# My Grandam was a!!!!!!!



## I_don't_know (Sep 28, 2012)

I am playing with an idea to help younger children learn to write creatively. I am also hoping it will also help give a child and a senior family member a chance to get to know each other. It will also help save the family history, and the history of this country. Both child and senior must agree to co-author the story, and both authors must approve the story. The results would be the senior&#8217;s autobiography.

The program would include a list of questions to help get the interview started. The interview could be done in person or by email. The story would need to be a minimum of five pages long; a life is a long time after all. Most of the writing would be done by the child; the senior providing information, and making suggestions.

So what do you think?
Would you be willing to tell a grandchild about your life? 
Would you be willing to help them write the story?


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## jassytoo (May 14, 2003)

My 9 year old grandson did something like this last year as a class project. They also went to the old peoples home across the street and interviewed some of the 80-90 years olds there. Then they wrote a play about some of the stories. They gave a performance at the school and also at the retirement home. The costumes were great and the old folks just loved it and so did the kids. It was also a chance for us to put down in writing some great family stories and history.


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## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

I don't often tell my grandkids about my past life. I'm just an old granny. Last week, we walked down the road 3/4 mile there, 3/4 mile back. I told them that when I started first grade, I had to walk a mile and a half in the morning to school, then again back. They were amazed. I guess I should think about this more often, tell them what the olden days were like.


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## RDuke (May 11, 2013)

All to often, it seems, the elders speaking to the youngsters dwell on a loaf of bread costing 5 cents and that the old DeSoto had manual roll-up windows. Sure, all of that is true but youngsters today should know that back in the "old" days there were people who weren't allowed to sit next to you in a restaurant because the color of their skin was different or that people weren't allowed to live in your neighborhood because of their religion. This is more important, to me, than the trivialities of not having color TV or having to use a phone that was attached to the wall.
I think that we have come a long way in all of our lifetimes. Not that we don't have a long way to go. But if our children are taught about our mistakes they may be able to improve on what we have started.


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## jwal10 (Jun 5, 2010)

My Mom made each of her grandchildren a book about her life. The front part were all the same, she added pictures of her life. Near the back she made each different, using conversations with them over the years and what each was most interested in. Neat to read now that she has been gone for 10 years. Some had stories, us children hadn't even heard before. All 7 were brought together and my DW made a complete book for each child, and for us adults too. It was a great idea.
She was a teacher her whole life, much of it as a special reading teacher. She found that the stories that the kids told were the best to teach reading with because the children were interested in them. She made many books over the years. Former students bring me these books to show how much they loved her because she made the books just for them....James


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## Ana Bluebird (Dec 8, 2002)

One thing for sure that I have found is that people do NOT want to hear about my childhood or my life, especially the grandchildren. It is not a pleasant, fairy-tale story that I've managed to overcome, best to let it pass away.


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## KnowOneSpecial (Sep 12, 2010)

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVab-LhdGCg[/ame]

Since I plan on being this kind of Granny, I'll just show my grandkids this video! :tmi::smack:nana:


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## Phil V. (May 31, 2013)

My mom is a 90 yr. old French war bride of WW2 and she wrote down everything she could remember from the 1930's to the end of WW2.


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## frogmammy (Dec 8, 2004)

Barnes & Noble (and elsewhere, I'm sure) used to sell a book on writing your family history. There were fantastic chapters with questions to ask, such as what games did you and your friends play, what did you do on rainy days, what pets did you have, etc, etc...

Shouldn't be hard to find the book and would go a LONG way towards writing a fantastic history. And it will be FAR more than five pages!

Mon


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## I_don't_know (Sep 28, 2012)

frogmammy said:


> Barnes & Noble (and elsewhere, I'm sure) used to sell a book on writing your family history. There were fantastic chapters with questions to ask, such as what games did you and your friends play, what did you do on rainy days, what pets did you have, etc, etc...
> 
> Shouldn't be hard to find the book and would go a LONG way towards writing a fantastic history. And it will be FAR more than five pages!
> 
> Mon


Thanks for the input; I'll be looking for it.


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