Knowing what questions to ask and how to start can be the most difficult part of capturing life stories.
Here are some of the many questions we have curated through years of capturing family documentaries. Soon, you’ll be able to choose your own questions here, then see them appear on the app the next time you log in, perfect to help the people who will be interviewing your loved one know what questions are important to your family, and may have the strongest connection for a great interview!
For now, please look over the list and see what sparks ideas! You can always add more personal custom questions while you’re recording on-the-go!
EARLY FAMILY HISTORY
| What do you know about your dad’s family history before your grandparents? |
| In what country did your paternal family live and what do you know about their life there? |
| What genealogical history do you know about your paternal family? |
| What was your paternal family’s religious heritage and how traditional/observant were they? |
| What major historical events did your paternal family experience? Do you know any of their stories? |
| What did your paternal ancestors do for work? |
| List the paternal family members names, approximate birth dates, and anything you know about them. |
| What are some of your family traditions that have been passed down on the paternal side? |
| Did anyone of your paternal ancestors fight in the military? Share whatever you know of their stories. |
| What do you know about your mom’s family history before your grandparents? |
| In what country did your maternal family live and what do you know about their life there? |
| What genealogical history do you know about your maternal family. |
| What was your maternal family’s religious heritage and how traditional/observant were they? |
| What major historical events did your maternal family experience? Do you know any of their stories? |
| What did your maternal ancestors do for work? |
| List the maternal family members names, approximate birth dates, and anything you know about them. |
| What are some of your family traditions that have been passed down on the maternal side? |
| Did anyone of your maternal ancestors fight in the military? Share whatever you know of their stories. |
| IMMIGRATION |
| What do you know about the first people in your family to immigrate here? |
| How did your family immigrate here and through which port did they arrive? |
| What was early life like after your family immigrated? |
| What traditions from the old country did your family bring with them? |
| What family members were left behind in the old country and what happened to them? |
| How did your family end up living where they now live? |
| GRANDPARENTS |
| Where and when were each of your grandparents born, and what do you know of their siblings? |
| When and why did your grandparents come to this country? (if applicable) |
| What were your grandparents’ early years like? |
| What time period did your grandparents live in and what was life like then. What were the relevant world and local historical events that affected them? |
| What kind of education did your grandparents have? |
| What skills did your grandparents have? |
| What did your grandparents do professionally? How did they make a living? |
| If your grandparents served in the military, what branch and where did they serve? Do you know any of their stories? |
| How did your grandparents meet and marry? |
| What was your grandparents’ everyday life like? |
| What kind of interests and hobbies did your grandparents pursue? |
| What recognition or awards did your grandparents receive? |
| What special memories do you have of time spent with your grandparents? |
| What did you learn from your grandparents when you were young? |
| What did you learn from your grandparents as an adult? |
| What special rituals did you share with your grandparents? |
| Share any special skill or recipes you learned from your grandparents. |
| PARENTS |
| Where and when were each of your parents born, and what do you know of their siblings? |
| When and why did your parents come to this country? (if applicable) |
| What were your parents’ early years like? |
| What time period did your parents live in and what was life like then. What were the relevant world and local historical events that affected them? |
| What kind of education did your parents have and what did they plan to do for a career? |
| What special skills and abilities do your parents have? |
| What did your parents actually do professionally? |
| If your parents served in the military, what branch and where did they serve? Do you know any of their stories? |
| How did your parents meet and marry? |
| What did your parents love about each other early on, and then later in life? |
| What is your parents’ relationship like? |
| Who are the people your parents are close with, and what are those relationships like? |
| What is your parents’ day to day life like? |
| What kind of interests and hobbies do your parents pursue? |
| What recognition or awards have your parents received? |
| How do others in the community see your parents? |
| What is your parents’ impact on their community, organizations, friends, and family? |
| What special memories do you have of time spent with your parents? |
| What did you learn from your parents when you were young? |
| What have you learned from your parents as an adult? |
