Card Writing

In room 306, we take card writing very seriously.  Kids have written a wide variety of cards throughout the school year and I am SO impressed with how much they have improved.  We have written THANK YOU notes (to the PTO, 826michigan, and even my dentist – he gave us toothbrushes), to people we love and admire, and this week, to my friend in California who was in a bike accident (with a car!).  The cards they created were AMAZING.  They were thoughtful, kind, empathetic, and they were full of positive vibes and well wishes.  He is going to be moved beyond belief when he gets them in the mail.  Wow.  Card/letter writing is a really important thing for kids to practice.  Not only do they begin to understand the importance of thanking someone for something, but they practice the writing process while doing so.  In the fall, they were required to write 6 sentences.  At this point, most of them don’t ask about how many sentences they need to write, rather, they are focused on writing a thoughtful and delightful letter.  Our last round of cards was to the PTO (for bringing the Hands On Museum to Haisley) and the PTO board members were blown away with how wonderful the cards were.  So much so, they put them on display in the main hallway.  I encourage you to have them continue to write letters, notes and postcards all summer long!  Know that I will ALWAYS answer letters and postcards! 

Ways to write at home…

Here are some easy things you can do at home!

•  Write notes to each other on Post-It Notes (they aren’t very intimidating because of their small size, and they are fun to get!).

•  Make or get postcards to send to friends and relatives who live out of town.  Who doesn’t like to get a postcard in the mail!?  It sure beats getting a bill!

•  Write back and forth in a journal.  Sometimes it’s easier to WRITE something, rather than talk about it.  Journal writing is a great place for kids to tell or ask you things that may be weighing them down.  These journal entries can include illustrations too!

•  Have you ever passed a card back and forth between a friend?  It’s fun.  Try this at home too!  Buy or make a cool card…if you make one, you can make it on the big side.  When you “send” it, you can write one or two sentences.  When your child writes back to you, they do the same.

•  Have them start a story (or you can start it!) and stop mid sentence.  The next person writes something using what was written by the first person.  Trade the story back and forth – or with other family members.  The stories that come out of this are hilarious.