KNI The Story of Us Guide Book

The Story of Us Guide Book

Welcome To Your Kids Night In!

A note from Megan Pruitt, Founder of Kids Night In… Welcome to your Kids Night In and thank you for allowing Kids Night In to be part of your family to help make memories. I originally came up with the idea for this month’s box as I tried to explain to my 3.5-year-old that her Grandmother was my Mom. As she sat and pondered this, I saw the wheels turning. I thought it really deserved a further conversation, and it would be fun to make this concept come to life.

As the Granddaughter of an Italian immigrant who is no longer with us, I want my children to grasp the gravity of where we came from as a family and the journey my Grandfather took through Ellis Island with only $7.00 in his pocket. The story has been told to me in exciting ways, and now I feel it’s part of my responsibility to pass it down to my children.

I truly hope you enjoy this box. As a new business, we value any feedback you can provide. Also, your efforts to help our company grow on social media is greatly appreciated!

ENJOY and thank you again!

Megan

Adventure Checkpoints

} } Sto r y t i m e s n u ggl es } } Un de r s t a n di n g yo u r fa mily t ree } } D e co r a t i n g yo u r f am ily t r e e } } D a n ce p a rt y t o t h e Macarena } } Sn a ck t i m e } } E xplo re t h e o ri g i n s o f y our f am i ly } } The Story of Us P u p pe t Sho w *We le f t t h i s b o o kl et b l ack an d w h ite , so t h e k i ddo s can co lo r it ho w e ver t h ey l i k e!

Read Your Included Book

Snuggle up with your little one and enjoy reading or have your little one read to you!

Me and My Family Tree helps children understand: Who is part of your family?

How are they related to you? Where are you on your family tree?

This playful introduction to genealogy helps children understand the parts of a family, from siblings to grandparents to cousins. Filled with clear and colorful illustrations, Me and My Family Tree shows children how their relatives are connected to each other and assures them of their own special place in the family.

Your Family Tree

You grow every day, just like a tree. Families continue to change and grow over the years too.

Trees can live for hundreds of years, and family lines can too. People love their families, and enjoy seeing the names of everyone and how they are all related. People created family trees to do that. We call them family trees, because family lines live for a long time.

It may not seem to you that your family is growing or getting larger right now, but as you continue to grow, so will your family. The family tree you’re about to create will help you understand. As you continue to grow and learn more about your family, you can add to it!

In the next pages you will find different ways to talk about family, genealogy and your family tree!

Talk About F or th e Li t t l e O n es. . .

There are many ways to introduce the concept of your family tree to your little one. We encourage you to integrate the following ideas below into your experience:

}} Have your little one describe their family. Encourage your little one to talk about sisters, brothers, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins.Â

}} Play a game with your little one where your describe attributes about a specific family member and allow them to gue ss who it is.

}} As the adult in charge, bring genealogy to life by

sharing family stories. Children can relate especially well to others’ childhood tales. Be animated and use a unique voice for each character to increase the entertainment factor.

}} If possible, use family photos and other artifacts to enhance your storytelling.

Your Family For the Ol der O n es. . .

There are many ways to introduce the concept of your family tree to your child. We encourage you to integrate the following ideas below into your experience: Learn a few wor ds and phrases in your ancestral language.

}} G e n e a logy : 1. A record or table of the descent of

a person, family, or group from an ancestor or ancestors; a family tree. 2. Direct descent from an ancestor; lineage or pedigree. 3. The study or investigation of ancestry and family histories.

}} A n ce s t or : A person from whom one is descended, especially if more remote than a grandparent.

}} De s c e n d a n t: A person whose descent can be traced to a particular individual or couple.

}} G e n e r a t i on : All of the offspring that are at the same stage of descent from a common ancestor.

}} F a m i ly Tr e e : 1. A genealogical diagram of a family’s ancestry. 2. The ancestors and descendants of a family considered as a group.

Aft er learning th ese n ew w o rds , b eg i n to di s cu ss y o u r fa m i ly with your child . Tell th em sto ri es f ro m y o u r chi l dho o d a n d fa m i ly traditions . I f y o u h ave ph o to s o f f a m i ly m e m be r s , s ha r e t h e se with your ch i l d. P l ay a g uess i n g g ame w he r e y o u a llo w y our child to des cri b e di f f eren t f am i ly m e m be r s a n d y o u t r y to g uess w h o th ey are des cr i bi n g .

Decorate Your Family Tree

F or th e L i t t l e O n es. . .

Time to grab your box, and get busy decorating your family tree!

