Questions to ask grandparents before the stories are lost
The best family interviews are conversations, not interrogations. Good prompts make room for the ordinary details that later become the parts everyone wishes they had asked about.
Ask for scenes, not summaries
Instead of asking ‘what was childhood like?’, ask what the kitchen smelled like on Friday, who lived next door, or what happened on the walk to school. Specific scenes bring memory within reach.
Follow the person’s own map
A photograph, recipe card, melody, or old address can be a gentler starting point than a list of facts. Let the answer lead to the next question and leave room for pauses.
Keep the voice with the transcript
Written notes make a story searchable, but the recording preserves cadence, humor, and feeling. Save both, identify the speaker, and connect the conversation to the people and places it mentions.