One of the poetry requirements in the Where I am From portfolio is a poem pattern I created entitled "When I Was a Child..."  I wanted to create something that would allow all students to experience success as they wrote a poem about themselves and their childhood.  The following is merely a pattern.  Students may choose to simply finish each line or to add several lines to each sentence starter.  I've had all levels of students write different variations successfully.  This assignment connects well with the semester theme of self discovery.  In the self study lesson and the oral history lesson students explore the Library of Congress website to explore historical events that occurred during their childhoods and during the lives of their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents.

I preface this assignment by asking students to write down memories from their early elementary school years, middle school years, and then to jot down things that are currently going on in their lives.  This helps them to generate ideas to complete their poem.  I also ask them to focus on significant lessons they learned and their beliefs at these different age levels. I also read the children's picture book  Love You Forever  by Robert Munsch before students begin.  This book focuses on the love between a mother and a child, and how family bonds and traditions span the generations. When students complete their poem they are responsible for word-processing their assignment and adding childhood photographs.  Students get practice scanning pictures and using digital photography.  This is always a favorite assignment for the students to write and for parents to read. Write a poem using the following as a guide.

Stanza 1

When I was a child...

I wanted to be... I believed...

I hoped...

I loved...

I learned...

I was certain...

Stanza 2

When I began to grow...

I wanted to be...

I believed...

I hoped...

I loved...

I learned...

I was certain...

Stanza 3

Now that I am almost grown...

I want to be...

I believe...

I hope...

I love...

I have learned...

I am certain...

When I was a child...