How to explore family history with your kid: grandparent stories, old photos and a family tree

"Grandma, what was it like when you were little?" That one question can open a door to a whole world: no internet, a different town, a funny story about a pet goat. For kids 6 to 8, family history is the friendliest way into history itself: the idea that the past was real, people lived it, and it connects to them.

Why family stories matter

Robyn Fivush, who directs the Family Narratives Lab at Emory University, writes that adolescents and young adults who know more about their parents' and grandparents' lives tend to have higher self-esteem, lower anxiety and a stronger sense of meaning. In her lab's research, stories about earlier generations predicted young people's well-being better than stories about their own lives, and young people benefited most when they connected a family story to who they are.

That research is mostly with teens and young adults, and it shows a link, not proof. But the habit of telling family stories starts young, and it's easy to begin.

The CDC notes that children 6 to 8 start to understand more about their place in the world. A family tree is a picture of exactly that.

Skill 1: Ask a grandparent about their childhood

1. Write three questions about when they were a kid.
2. Ask in person, or on a call with a grown-up.
3. Listen, then ask one more question.
4. Share your favorite story with the family.

Question ideas for little interviewers:

• What games did you play?
• What was your favorite food?
• What was your school like?
• Did you have a pet?
• What did you do on your birthday?

The follow-up question is the real skill. "You had a goat? What was its name? Did it ever get out?" Listening closely and asking more shows you care. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests having children repeat back what someone said before responding, which works great in an interview. (More in teaching your kid to listen.)

No grandparent nearby? A great-aunt, an older neighbor, a family friend or a grandparent on a video call all work.

Skill 2: Sort family photos by year

1. Spread the photos out on a table.
2. Look for clues: clothes, hairstyles, cars, ages and places.
3. Ask a grown-up if you're not sure.
4. Line them up from oldest to newest.

This is history detective work. Clues are how historians figure out the past: "Mom looks really young here, so this is before I was born." "This one's black and white, so it's probably really old."

Ask about each photo. "Who's that? Where was this?" Every photo has a story. Write the year and names on a sticky note on the back, and you've made something the whole family will treasure.

The challenge: a family tree to grandparents

The mastery goal is to make a family tree going back to grandparents.

1. Draw yourself at the bottom.
2. Add your parents above you.
3. Add your grandparents above them.
4. Decorate it and hang it up.

Add something special for each person: a drawing, a favorite food, where they grew up, or one fact from their childhood. That turns a chart of names into a chart of stories.

Every family is shaped differently. Stepparents, adoptive families, single-parent families, grandparents who raise grandkids, chosen family: a family tree can show whoever is part of your child's family. Let your child decide who belongs on it. If some branches are unknown or hard to talk about, it's fine to leave them simple.

Keep the stories going

• Tell stories at dinner. "When I was your age…" is a sentence kids love.
• Tell the hard ones too, gently. Stories about how a grandparent got through tough times teach that families can handle setbacks.
• Record a story. With permission, record a grandparent telling a favorite story, and keep it with the family photos. (Keep it in the family. It doesn't need to go online.)

Make it a quest

In Family Quests, this is the Family Historian skill, the first step on the Social Studies branch. Practice quests are ask a grandparent about their childhood and sort family photos by year, and the mastery quest is make a family tree going back to grandparents. Any photo proof is deleted once you've reviewed it. Start free.

Next: teach your kid about community helpers, or read about listening skills.