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Monday 12, March 2012
Dear Reader,
Welcome to our March newsletter and hopefully the start of Spring!
WDYTYA? LIVE REVIEW
Well, where to start! It was wonderful to meet so many students at the Show in Olympia last month. It was an exhausting few days but a really fabulous show. It certainly lived up to its billing as the biggest event in family history in the World, with thousands of visitors flocking to London’s Olympia each day of the show to mix and mingle with top experts in the field of genealogy.
Dozens of Pharos students came to say hello to us on our stand as well as lots of people considering starting one of our courses this year, so we were kept very busy! We were particularly thrilled that the winner of our joint competition with the Federation of Family History Societies, Lyn Holmes, came all the way from Northern Ireland to attend the show and meet us in person. Lynn was one of over 2,000 entrants to the competition and won £100 worth of courses from Pharos and has already decided she will start with a course on Irish Family History Research. We wish her the best of luck on her course and are very confident that she will enjoy it.
Left to right: Steve Benson FFHS Publicity Officer with Lyn Holmes and our own Helen Osborn
A huge draw of the show is the Celebrity Theatre where stars of the WDYTYA TV series share experiences of their ancestral voyage with a live audience. There was a super line-up this year with TV superstar Richard Madeley who talked about his mother’s Canadian heritage; Eastenders’ villain Larry Lamb who shared his thoughts on an emotional meeting with an Uncle in LA and actress Emilia Fox who discovered her theatrical ties go back more generations than she knew.
One really touching story that we uncovered at the show was of three of our students who all met online and became firm friends 'in real life' all as a result of joining a Pharos online course! Students Christine Shackell, Liz Rastrick and Penny Burton all three came by our stand to meet us.
Left to right: Pharos Tutor Helen Osborn with friends Christine Shackell, Liz Rastrick and Penny Burton.
Liz Rastrick went on to be one of the winners of a free course - congratulations to her and lovely to see you all!
I guess that’s all from WDYTYA Live! For 2012, roll on next year!
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Tutor Spotlight - Gill Blanchard
 Gill Blanchard is one of our most experienced tutors at Pharos. She has been teaching family history courses to adults in her hometown of Norfolk for several years, where she also runs a successful research company.
Gill writes for several journals and magazines as well as giving talks for family history societies and other local organizations. She was a featured speaker at this year’s WDYTYA Live! where she gave two talks: Norfolk Ancestors: An Insider’s Guide and Top Tips for Writing Your Family History. She has also published a book called “Tracing Your East Anglian Ancesters”.
Gill teaches online several courses for Pharos including: Become a Better Genealogist, The Poor, The Parish and The Workhouse: Records in the 1800s
and many others.
You can read a recent article about Gill that recently appeared in the Eastern Daily Press here.
Gill's own Website can be found at: http://www.pastsearch.co.uk.
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Course Highlights
Climbing Trees - How to Get Children Interested in Family History | Hannah Baker
28th March 2012 | 4 Weeks | £39.99
Passing down family stories is what keeps generations connected to each other. Getting your children or grandchildren involved in the family history is an incredibly rewarding experience as familial bonds are strengthened through discovery of your shared interest and mutual history.
Children benefit particularly by developing learning skills and feeding their inquisitive minds which often leads to a wider interest in history extending far beyond genealogy.
This course provides practical activities, ideas and guidance for passing along your knowledge and enthusiasm to children between the ages of 7 and 11.
You will use a wide range of material designed to excite children about their history including some help from favourite fictional stories. As a result you will enable them to produce creative and colourful projects to treasure.
This is a really customised, interactive and practical course that has been very well designed with both audiences in mind.
<<Highly Recommended!>>
 Discover More or Sign Up Here.
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Course Reminders
Professional Genealogist: Become One, Become a Better One | Helen Osborn
5th April 2011 | 4 Weeks | £47.99
The return of one of our most popular courses, it has been prepared with the assistance of the Association of Genealogists and Researchers in Archives (AGRA). Learn the professional skills that you need to turn your passion for Genealogy into a career, as well as the business and marketing skills that contribute to success.
<<Be Quick – One of Our Most Popular Courses!>>
Discover More Here.
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Organizing Your Genealogy | Barbara Baker
12th April 2012 | 3 weeks | £33.99
Good organization and record keeping as you research your family history is a great aid to helping you assess what you have, what you have learned, and what you need to learn. This three-week course is designed to help you get organized, stay organized and be ready for research online and on location by developing good record-keeping habits. This is a very popular course!
<<Just a Few Places Left!>>
Discover More or Sign Up Here.
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Nonconformity - Its Records and History 1600 – 1950 | Michael Isherwood
17th April 2012 | 4 weeks | £39.99 (53.99 assessed)
In England, after the Act of Uniformity in 1662, a nonconformist was an English subject belonging to a non-Christian religion or any non-Anglican church. This course is about its origins, the early history and records during the period of persecution. Resources covered in the course include vital records, seating plans, meetings, newspapers, missions and accounts.
<<Just A Few Places Remaining!>>
Discover More or Sign Up Here.
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Introduction to Medieval Genealogy | Gillian Waters
18th April 2012 | 5 weeks | £45.99
Did you know it was possible trace back your ancestors beyond the 1500s? This course will teach you how to go beyond the 1500s and learn the foundations for researching your ancestors medieval records. This course is based on research you should have already have completed in the 16th & 17th Centuries.
<<Requires Previous Research!>>
Discover More or Sign Up Here.
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The National Archives Catalogue: Finding People | Guy Grannum
23rd April 2011 | 3 Weeks | £33.99
Home to British & Commonwealth government records going back more than one thousand years, The National Archives (TNA) are a leading resource for genealogists. Now a huge proportion of these catalogues can now be accessed online. Using them can be overwhelming to the uninitiated, but not after this course! You’ll learn exactly how to make the most of this huge national resource.
<<Very Popular Course - Sign Up Now!>>
Discover More or Sign Up Here.
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Old Handwriting for Family Historians | Helen Osborn
24th April 2012 | 3 Weeks | £33.99
Old handwriting, or palaeography, often presents difficulties for family historians. The course aims to equip students with their own set of steps to successful transcription, as well as provide insights into the development of “Secretary Hand”, a commonly used form during the sixteenth and seventeeth centuries.
<<Sign Up Early to Avoid Disappointment!>>
Discover More or Sign Up Here.
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That's all for this month. Happy Ancestor Hunting!
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