Bella Kerby
Youth Engagement Coordinator
Senior at Hendrix College
Hello! My name is Bella, and I want to show you how to host your own Transcribe-a-Thon in the comfort of your very own home! Larger Transcribe-a-Thons are happening statewide, but for those of us who can’t make them or just want some extra transcribing time, an at-home event is the perfect way to get your transcription fix!
What is a Transcribe-a-Thon?
So, what is a mini Transcribe-a-Thon anyway? It’s just like the larger scale events we are hosting, but in a more intimate setting. You and your friends can get together and access the Library of Congress’ By the People Project from any device (but tablets and laptops are preferred) and transcribe real primary source documents into their database that would be lost to history otherwise. While the mini Transcribe-a-Thon doesn’t have as much professional supervision, it’s just as easy to transcribe from the comfort of your own home! You can find the link to the By the People Project here.
STEP 1
First, I started with an invitation to the evening because what’s a party without invitations? I whipped up a quick evite and sent it to all my friends detailing where and when. I also made it a craft night, to make it an entire experience. I then decided that we would focus on transcribing recipes since those seem to be one of the easiest categories of documents to transcribe, and we all love to get together and cook.
STEP 2
Next, I planned my crafts. I knew that I wanted to make the recipes that we were transcribing into a recipe book, so I grabbed some cardstock and other arts and craft supplies for everyone to decorate their own page. After that, I grabbed some yarn to bind the book when all the pages were finished. I then needed another craft to get everyone in the mood, and that’s when I stumbled on this super cute and easy tri-cornered hat craft! Watch how to do it yourself here.
Let the fun begin!
Finally, we got to transcribing! I walked my friends through how to use the website and access the super easy-to-use tools that they provide to make the transcription process as efficient as possible. We spent hours engrossed in the details of each recipe and laughed at some of the most notable differences between modern and antique recipes (like an onion soup containing an astonishingly low ratio of onions to meat, or another recipe saying to “smite the meat into gobbets”).
Everyone got really into all of the recipes that they were transcribing, many of us contributing multiple pages for our book. By the end of the night, nobody wanted to stop! However, after two pizzas, countless hats and a whole lot of coloring, we were finally ready to assemble the recipe book. See how I did it in the video below!
Learn more about Transcribe-a-Thons here.
Find a Transcribe-a-Thon near you for even more fun at arkansastv.gov/events.