| What special rituals did you share with your parents? |
| Share any special skill or recipes you learned from your parents. |
| YOUR LIFE |
| When did you come to this country? (if applicable) |
| What do you remember about being a young child? |
| Share stories about your siblings and other important family members. |
| What stories do your parents tell about you when you were little? |
| What were the important world and local events that affected you? |
| How did you celebrate holidays as a child? |
| What kind of religious/spiritual training and upbringing did you have and how did you feel about it? |
| What were you like as a child? |
| How have you changed as an adult from how you were as a child? |
| What challenges have you faced, and how did you deal with them? |
| What did you want to be when you grew up? |
| How are you similar to your parents? |
| How are you similar to your grandparents? |
| What were you most scared of as a child? |
| What made you special as a child? |
| What do you wish you’d known before about being a parent? |
| What’s the hardest thing about being a parent? |
| Talk about each of your children, where and when they were born, and what they were like as babies and youngsters. |
| What funny things did your children say or do that really stick out in your memory? |
| What activities did your family like to do together? |
| What are your family’s favorite vacation spots? |
| What are some of your favorite family rituals and traditions? |
| What pets has your family had, and talk about them. |
| Which family members are your children most like? Do they resemble anyone and how? |
| Talk about some favorite holiday memories and traditions. |
| What’s your child’s most embarrassing story that you can’t help but tell? |
| How is your child most like and unlike you? |
| What have you learned from each of your children? |
| What beliefs and values have you passed down to your children that you learned from your parents? |
| How did you feel when your child hit important life milestones – graduation, marriage, becoming a parent, etc. |
| What is the most memorable experience you’ve shared with your child? |
| What did you think when you first met your grandchildren? What do they call you? |
| How has having grandchildren changed your perspective? |
| Talk about each of your grandchildren, what makes them special. |
| What funny things do your grandchildren say or do that really stick out in your memory? |
| What special things do you do with your grandchildren? |
| What are your family’s favorite vacation spots? |
| What are some of your favorite family rituals and traditions? |
| What pets has your family had, and talk about them. |
| Which family members are your grandchildren most like? Do they resemble anyone and how? |
| What have you learned from each of your grandchildren? |
| How does it feel to see your grandchildren hit important life milestones – graduation, marriage, becoming a parent, etc. |
| What is the most memorable experience you’ve shared with your grandchildren? |
| What do you want your grandchildren to know about you that they may not know? |
| What are the life lessons that you are sharing with your grandchildren as they get older? |
| What are you most proud of with each grandchild? |
| What have you learned about being a grandparent that you want your own child to know? |
| What’s been the most surprising thing about being a grandparent? |
| Where and when did you serve in the military? What branch of the military? |
| Talk about some of the friendships you made while serving in the military. |
| Talk about what it was like to serve in the military. |
| What moments are hard to talk about but important to tell (even if you don’t want to go into detail about the specifics) |
| What did you learn about yourself during your time in the military? |
| When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up? |
| What and where did you study to prepare for your profession? |
| How has your career changed over time? |
| Who was a big influence in your career, and why? |
| What role does work play in your life? |
| What are your goals for the rest of your career, and what are you doing to make them happen? |
| What do you wish you’d known before earlier about your chosen profession, your personal career and work in general? |
| What’s your advice about choosing a profession? |
| What’s your advice about how to be successful in work? |
| What does love look like to you? |
| Tell the story of the first time you fell in love. |
| Tell the story of an important relationship in your life |
| How did you meet your significant other? |
| What made your significant other special and when did you know they would be important to you? |
| When did you fall in love with your significant other and why? |
| When did you decide to make a lifelong commitment to your significant other and why? |
| What was memorable about your engagement? |
| What was memorable about your wedding or ceremony? |
| What do you and your partner each do to keep the relationship working? |
| How has your relationship changed over time? |
| What have you learned about yourself through your relationship? |
| What have you learned about love that you wish you’d known earlier? |
| What’s the most moving gesture your loved one has done for you? |
| What is the best part of day to day life with your loved one? |
