«Time Machine» in the Archive: A New Format of the «Young Archivist» Class Held in Zhlobin

As part of the «Young Archivist» project, a practical class for ninth-grade students from Zhlobin Secondary School No.9 was held on February 26, 2026, at the Zonal State Archive in Zhlobin. The event took the form of a role-playing quest lesson called «Time Machine».

The goal of the class was to practice searching for information in genealogical documents and introduce key professions in the archival industry.

The students were transported to the future, playing the roles of qualified archival employees. The following responsibilities were assigned during the class:

Archive Director – general management and oversight of search regulations. The Head of Department is responsible for organizational support and reporting.

The Lead Archivist and Archivist are directly involved in working with primary sources (household registers) and scientific reference materials.

The Software Engineer is responsible for technical support: digitizing identified documents and making photocopies.

The participants successfully completed a practical task of searching for information about relatives, studying the specifics of household register entries (family composition, property status, biographical information).

At the end of the meeting, a visualization of the students’ professional future was presented using modern technologies (artificial intelligence and computer graphics). A display of portraits of «archival workers of the future» allowed the students to envision career prospects in the archival field.

The event helped develop the students’ research skills and increased their interest in preserving the documentary heritage of their region.

1-3. «Insight into History: Future Specialists Studying Archival Documents».

4. Archive staff and students from Zhlobin Secondary School No.9.

5-10. «Young archivists» as qualified experts of the future.