Students in Mrs. Serrano’s class have been busy learning how to write friendly letters to peers, as part of their Lifelong Learning skills. Students viewed a short video outlining the five basic parts of writing a letter. During the interactive group discussion, students asked and answered “wh” questions about writing letters. Each student picked a card from a basket with a friends’ name on it. Students were excited to start writing their letters as they recognized their friend’s name on the card. A variety of letter writing transpired as students began their assignment. With guidance from staff, some students drew pictures and others used words to share their messages. Once the letter was finished, students followed multi-step directions that included folding their letter to fit into the envelope, applying the stamp in the proper corner and sealing the envelope with a glue stick. The postal service delivered letters on different days and students arrived to class yelling, with excitement, “My letter came and I like getting mail”!
Tapping into their mathematical skills, students counted the days it took to arrive in towns around New Jersey. They were surprised to learn that postal workers delivered mail at different times of the day and evening. Some students received their letters in two days and others in five. This lesson taught students how to make a calculated guess and chart progress on a chart.
This lesson reinforced students’ already existing knowledge about the variety of ways to communicate with friends and prompted them to ask for assistance if they were unsure of the directions. Over the next several weeks, students will continue to hone their letter writing skills by writing to friends in another class.