keep accurate notes for a presentation.

EXTENTIONS:

FAMILY HERITAGE QUILTING WEB QUEST http://www.andrew.archambault.com/webquest/
        (Writing family history using 6 traits for middle school students, a great webquest not available currently. If anyone can find it, email me.)

Marion Neal Final Project  - GENEALOGICAL FOR KIDS http://www.kdla.state.ky.us/libserv/children/lb143/marion.htm

HISPANIC GENEALOGY http://home.att.net/~Alsosa/spanishh.htm

Microsoft Productivity in the Classroom for High School Students - Bridging the Generation Gap
http://www.microsoft.com/education/mctn/?ID=gengap 
Description: Lesson Plan involving charting of opinions.

Microsoft Productivity in the Classroom for Middle School - My Story Begins
http://www.microsoft.com/education/mctn/?ID=5-8_story 
Description: Lesson Plan using Literature to compare how authors write about life, then producing a life story.


TEACHER/PARENT RESOURCES:

My History Is America's History    http://www.myhistory.org/teaching/elementary.html 
Helping Your Child Learn History   http://www.ed.gov/pubs/parents/History/ 
Ancestors PBS series: Teacher's guide http://www.kbyu.org/ancestors/teachersguide/ 

Here are five simple steps to help you start:

This project may be altered for the age of the students involved. You should try each item yourself to be familiar with the steps.  It can be a great supplemental project for a whole term of social studies activities.

1. What do you already know about your family?  Write it down.  Using a form helps. Write relatives.

2. Decide what you want to learn about your family.  What is missing or conflicting about what you know?  Write it down.

3. Select a record to search. Use original records and compiled records.
    Hint: Vital records for birth, marriage and death are original records.
            Biographies, local history and computer files are compiled records.

4. Obtain and search records found in libraries and government offices.  Write relatives.

5. Organize new information and save records. Write a summary of what you learned.

BOOKS:

...If Your Name Was Changed at Ellis Island. Ellen Levine. Scholastic, 1993.

Do People Grow on Family Trees? Genealogy for Kids and Other Beginners. The Official Ellis Island Handbook. Ira Wolfman. Workman Publishing, 1991.

roots for kids: A Genealogy Guide for Young People. Susan Provost Beller. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1989.

My Backyard History Book. David Weitzman. Little, Brown and Company, 1975.

Always under construction.

This was created by Ellen Allen, Longview Librarian © July 13, 2000. You may link only. Please feel free to contact me through email.