Here I have attached a brief PowerPoint on reading a kinship chart and included my own chart with a second slide describing my family and those members of my patrilineal and matrilineal kinship members. Please review this PowerPoint to make sure you can read a kinship chart and identify patrilineal and matrilineal kinship members from a chart. In my presentation here, I am ego and marked with a solid circle on the chart. I also explain how to draw a kinship chart and show you how to mark the patrilineal and matrilineal members of my family.

First Post Assignment 

For your assignment, you will write your own kinship chart (include a minimum of 3 generations). You are ego on the chart. Then you will draw a circle around all your matrilineal kinship members. Next draw a square around all your patrilineal kinship members. Take a picture and post the picture with your discussion post (use jpg and embed picture in your post; don’t attach a file please). 

• Draw your kinship chart with you as ego (color you solid)
• Circle matrilineal members
• Squares around patrilineal members

Here are some tips:

• Use a pencil and paper.
• Turn paper horizontal.
• Start with yourself (You are ego.), then parents, siblings, and other members of your family last.
• When doing matrilineal and patrilineal families, start with yourself and siblings. All siblings (if from same parents) are members of your matrilineal and patrilineal families. Then go to parents and their siblings, cousins, then grandparents.
• Do not start at the top of the page. Always start from ego. As you are likely one of the youngest in the family, draw you near the bottom of the paper or in the middle.  
• Above is my kinship chart with my matrilineal family circled and patrilineal family squared. Yours should look similar.