Making a family tree at home

Read on to learn how to make a family tree at home.

What’s a family tree?

A family tree is a diagram that shows the relationships between people in your family. Family trees often span a few generations or even several generations. An astounding example is a 13 million-person family tree created by scientists.

People sometimes refer to family trees as genealogical trees.

Family tree diagrams have the same basic design. A horizontal line between two boxes shows a marriage. A bracket from a couple to a lower set of boxes shows their children.

You can position family trees vertically or horizontally. You can even draw them as actual trees. The trunk may show your direct lineage, and branches may show distant relatives. The design is up to your personal taste.

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Why make a family tree?

Family trees are a popular project for kids and adults alike. There are plenty of good reasons you may want to create one.

For example, you may want to:

• Complete a school project. Schools often ask young students to create family trees. These projects help kids learn how to research subjects online and design diagrams. They teach new words like ancestors, roots, and surnames.
• Explore your family roots. A family tree can be a fun project if you’re interested in lineage. Creating a full family tree can take months—even years—of in-depth research. You’ll learn all sorts of family facts by the end.
• Fill holes in your medical history. You may want to create a family tree to learn about your family’s medical history. This information can reveal diseases or other conditions you might be at risk.
• Prove inheritance. Family trees can impact inheritance. Establishing an accurate family tree can even settle arguments between family members. It can also clear up a hazy past, which can be comforting for some families.
• Create a work of art. Family trees can go beyond a simple diagram. They can be transformed into wall art or even a sculpture. Create a work of family tree art if you want to show off your lineage—or creativity.

What should you include in a family tree?

Family trees can be as simple or as complex as you want them to be. What you include depends on your goals. Focus on the basics if you just want to create wall art. Include medical history, careers, fun facts, and more if you’re writing a family history.

You might want to include:

• At least three generations of family members. A basic family tree includes you and your parents, grandparents, cousins, aunts, and uncles. School projects may ask for only two generations. Hobby research projects will require more.
• Dates of birth and death. Include birthdays for each family member. Include death dates where applicable. Inclusion of these dates always shows up in family trees, no matter their purpose.
• Locations. Family trees often include the cities where family members were born and where they died. List all of your family members’ known locations if you’re writing an in-depth family history.
• Careers. More complex family trees may include careers where applicable. You can use this information to compare careers throughout the generations.
• Achievements. Any family tree will benefit from a fun fact like a significant family achievement. Add publications, awards, or other honors to your family tree to boost your family pride.

What are some tools you can use to create a family tree?

Family trees can take a lot of work. Each part of the project has its challenges. Luckily, you can get help from various tools.

There are tools to help you with:

• Tracking. Family trees have a lot of moving parts. Use a tool like Word or Excel to record the information you collect. You can also use Excel to track your overall project progress.
• Research. Family members can help you start your research. Ask them about the names and relationships between relatives. View any old pictures they have. Then, you can use online tools like RootsWeb, to dig deeper. Advanced tools like Ancestry.com can even use your DNA to find family matches. Consider military, census, newspaper, and church records if you need to dive any deeper.
• Diagram creation. Creating a diagram can be tricky if you don’t work with images often. Some tools will do the hard work for you. For example, PowerPoint offers a family tree template. Fill out the template, and you’ll have a family tree ready to print or share.

How can you make a family tree project fun?

Family trees are already interesting. But how can you make the project a little more fun? By adding a dash of creativity.

You might choose to:

• Create a theme. Choosing a theme can be a fun challenge. For example, you can try to find one odd fact about each family member you research. You could even try to figure out which family members were cat or dog people.
• Involve your family. You can do all of your research online. But involving your family can be a lot more fun. Ask family members to do interviews in-person or over video calls. They may tell exciting stories they wouldn’t put in writing.
• Get crafty. Family trees can be simple diagrams. They can also be lovely works of art. Consider enhancing your family tree art with watercolors. You can paint a family tree on pottery or you can even create a family tree quilt.

Creating a family tree can be a rewarding and engaging activity. It’ll be all the more fun with an extra dash of creativity.