Back to School for Personal Historians.

The beginning of new school year got me thinking.  My learning these days is  hit and miss. I  learn on the run,  sandwiching it between my daily tasks. You’re probably like me – scrambling to learn how to use  a new piece of software or how to scan photos properly or whatever.

But I have a plan. I’m dedicating September to setting aside  time to learn one new thing that will be useful in my personal history work. In my case that’s learning how to run online courses.

So here’s a challenge to all you personal historians.  Is there a new skill you could learn this month that would make you a better personal historian? Let me know by leaving me a comment below. Love to hear from you.

To give you some inspiration, I’ve selected several online sites that cover an array of courses and guides. Hopefully, they’ll whet your appetite. My thanks to fellow personal historian Pat McNees for recommending some of these sites.

• Gizmo’s How to Guides/Tutorials: “The primary function of this community-based site is to help you select the best freeware product for your particular needs.”

• Step-by-Step Guide to Oral History: “As a door into the world of oral history, these pages give basic suggestions for collecting and preserving the valuable oral treasures around you, to enrich you and future generations.”

• Story Circle Online Classes- by,for,and about women: Some of the offerings include The Craft of Memoir Writing,  Learn to Use Dialogue as the Power Tool of Memoir Writing, and Painless Grammar for People Who’ve Forgotten What They Knew.

• HP Learning center – Home office: Free, online classes, available 24/7.

• Oral History Workshop on The Web: The Institute for Oral History at Baylor University offers  workshops on: Introduction to Oral History, Digital Oral History, Transcribing  Style Guide, The Heart of Oral History: How to Interview, and more.

• How to Create Your Own Online Course: “Resources to help you discover how to combine both what you have to offer and what you wish to gain by guiding you through creating and establishing an online course. No matter what age of student, subject you want to teach, or size of the class, you will find resources and information to bring your class online.”

• Vermont Folklife Center Archive: Field Research Guides: The Center provides online access to a series of research guides on: Digital Audio Field Recording Equipment Guide, Field Recording in the Digital Age, Digital Editing of Field Audio, and Resources on the Preservation of Materials in Ethnographic and Oral History Collections.

• How to Guides for Your Business: Work.com “helps small business decision-makers solve their most pressing business problems and realize their most compelling opportunities.”

Photo by Philip Howard

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