Looking for an activity that is:
- easy
- creative
- educational
- hands on
- gets loved ones involved
- and is a conversation starter?
We’ve got you covered! The Little But Once “Send some love” template is a one-click and print resource that your child can decorate in any way they like and send off to their friends and family. All you will need on your end is an empty envelope and postage stamp.
Concepts
Apart from the chance to stretch their creative muscles on paper, this experience opens up the door to learning about forms of communication, the concept of addresses and the workings of the postage system. These include the opportunity to explore concepts such as streets, suburbs, names, distance, word permanence and numbers, to name a few. The experience also has a time element, with the period between sending the letter and receiving a call to say it has been received being another great chance to learn about days of the week/time passing (as well as insight into object permanence in the big wide world.)
How to “Send some love”
You could start the experience by asking your child who they would like to send an artwork to. Choose some creative materials (crayons, stamps, stickers) and give them time to work on their unique art-message.
Once finished, write the address on the letter together. This is a great opportunity to discuss numbers, streets and suburbs. Another exciting element for little ones is discovering that their grandparents actually have names other than Nan and Pop (gasp!), but feel free to address the envelope that way. We can attest to the fact that it does still arrive.
The trip to the post box is not an afterthought, it is an extension of the experience. It doesn’t matter how little your child is, tell them about the postage system! Every word a child hears from you is a vocabulary and cognition builder. Older children are benefiting in the development of abstract ideas. Since the activity is a practical application of how to use the postage system it is hands on and child centred, both get big ticks in the learning department.
When your relative calls to say they have received the letter, reinforce the process to your little one. Discuss how the letter might have arrived, check your own letterbox or even start learning your address. My map crazy toddler enjoys seeing our own address on the map compared with how far the letter has gone. You can bend this experience to suit your own family. Do you have relatives overseas? Do you have a friend who can send their own letter to you? Do you want to send two or more letters out and “race” them? Do you want to include a second blank template so your friend can “pay it forward” to someone else?
Make the experience your own!
Files
I have made the template available (and ALWAYS FREE) in two formats.
- The PDF link is a one-click A4 printable which has two templates (cut page in half)
- The image below is a .jpg file which can be used in another document and resized if needed.
Happy posting!
littlebutonce.com 