“ What was Thanksgiving like when you were my age? Whose house did everyone come to for the feast? I want to make a short video about that, please.”
If they begin talking, don’ t interrupt! They may tell quite a long story without be asked any other questions. But if you do need to ask more questions, here are some suggestions:
Who else was there? Your brothers and sisters? Your grandparents? What were their names?
Were there any traditions that the family always did?
Do you remember other holidays when a lot of family came together? Where were they and what are the activities you would do?
Are we still eating some of the same recipes?
As long as your subject keeps talking, let them! If you get the chance, you can also ask some important questions like this:
What year were you born? Where?
Where did you live with your family? What houses and what towns? Where did your other relatives live?
When you got to play with your relatives, what games did you play? Could you still play that game? Could you teach us the game?
Other questions may come into your mind. Go ahead, this is your movie! But remember to let someone keep talking if they get started. Don’ t rush ahead with a new question, just listen.
If you can, make videos with the oldest family members soon. If any of them have memory troubles, let another person sit with them to help a little. Just stay quiet and let the stories come out. You will have some natural questions to ask as you hear their story and by asking, you show that you are listening and enjoying.
When you are at someone’ s else’ s home, there may be photos on display and photo albums on the shelves. Ask your relative to identify some of the photos, starting with the oldest pictures.( After the video is over, you can take still photos of the various pictures more carefully to capture a clear image.) This will prompt more story-telling.
Over time, you may be able to film your grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles and cousins. You may be able to learn how to edit these short films together and put written titles and other information on screen, along with still pictures you have taken.
“ Documentary” films are intended to be real-life stories, not made-up or fictional tales.“ Oral history” is a form of collecting historical information from people who are speaking of their own experience.
It will be fun to make these family history movies. You may not understand how very special they will be to your family someday. So get started! You can become a documentary film maker, starting by preserving the life stories of the people you love the most.
www. OfficialKidsMag. com • NOVEMBER 2025 • 5