The Ages Takes Off

After a week of theater games and interview exercises the students from the Hope School District were ready to meet their elders. We were honored to begin the process with two amazing women- Bettina Barrett (a former nurse originally from Denmark) and Anne Warburton (a retired children's librarian who grew up on a ranch in Wyoming.)



The students prepared several questions which we put into two categories: full stop questions and springboard questions. Their full stop questions were designed to elicit basic information like age, marital status, number of children or grandchildren etc. These are questions that can be answered either with a "yes" or "no" or with a short statement. Their springboard questions are designed to spark a memory or feeling. They are open ended and prime the interviewee to tell a full fledged story. "Did you ever do something you were ashamed of?" asked one student. "What was it like sailing across the ocean knowing you were moving to America?" another student asked.

Even in the presence of the video camera and lights the students and the women they interviewed were instantly comfortable with one another. Even though they'd just met, they seemed like family- like a curious group of grandchildren surrounding their grandmother and demanding stories. Watching the young and old faces light up in each other's presence was very inspiring.