WEST CHESTER, PA — A partnership between Barclay Friends and Exton Elementary School brought together senior living residents and fourth-grade students this spring for an oral history project that gave students firsthand accounts of major historical events while preserving residents’ life stories.
The initiative paired each fourth-grade student with a Barclay Friends resident as part of the school’s “Voices of Past, Stories for the Future” project. Students interviewed residents during visits in April and May before creating personalized books documenting their partners’ lives.
Before the visits began, Barclay Friends staff conducted sensitivity training to help students better understand the physical and emotional effects of aging and prepare them for conversations with older adults.
According to the senior living community, the training was designed to help students approach the visits with greater confidence while fostering meaningful interactions with residents.
The interviews exposed students to personal accounts of events including the Great Depression and school segregation, providing historical perspectives beyond classroom instruction.
The project concluded in June when students returned to present each resident with a book chronicling their life, along with flowers and handwritten poems expressing appreciation for sharing their experiences.
Barclay Friends said the program encouraged students to ask more thoughtful questions while providing residents with an opportunity to reflect on and preserve their personal histories for a new generation.
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