Where did you come from? Why are you here?
This may seem obvious but, if you think about it, each person who is born in America, at some point had an ancestor who decided they wanted to be here and often went to great effort to immigrate. Who were the first ancestors in your line to make that decision and what inspired them to do so? Did they find what they were looking for? Take some time to watch the video above and consider questions you would like to ask that person.
- Write down at least 5 questions you would love to know the answers to.
This week, put on your detective hat and see what you can find out! Head over to FamilySearch.org and create an account, if you don’t already have one. (If you need help creating an account, please reach out to me!)
- Print out this family tree and fill it out with the information you find (or add missing information to FamilySearch. Note where each relative was born and died.
From the FamilySearch home page, go to the options along the top of the page, click on “Activities” and start exploring.
- Try “Compare a Face” and learn 5 facts about an ancestor that you resemble.
- Find an ancestor that was born between 1865 and 1900. Learn what you can about them. Where did they live? What important world events would they have experienced in their lifetime? What events impacted their lives? Do you have any living relatives who remember the person you are learning about? What can they tell you about the person?
- On one of your lines, find the first ancestor to immigrate to America. See if you can find answers to any of the questions you thought of while watching the video. Did they find what they were looking for in America? Where did they settle?
- Come to class prepared to share what you learned. Bring pictures, a family recipe to share, or tell something about the culture in their home country.
- Write a one paragraph outline of your life so far that you can add to your page on Family Search.
