I Used to Be But Now I… Poems for Journals

I Used to Be But Now I… Poems for Journals
submitted by Denise Boswell, fifth grade teacher
Two-sentence summary: Students will use poetry to produce a comparison of
themselves as a baby or small child to themselves today. This can be a great Mother’s
Day gift or an entry in a creative journal.
Background knowledge needed: Students need to understand the changes in themselves
from when they were young to today.
Example 1:
Example 2:
By: Austin H.
By Adriana
Then and Now
I used to have a chubby face and a bowl haircut and
be really short.
But now, I have a thin face and dark brown hair.
I used to: bite things with my razor sharp teeth.
But now, I ride my shiny bike, and play mindnumbing video games.
I used to: hate the noisy shower.
But now, I love you even more and I love the
shower, thanks for the confidence!
I used to, be terrified of the horrifying dark, and
the monsters under the bed.
But now, I am afraid of pale white ghosts that
go through the night.
I used to believe that murderous zombies were real.
But now: I believe that 3:00 is the time of the
evil demons.
I used to be unable to ride my bike.
But now, I can thanks mom!
I used to get in trouble for throwing mud.
But now, I get in trouble for being sassy.
You’re the best mom anyone can ask for!
Ade
Antes yo tenía corto cabello, y gordita,
Pero ahora yo tengo largo cabello, y soy flaquita.
Antes yo jugará en la cañeta,
Pero ahora yo soy porrista.
A mi no me gustaba espinacas,
Pero ahora no me gusta el chile.
Yo le tenía miedo de monstruos,
Y ahora yo le tengo miedo de arañas.
Yo crea en monstruos,
Pero ahora crea en Dios.
Yo no podía ser porrista,
Pero ahora todo lo Quero hacer es porread.
Antes me regañarán por meter me en el cañeta,
Pero ahora me regañarán se tengo mallos
grados.
The Importance of Pre-Writing: Students will use the pre-write graphic organizer to compare
themselves from when they were young to today. Following the pre-write, students will use the
Rough Draft Template to write their comparison rough draft. After revising, focusing on word
choice and idea development, and editing their draft, students will type their final copy and insert
a picture of themselves when they were young and a school picture from this year.
Differentiating Instruction: All students of all abilities are able to complete the writing
assignment. Complete a pre-write as a class, this will help all students begin to generate ideas and
can be referred back to by struggling students.
Writing Traits: It is important that students focus on idea development and word choice to
create an interesting poem. Students also need to remember their audience. If this is a Mother’s
Day gift, their audience is their mom.
© 2008 Northern Nevada Writing Project and WritingFix. All rights reserved. (http://nnwp.org and http://writingfix.com)
This lesson is one of dozens found in the NNWP’s Going Deep with Compare & Contrast Thinking Guide.
Pre-Writing Activity
You will be writing a poem to compare yourself as a small child to the child you are today.
Fill in the graphic organizer below to show your pre-thinking about yourself.
Questions to Ask
How did you look?
Then
Now
What did you do with
your time?
What did you like or
dislike?
What were you afraid
of?
What can you do now
that you could not do
then?
Was there anything you
got in trouble for doing?
© 2008 Northern Nevada Writing Project and WritingFix. All rights reserved. (http://nnwp.org and http://writingfix.com)
This lesson is one of dozens found in the NNWP’s Going Deep with Compare & Contrast Thinking Guide.
Rough Draft
You are now ready to write your rough draft of your poem. Use your graphic organizer to
help you fill in the spaces on your rough draft.
____________________
(Your Name Here)
I used to be ________________________________________,
But now I __________________________________________.
I used to be ________________________________________,
But now I __________________________________________.
I used to be ________________________________________,
But now I __________________________________________.
I used to be ________________________________________,
But now I __________________________________________.
I used to be ________________________________________,
But now I __________________________________________.
For younger
students, you may
want to share this
picture book with
your students to help
inspire their thinking.
© 2008 Northern Nevada Writing Project and WritingFix. All rights reserved. (http://nnwp.org and http://writingfix.com)
This lesson is one of dozens found in the NNWP’s Going Deep with Compare & Contrast Thinking Guide.