| What challenges have you and your loved one faced and overcome together? |
| When do you feel the most yourself with your loved one? |
| What’s your favorite thing about your partner? |
| What do you most admire about your partner? |
| How are you and your partner better together? |
| What is your favorite date night or getaway with your partner? |
| What are your inside jokes or pet names that you share with your partner? |
| What did you learn from your parents that has helped your own relationships? |
| What is something you’ve always wanted to tell your partner? |
| What kind of recognition have you received for work you’ve done in your life (volunteer, sports, activities, work, family, etc.)? |
| What do you think are your biggest achievements in life? |
| If you could have a do-over on anything, what do you think you’d do differently? |
| What goals did you have when you were young, and how did what you accomplished differ from that? |
| How have your life achievements surprised you? |
| How have your life achievements disappointed you? |
| What advice would you give about what is important to achieve in life? |
| What do you think a successful life looks like? |
| What is still on your bucket list? |
| What on your bucket list will you never do and why? |
| What games do you love to play and why? |
| Do you have any unique rules or game adaptations? |
| What activities do you participate in and why? |
| How has a sport or activity helped you become who you are? |
| How has a coach, teammate or person involved in an activity with you profoundly impacted you? |
| What is it like to coach or lead a team or activity and why does it matter to you? |
| What is it like to participate in specific activities or sports with your family? |
| What are your strengths or issues with physical activities and how does that impact you? |
| What activities or sports have you always wanted to try? Will you do them and why or why not? |
| What stands out as your proudest achievement in sports or activities? |
| What is your biggest regret about sports or activities in which you’ve been involved? |
| What did you learn most from being on a team or working in a group activity? |
| Teach someone a skill that you learned from your sport or activity and record it. |
| What’s your favorite kind of food to make or eat and why? |
| What role does food and cooking have in your family? |
| Talk about your favorite family recipes, from memories of making them with a loved one to the place they have in your family |
| Talk through making a favorite recipe. Don’t forget any of your personal touches. |
| Show a recipe and talk about it as you make it, pausing the recording between steps like rising and baking. Don’t forget the after! |
| Teach someone how to make a recipe and record the process. |
| What’s the most moving experience you’ve ever had with art – as a creator or observer? |
| What form of creative expression is the most important to you and why? |
| How has the arts played a role in your life? |
| What artists and their work affect you the most and why? |
| How do you feel when you’re creating some sort of craft or work of art? |
| How does your art affect you, and how do you want it to affect others? |
| Talk about some of your own pieces, describing the process of inspiration, creation and sharing them. |
| What kind of books do you enjoy reading and why? |
| Is there an author with whom you really connect? |
| What books have had a profound impact on you and why? |
| What book do you always recommend to others and why? |
| What stories did you love as a child? Can you recite any lines from them? |
| What stories did you tell your child? |
| Have you ever written a story, or poems? What were they about? Did you ever share them? |
| What stories about your past are the hardest to talk about and why? Even if you can’t share the details, you can share this. |
| Is there a story from your past that you haven’t shared before that you’re ready to share now? |
| Is there a story from your past that you want your family to know about after you’re gone? |
| Were there any special lullabies you remember hearing as a child? |
| What music did you enjoy growing up? |
| Did you ever play a musical instrument? What did you enjoy about it? |
| What music do you enjoy listening to now? How does it make you feel? |
| Think about the music that it tied to special times in your life. What music sticks out and what memories go with it? |
| Are there any songs tied to specific people in your life? What’s the story behind it? |
| What music makes you cry and why? |
| What music makes you happy and why? |
| Sing or share the lyrics to your favorite song, or another song that means something to you. |
| What musical instruments have you played and how does playing music make you feel? |
| Play a special song and record it. |
| Teach someone a lesson on how to use the instrument and record it. |
| Teach someone to play chopsticks on the piano and record it. |
| Sing a special song with another person, and just have fun together. |
| What kind of dancing have you done and how does it make you feel? |
| Do you have a signature dance move and what does it look like? |
| Teach someone a dance move or routine and record the process. |
| Show and talk about the heirlooms that are important to you. Share their history |