Watch and Learn

If you’re more of a visual learner – or even if you’re not – then online video classes and webinars may be perfect for brushing up your genealogy research skills, or getting started in a new area.

There is so much out there that I can’t possibly hope to cover it all in one post, so here are just a few FREE resources for you to browse.  They’re regularly updated, and you can sign up for notifications by e-mail.

The first one is Legacy, a webinar company owned by MyHeritage.  Although many of their presentations cost to view, they have a selection available at no charge.  Currently their recent 24-hour genealogy marathon webinars are free until 6 April.

Their special offer for the month of April will have one webinar unlocked each day following scheduled topics. 

FamilySearch Webinars and Online Classes has an extensive range of resources.  Many are already archived but there is also a list of what's coming up in the near future.  The page has a link (near the beginning) to a long list of other places that hold webinars.

Plus you can search or browse their FamilySearch Learning Centre by topic, such as research skills or software guides

OR

to access these FamilySearch resources by region or country, navigate to Search>Records, then click on the map for the region you’re interested in – New Zealand, for instance. The next screen displays any learning courses that will help you research your family in that part of the world; in this case, a 22-minute presentation on how to use NZ birth, death and marriage records online.

You can watch these online or download them for later use, which might be handy if you don’t have 24/7 wifi.

And then there’s the Genealogy TV YouTube channel and its huge selection of videos with lots of tips, tricks, and advice.  You’ll find similar videos by searching YouTube or using your preferred search engine.

STOP PRESS:  A LIVE free online conference on Scottish family history will be streamed on Thursday 9 April, starting at 7 am UK time.  It’s being hosted by research company Scottish Indexes.  Several speakers are donating their time to this event, plus the website owners will be promoting their resources with some presentations.  Check out the subjects on the programme to see if you fancy an early rise.