Conversation Starters

Family 

Tell me about your grandchildren, children, your husband/wife. How did you meet your spouse? Where did you grow up and what was that like?Have you lived here all your life, or did you move here and if so, what brought you here? How have places you’ve lived changed? 

Holiday Time

Do you remember how you celebrated (Christmas; Thanksgiving; etc.) growing up, and also as a young bride or mother, groom or father? What were/are some of your traditions, and does your family still practice them?

Favorite Things 

What are your favorite things to do every day, or every so often? Do you get to do them and/or is this something we can work on doing together? 

Work

What did you (or your husband or wife) do for work? How did you (or spouse) happen to have that job, and how many years did you (s/he) do that? Did you like your job? Did you ever want to do something else and if so, what was it? Do you think you’d be great at it? 

Current Events

How different do you think world is today from it was when you were growing up? In your thinking, what is the most pressing issue we face today? Do you have any thoughts about what we can do about it? 

Music

What is your favorite kind of music? Favorite singer? Musician? Musical group? Band leader—if in the 1940s and ‘50s? Did/do you play an instrument or sing? Where did/do you do that: the school orchestra, band, church or synagogue? Is your family musical? Did you have a huge record collection? Who did you collect most of? 

Sports

What is your favorite sport (swimming; tennis; baseball; football; basketball; skiing; hockey; ice skating; etc.)? Who is your favorite athlete? Team? Did you play? Compete? Did you go to stadium games and if so, which stadiums (Wrigley Field; Fenway Park)? 

Travel

Do you recall the first time you flew? Where were you going? Flying or otherwise, where have you been in the country, and in the world? Where were you born? Where is your family? Do you have family overseas? If so, do they get to come here and visit you? 

Military

Were you (or was your spouse) in the service? Where did you (or your spouse) train and where were you (or was s/he) stationed after that? What battles did you (s/he) see? How long did you (s/he) serve? What was your (his/her) rank when you (he/she) got out? 

Blessings

What are some of things you altruistically did for others in your life, and what were some of the unexpected things that were done for you? Who did them? 

Art

Are you interested in art? What kind of art do you like, and did you work on art projects in school? If so, what was your favorite medium in which to work? Did you go to museums and is this something you’d like to do more of. 

Cars

Do you like fixing cars or like classic cars? What are some of the cars your family had when you were growing up, and what makes/models did you have as an adult that you really liked. Why was that? 

Animals

Did you have a dog, cat, or bird growing up? Are you more of a dog person or a cat person (or a bird person!)? What about having animals as an adult, raising your family? What were some of their names and why did you choose those particular names? What were some of their best or most fun or quirkiest characteristics? 

Cooking

Do you like to cook? Did you learn to cook as a child and if so, who taught you? Mother, grandmother, aunts, older siblings? Did the men in your family cook? Did you teach your children to cook, and what was that like, especially around the holidays? What are your favorite things to cook—and eat? If you could only cook and eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be? 

Movies

Are you a movie buff? When was the first time you recall going to the movies? Do you remember what you went to see, and who you were with that day? Who are your favorite movie stars, living or dead? What about them attracts you to them? 

Religion and Religious Traditions

Did you go to church, synagogue or mosque growing up? What are some fond memories you have of those times with your parents and siblings—or were they so fond?! What are some of the traditions? What about raising your own family with these traditions? 

Education

Did you like school? Where did you go to school? What were the classrooms like? What was your favorite subject and why? Can you recall some of your favorite classmates and friends? What about your favorite teachers and why they were your favorites—what kind of impact they had on you as a person or on your career or life choices? 

Cleaning

What are some of your tried-and-true tips for cleaning things that are usually impossible to get out of clothing, pots and pans, carpets, garage floors? 

Gardening

Did you have a garden growing up and also while raising your family? If so, did you tend to grow more flowers or vegetables? What are some of your favorites and does it have to do with aesthetics, perennials vs. annuals, or ease vs. difficulty of growing and cultivating? 

Books

Do you like to read? Do you remember how old you were when you read your first book, and what the name of it was, and your age when you got your first library card? Do you prefer fiction or nonfiction? Mystery, biography, memoir, historical fiction, action/adventure, etc.? Who is your favorite author?