Young people are curious about their family heritage. As they navigate the processes of identity formation, they will naturally want to understand where their ancestors came from and the lives that they lived.
Exploring genealogy has become an app-based, online hobby for many adults. Even without that access, it is possible to share family experiences with young people through narratives and personal recollections.
The benefits of spending time with family members, nuclear and extended, sharing stories, photographs and journals are many.
In addition to providing opportunities for family bonding and connection, understanding family history is supportive to adolescent well-being in many other ways.
Everyone wants to belong, and learning about ancestors is a wonderful way to ground a young person's life within a greater context of time and place.
Tracing family roots back through generations can help a young person connect more deeply with a sense of self by learning about their family's past.
Young people who learn of the struggles, successes, adventures and accolades of their relatives enjoy a sense of purpose and accomplishment, by knowing the circumstances that led to their family's evolution.
During times of despair, young people crave anchoring.
Grounding can be found through recollections of what their own relatives navigated.
Parents are encouraged to share experiences authentically.
It is through understanding hardships and perseverance that young people become equipped with the grit to move forward even through their own challenges.
In addition to staving off boredom and ennui, researching genealogy encourages the development of new skills and provides valuable opportunities to improve cognition and self-esteem.
Reminiscing and exploring the unknown past can have deep psychological benefits and also fill the voids of boredom that punctuate young people's lives.
Family history activities are bonding.
They can involve family members of many generations who can gather around the common shared interest.
It can also provide an opportunity to collect family medical information, either from living relatives or by uncovering health information from records about ancestors.
This information can be helpful in identifying potential risk factors for surviving family members.
Young people will go through phases when they resist involvement with parents and other relatives.
As they grow, they do realise the importance of family.
Moments of rebellion are frustrating for parents, but they are encouraged to stay the course and become creative in the ways in which family time is offered.
At times, teens may connect more closely with an extended family member, and they can facilitate the pivot toward more whole family involvement.
It is also worth noting that family may include non-biological relatives, and sometimes highlighting ways in which others have become incorporated into family structures can be extremely fulfilling.
There is much to be said for looking back on th
