Dear parents and families of My Family Story participants,

Your child is embarking on an exciting journey in exploring your family’s Jewish roots as part of the My Family Story project.

Your child has become your family’s “anthropologist.” With your help and the help of other relatives or friends, they have been given the task to uncover the story of the family’s origins. Until now, this journey has taken place within the classroom. At this point we are ready to move the discussion into the home and into the sphere of the family, as the notion of family plays a central role in the My Family Story project. It is at this point that we ask you to take an active role in the facilitation of the next stages of the project.

Assignment #2Your child has been asked to create a family tree. This tree should go back at least two generations.

This is an opportunity to include as many family members as possible. It could be a great excuse to get the family together, or could be something to work on intimately together with your child.

Your child can create a family tree creatively as well as through the My Heritage software. This will ensure an online version of your family tree which you can share with other members of the family. They too can add further information on their own by entering your family’s account via the My Heritage website. General instructions for the use of the website can be found attached to this letter. (link to instructions on site)

Students should bring their family trees back to class on: _____________.

Assignment #3Your child will soon be returning home from school with a map of the world. The task is to trace your

family’s history geographically on this map by marking lines to signify the immigration of your parents and previous generations (no further back than two generations above parent’s generation) until they reached your family’s current destination. This is a task we would like you to do together with your child, and other relatives, if possible, as we are sure that many questions will begin to arise regarding the origins of your ancestors and it can be very powerful to address these issues together. We recommend using a different color pen or marker to draw the lines, in order to differentiate between both sides of the family.

Students should bring their world maps back to class on: _____________.

Both these assignments will become elements of your child’s Roots Portfolio, which will be one of the final outcomes of this project. We hope you enjoy this collective search into your past and the opportunity to work together with your child in creating a timeless family heirloom.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact us.

Sincerely,

______________