Karen Achtman

Who doesn’t love receiving a letter in the mail?!  Letter writing is still a valuable, authentic learning experience in the classroom.  It teaches students how to effectively communicate their thoughts into writing.  It gives students a purpose for writing.  And they eagerly wait for a reply!

In each teaching experience I’ve had, letters have been included and provided an authentic, meaningful experience.  Below outlines some of the activities I’ve done and I know the list can be expanded.

• Second grade students learned how to write letters around Thanksgiving time.  They had to choose a teacher at school to write a letter to saying why they were thankful for that person.  I was lucky to receive a few!

• Second grade students learned how to write letters while learning about government leaders.  As a class, we wrote a letter  to the mayor that I emailed to him; he wrote back!  I then planned an assembly for him to come answer some of their questions.  Students also each wrote a letter to President Obama asking him questions and telling him something they were learning.

• First graders learned how to write letters and each wrote a letter to their parents.  Using a class email account, they typed their letters and sent them.  They wanted a reply, and their parents sent very sweet ones.  We checked the email account a few times during the day and read aloud the replies.  Both the students and their parents loved this!

Everyone loves receiving mail.  Writing letters gives students a positive, authentic experience, and they love when they receive a reply!  I want to continue letter writing in the future, possibly virtually or with pen pals.  What are other ways you have used letter writing?