The Prince George’s African-American Museum & Cultural Center at North Brentwood, Inc., in partnership with the Prince George’s County African American Genealogical Society and the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System, presents Finding Your Historical and Genealogical Roots, a series of workshops focusing on the fundamentals of African-American historical and genealogical research. The sessions will provide the attendees with a step-by-step “how to” guide to in tracing African-American lineage. They will show participants how to identify sources, records, and other tools needed to organize and manage research materials. Activities will include surfing genealogical websites on the Internet, preparing for a research trip, developing a family tree, conducting oral interviews, understanding DNA testing, planning family reunions, unlocking the mysteries of genealogy for children, etc. 

Courses will be held at the Largo Kettering Library on the following dates:

 

Tuesday, August 25, 2015, 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Introduction to Genealogical Research

Tracing your family’s history is a fascinating journey. The instructor will guide the participants along the way by offering how-to articles, genealogy classes, and other resources, e.g., newspapers/yearbooks, obituaries, funeral records and programs, bibles/diaries, organization records (fraternities, sororities, companies, clubs) that will help them dig deeper into their families’ past.

 

Saturday, September 26, 2015, 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Planning a Family Reunion

The instructor of this workshop will provide the participants with the basics of planning a family reunion.   The most successful reunions begin with a spirit of inclusion and cooperation. The planning process will help determine what works best for the family.  The participants will learn to create the family reunion budget, plan, activities, and develop recruiting strategies.  The goal is to make the family reunion a memorable and fun experience for all.

 

Saturday, October 24, 2015, 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Preparing for a Research Trip

This workshop provides participants the methods of preparing for research trips to libraries, conferences, state, local and national archives, cemeteries, or their ancestral homeland.  It is very exciting to get out into the “field” and explore genealogy in a hands on way but it is also important to do a little preparation to make the trip efficient and fun

 

Date TBD

Genealogy for Children

As history comes alive, this workshop will inspire children to search for their ancestors.  Children can unlock the mysteries of other cultures, places, and times as they look for their families – when they were born, where they lived, and what they did to survive. The hands-on learning that a project brings to the classroom can help motivate students to learn, as well as encourage retention of the covered material.  Family history can be used to teach not only history, but also language arts, writing, math, geography, and even science.  Family history projects can also be used to teach and encourage communication, information-gathering, research, computer, analysis, and evaluation skills.  It is also an excellent method for encouraging the acceptance of individual differences.

 

For more information, please contact the Largo Kettering Library at (301) 336-4044.