Would your younger self recognise you?

Answer and give real details from your life.

1. What were you like at 15? Describe yourself in three words.
2. What did you use to worry about as a teenager? Do you still worry about it?
3. What was the most important thing in your life ten years ago? What is it now?
4. Which song, smell or place makes you feel nostalgic?
5. What would your 18-year-old self think about your life today?
6. What is one thing that hasn't changed about you at all?

For each word, say one true sentence about your life or someone you know.

Choose the word or phrase that fits.

1. Getting my first job abroad was the moment everything changed. It was
2. After years of travelling, he wants to buy a house and
3. Looking at old school photos always makes me feel
4. Children so fast these days!
5. I want to yoga this autumn.
6. She's only 14, but she thinks and acts like an adult. She's very
7. As a student I had no job, no bills and no stress. I was totally
8. When I had kids, my changed completely.

Choose the phrasal verb with the same meaning, then press Check answers.

1. I started playing tennis last year. = I
   took upgave upgrew up
   tennis.
2. I stopped smoking. = I
   took upgave upmoved out
   smoking.
3. I left my parents' home. = I
   moved outsettled downgrew up
   .
4. I spent my childhood in Odesa. = I
   grew uplooked backtook up
   in Odesa.
5. I'm now comfortable with the cold weather. = I've
   got used togiven upsettled down
   it.
6. When I think about the past... = When I
   look backmove outtake up
   ...

Use each phrase to say something true about how your life has changed.

• I used to..., but now...Раніше я..., а тепер...I used to hate vegetables, but now I'm almost vegetarian.
• I didn't use to..., but these days...Раніше я не..., а зараз...I didn't use to cook, but these days I cook every evening.
• I no longer...Я більше не...I no longer worry about what people think.
• I'm still...Я досі...I'm still as stubborn as I was at school.
• Back then, ...Тоді, у ті часи, ...Back then, we didn't have smartphones.
• Looking back, I think...Озираючись назад, я думаю...Looking back, I think I was too serious.
• The biggest change has been...Найбільшою зміною стало...The biggest change has been becoming a parent.
• If I could tell my younger self one thing, it would be...Якби я міг (могла) сказати собі молодшому одну річ, це було б......it would be: relax, everything will be fine.

Read the article. Hover over the dotted words for help.

1. Most people believe they have changed a lot in the past.
   TrueFalse
2. Only young people took part in the research.
   TrueFalse
3. People expected to change a lot in the future.
   TrueFalse
4. In reality, people change more than they expect.
   TrueFalse
5. The article says tattoos are always a bad idea.
   TrueFalse

1. Do you recognise the "end of history illusion" in yourself?
2. What decision did you make in the past that your present self wouldn't make?
3. What do you think will be different about you in ten years?
4. Is it better to plan your life or to stay flexible? Why?

Careful: used to do (past habit) is different from be / get used to doing (be familiar with). I used to work at night (not now). I'm used to working at night (it's normal for me). For now, use not any more / no longer / still.

1. I
   used touse to
   have very long hair.
2. Did you
   use toused to
   go to a music school?
3. We
   wouldused to
   have a dog called Rex.
4. Every Sunday my grandma
   wouldwas
   bake a big cake.
5. I
   didn't use todidn't used to
   like reading.
6. I'm
   used touse to
   getting up early now.
7. She
   doesn't liveno longer lives
   in Kharkiv. She moved to Vienna.
8. He's
   stillany more
   my best friend after 20 years.

Each sentence has one mistake. Type the correct words.

1. I use to play the piano when I was a kid. →
2. Did you used to like school? →
3. I would have a red bike when I was ten. →
4. She doesn't smoke no more. →
5. I am used to work long hours. →
6. He didn't used to be so serious. →

Answer in detail. Use used to, would, no longer, still and be used to.

1. Describe a typical summer from your childhood. What would you do every day?
2. What did you use to believe as a child that seems funny now?
3. Which habits have you given up, and which have you taken up in the last five years?
4. What did you have to get used to when you started your current job or moved to a new place?
5. Who used to be very important in your life but no longer is? What happened?
6. What is still the same in your life after all these years?

Choose one capsule at a time. Compare life ten years ago and today. Then say which changes are better and which are worse.

1. Imagine you can send a voice message to yourself at 18. Speak for two minutes.
2. Tell them three things that will happen, one thing they should stop worrying about, and one piece of advice.
3. Then imagine a message from yourself at 60 to you today. What would that person say?

1. What was the biggest turning point in your life so far?
2. When did you first feel like an adult?
3. What did you use to want to be when you grew up?
4. Which hobby did you use to love but no longer do?
5. What is the hardest thing you've had to get used to?
6. What are you more relaxed about now than in the past?
7. What do you miss most about your childhood?
8. Which milestone are you looking forward to next?

1. How has your best friend changed since you first met?
2. How are your parents different from when you were a child?
3. Who in your family has changed the most? Why?
4. Do people from your hometown change when they move to big cities?
5. Which friend from the past would you like to meet again?
6. How have your relationships with your parents changed as an adult?

1. Is nostalgia useful, or does it stop us from moving forward?
2. Was life really simpler in the past, or do we just remember it that way?
3. Do big crises change people forever?
4. At what age do people really grow up?
5. Is it possible to "go back" to who you used to be?
6. How do you think your generation will be remembered?

"Life was better before smartphones."

Round 1: give your real opinion for 1–2 minutes. Round 2: defend the opposite side for 1 minute. Use: Back in the day... · Let's be honest... · Nobody can deny that... · On balance, I think...