Building a family tree is a creative project that many people undertake at some point in their lives. It is a proposal that has a high affective value. It has a common thread that unites the past and the present through history. life of loved ones. How to create a family tree? In Formación y Estudios We give you six tips.
1. Set goals
A family tree is a project that can be expanded to show a very detailed description of the family history. In turn, its branches continue to expand through the incorporation of new stories. Do you want to focus on the long-term process or do you want to achieve simpler goals? Establish a purpose, the one you want to materialize at the end of the investigation.
2. Brainstorm the main data
The family tree frames the names of people who are part of the family history. All of them make up a group that, in the context of a family tree, is represented in a systemic way. But you can also stop at a particular level in the presentation of each person. There are some relevant data that you can record in the family tree, such as the day of birth. The kinship relationship is visible in the structure of a tree showing different affective ties such as parents, siblings, grandparents, children, cousins, uncles...
3. Find information to create the family tree
This project can give you the opportunity to have unforgettable conversations with other loved ones who share anecdotes and stories with you. In the same way, you can also rediscover old photographs that provide an affective journey beyond time and distance. These photographs contain the memory of some of the people that you are going to include in the branches of the tree..
Look for various sources of information to document your project: contrast, correct and correct small errors. The documents that can provide valuable data for the preparation of a family history are very diverse. For example, some people keep the obituaries of deceased relatives.
4. Ask yourself new questions
Project initiation begins with a purpose. Before starting to make the composition, it is advisable to plan the bases of the exercise. For example, select the sources of information, define your most important objectives and establish a time schedule to focus on the task of adding new contrasting data. But it is likely that, during the investigation, new questions will arise.. In short, try to find new answers.
5 Creativity
The structure of a family tree that has different ramifications shows a common thread that can help you organize the names and data linked to each special person. However, beyond the usual recommendations, develop your creativity. Customize the project with your own perspective.
6. Write down the valuable information
If you develop an extensive family tree, you may go through periods of apparent stagnation. Moments when it seems that information has already reached its limit. However, if you persevere and remain attentive to opportunities in your environment to discover new data, you will likely discover new clues to investigate further.
Developing a family tree is a project that can be developed professionally, as shown by the work of a genealogist who delves into issues related to History. But it's a type of project that many people today do in their free time to connect with the legacy of loved ones who left a visible mark.
Observe the very essence of the trees that expand their branches in nature. Well then, that image is a metaphor that acquires an affective meaning in the project that we have discussed.