Depending on the size of your family you can include several family members in one circle. Your little one can write out their family members’ names, color pictures of each family member, or simply allow them to color the entire tree while you help fill in the details.

If you need more room on your tree than what your box allows, head over to our website for a larger digital download Family Tree at www.kidsnightinbox.com/thestoryofus.

F or th e O l der O n es. . .

Time to grab your box, and get busy decorating your family tree!

Depending on the size of your family you can include several family members in one circle.

Expand upon your family tree to include vital facts (birth date, birth place, marriage date and place, death date and place). This is called a pedigree.

If you need more room on your tree than what your box allows, head over to our website for a larger digital download Family Tree at www.kidsnightinbox.com/thestoryofus.

Dancing Time

Now it is time to get your little one up and moving with you! The Macarena is a popular Spanish dance song by Los Del Rico. He ad over to our website, www.kidsnightinbox.com/thestoryofus, to get the music and a sample of dance moves for your reference.

U se these words to sin g w hile doing t he p opu l a r da n ce tog ether : “Mommies, daddies, brothers, sisters, aunties, uncles, big cousins, little cousins, grandmas, grandpas, and their parents, MY family.”

We would love to see your little one dance and sing!

Share using the hashtag #kidsnightinbox!

Snack Time Now it is time to take a break and enjoy a snack together! You are going to make a tree that has branches that extend JUST like your family tree extends.

U se your include d pr e tze ls to build a t r e e t r u nk a n d branches.

Th e n take the i n clude d d r ie d fr uits a nd p l a c e t he m th ro ug hout the br a nche s.

Family History Map For the Li t t l e O n es. . .

Once you are done snacking, begin explaining to your little one how just like they have you as a parent, you also have parents (their grandparents). And their grandparents have parents, and these parents have parents. Everyone in our family has their own parents who brought the m into this world. And all of these parents are a part of a family. All of these people that make up your family can come from different places around the world. Today we are going to talk about a different place in the world that your family came from.

Next, grab your included map and start by showing and color ing in the country where you are located.

For the Ol der O n es. . .

Think about how you have parents, and your parents have parents, and their parents have parents, and so on.

Our family lines go back for a long time, and you have already learned that the people who make up our family lines are our ancestors. Everyone’s ancestors originate from different places around the world.

We’re going to discuss the country that your ancestors came from and learn a little about that country. It is interesting to le arn about the culture from which your ancestors originated.

Begin by thinking of the country from which one of your ancestors came. If you are unsure, feel free to contact othe r family members for help. If needed, Google your last name to see from which country it originates.

Having your child help you, fill in the blanks on the back of the included map with answers that relate to your own ancestors. (Note: To find this information you can Google it. For example: “Ukraine + food”, “Ukraine + Aver age Weather” and “Hello in Ukranian”, etc.).

Family History Map G ra b y o u r i n cl u ded m ap

Show children their ancestor’s country on the map. Have them color it in and add the family name to the key.

(Little ones will need assistance with this.) Repeat the steps for other ancestors. At the end your map should look like this...

USA Where I Live Now ______________

AthenI celand The_____________ family lived in _____________

Backburn family lived in _____________ Germany The_____________

Dobrinsky family lived in _____________ The Ukraine The_____________

Grab pictures, call up relatives while you are completing the activity and even YouTube some music spoken in the language of your ancestors.

F O R TH E ADULT: Be ar your te stim ony a bou t t he co n n e ction y ou can fe e l to yo ur an ce s t or s t hr ou gh l e a rning more a bout th e m. Expla in how f a m i ly co n n e ctions stre n gth e n our se nse o f se l f.

The Story of Us Puppet Show

Now it’ s t i m e t o t a ke all y o u hav e l e a r ned a n d crea t e a pu ppe t show ca lled The Story of Us . Gr ab you r tw o i n c l u ded p u pp et canvase s and g e t bu sy d eco rat i n g !

Use y o ur b o x an d m aps a s pr o ps in y our sho w a n d reco rd y o u r chil d ta l k i n g a b o u t t h e ir f am ily histor y. O u r h o pe i s t h i s can b e sha r e d w it h o t h er m em b er s o f you r fa mily a n d en j o yed b y all ge n e r a tio n s!

We r e a lly h o pe y o u e n jo y e d y o ur K i ds N i gh t i n . Do n ’ t f o r g e t t o s n ap a pi c t u r e o f y ou r n i g h t an d s h ar e usi n g o u r h a s h t a g! @KIDSNIGHTINBOX #KIDSNIGHTINBOX KIDSNIGHTINBOX.COM