Interview an Older Person

Introduction:

Older people have had many interesting life experiences and stories. Often we do not take enough time to learn about these fascinating people and their histories.

This exercise will allow students to interact with older persons in their lives and develop information gathering skills.

Objectives:

• to learn about and from the experiences of an older person; and
• to interact with an older person on a project.

Suggested time: Take home assignment.

Materials:

1. Photocopy of the Questions.

Evaluation based upon:

• ability to interview a person and write down important information; and
• creativity of the report.

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Set up:

Ask the students to interview an older person in their life. This could be a grandparent, a family friend, or someone from the community.

The students can use Questions such as the following as a basis on which to write a report about the person that they have chosen:

Questions:

1. When and where was your subject born?
2. What were significant events and influences of your subject’s childhood?
3. How did they affect your subject at the time, and later in life?
4. What is your subject’s career?
5. How did your subject decide to do this career?
6. What was the most significant event in your subject’s life?
7. Why was this event so important?
8. What is the biggest accomplishment in your subject’s life?
9. List five personality traits that best describe your subject. For each trait, give specific examples to back up your opinion.
10. What characteristics do you admire most about this person?
11. Do you consider your subject to be a good role model? Why?
12. Any additional pieces of information about your subject that you think are important.