Try Out "Ancestry Academy"

There’s a new feature on Ancestry.com called “Ancestry Academy.”  

There are quite a few courses you can take on a variety of genealogy subjects. Randy Seaver of Genea-Musings wrote a great blog post about it here.

I decided to take a test drive and went through the 1940 Census class because it was free. In fact the classes using Ancestry’s products such as Fold3 and FamilyTreeMaker are free.

"You Found What in the 1940 Census?" with Anne Gillespie Mitchell was about an hour long but presented in short 4-5 minute segments so you don’t have to complete it all in one setting. I have been using the 1940 census since it has been available but I still learned quite a bit from this course.

Each segment begins with the learning objectives. The learning objectives are reviewed again after the presentation. The images all through the presentation were very clear and great searching tips are given as well. Many of the points she made can be applied to the other U.S. census records as well. Besides learning about each column on the census sheet, she covered how to present the data and write the source citation. Anne Mitchell’s presentation of the subject was superb.

At the conclusion, there is a test to test your comprehension of the material. You have all the time needed to complete the test. I passed with a 100% and received a certificate of completion, shown here.

I recommend trying out the free courses, especially this 1940 census class. 

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