Cooperative Living August 2019 - 36

KIDS! CLIP AND KEEP YOUR KIDS' KORNER COLUMNS IN A THREE-RING BINDER AND YOU'LL HAVE A NOTEBOOK CHOCK FULL OF FUN IDEAS AND ACTIVITIES FOR THE FUTURE!
Kids'Korner | Story, photos and artwork by Anne M. Dellinger, Contributing Columnist
Dear Me
Have you ever written a letter to yourself?
Perhaps a former teacher gave this task to your class
sometime during your school career. If you have done it before,
you know that it is an easy assignment. But did you realize that
this project can turn into a little gift that you give to yourself?
Reading a letter in the future from your past, younger self is
like discovering a special time capsule all about you. When you
open it, you will likely have forgotten much of what you wrote. You might be surprised to learn how much you have changed.
The passage of time will have shaped you physically, mentally and emotionally into a different person from when you first
penned the letter.
A " Letter to Me " can be written anytime, but August is an ideal time to create one. Just before the new school year begins, you
can record and celebrate the way things are now in your life and how you hope they might be in your future.
Getting started is easy. All that's required is a piece of stationery or notebook paper, a pen and an envelope. If you need ideas to
turn on your creativity, look over the following topics. Choose as many or as few of these areas of your life to
write about as you wish.
Let your thoughts flow freely across the paper. Then, when finished, tuck your letter into an
envelope, write the date for opening on the front and store in a safe place.
Dear (your name)____________
Interesting things about me:
-I'm ____ years old and going into the ____ grade this fall.
-These are my friends ...
-These are words that my friends would use to describe me ...
-This is something that I do well ...
-This is something I need to improve ...
-This really scares me ...
-This makes me sad ...
-I am happiest when ...
These are some of my favorites:
-foods
-colors
-sports
-music
-hobbies
-books
-movies
-pets
-season
There is a quote that
says, don't look back ...
you're not going that way.
But sometimes revisiting the past is a helpful move. When you open your letter, months or years
from now, it will be a record of how things were. Reading it will remind you of how you felt at that
certain point in your life and what things were meaningful to you at that time. Some of your thoughts
about your friends, your favorites and your life goals may be different from your earlier opinions.
And that's OK. The " older and wiser you " will remember the best of the past and hang onto those
things worth keeping, while blending them with new ideas and visions for the days ahead. n
School days:
-I like these classes best ...
-I enjoy this most about school ...
-I wish I could change these things about school ...
-This is how I deal with a bully ...
My future:
-I would like to travel to this place someday ...
-My biggest dream for the future is ...
-This would be my ideal job in life ...
Date___________
34 | Cooperative Living | August 2019
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Cooperative Living August 2019

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