Post Office Activity for Valentine's Day- Submitted by Sherry

I will be taking my class of 3's/4's to the post office. We have coordinated this particular trip with Valentine's Day. We have set up a post office in the classroom with a desk, real old phone, a working typewriter, old envelopes, clipboard and paper, pencils, maps, American Flag. The children have painted "their" mail box and every day they put mail into it and someone takes it out and carries it in a pouch to another painted mailbox at the other side of the room. We asked a postman for an old shirt and hat, too.

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Valentine Post Office- Submitted by Sherry

I always make a post office center from our puppet theatre/store front at this time of year. I include old cancelled stamps, stickers, pens, pencils, a small scale, envelopes (lots and lots) paper, paper clips, clipboards, a telephone, junk mail, small baskets, a few date stamps, and whatever else I can think of. The kids love playing here. At the writing table I put a list of children's names with their pictures for easy identification. Lots of envelopes again, the words "I Love You" "Valentine" "Mom" "Dad" ETC mounted on the wall, paper in trays, an assortment of colored pens/markers, old cards, scissors, stickers AND I have an old wooden soda bottle holder (with 12 small squares) I put up on it's long end and put some identifying mark (name, picture, symbol) in each square. This is a mini mailbox to mail valentines to each other.

We make a special valentine for mom and dad with glitter, sequins, feathers, all the fancy stuff, and then put in an envelope. We then walk to the post office (very close by) and mail them just before VDay. We also get a tour at this time. (I live in a very small rural town, so this is a great resource and opportunity for us)

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Valentine Post Office- Submitted by Lisa in VA

I set up a Post Office in my classroom. Each child is asked to bring some type of a box. Two weeks before the Post Office opens I wrap each box with red bulletin board paper. I give each child a three digit number. I send home a list of the students in our class, extra teachers, aides etc... I ask the parents to have their child write the names on the outside of the envelopes. I encourage the parents to have their child do a few a day. I stress the importance that they do their own cards. I feel this gives them ownership over the project. We start "delivering" our cards about a week before our party. I have a chart with the different jobs. Each child chooses the job, colors in that square and can't pick that job again until the card is colored in by all the jobs.

Addressing.. Their job is to address the mail. They are given a laminated list of Valentine list with the three digit numbers. They find the name, and write the three digit number. Example, Michelle 225. After they are addressed the cards go into a bucket where the Post Master (me) checks to make sure the address is correct and no number reversals. The next group is stamping the date with an ink stamper and putting on a colored dot this is suppose to be the stamp. Next is sorting.. I have five buckets that start with the numbers 2,3,4,5,6.

Michelle's card would go into the number 2 bucket because it starts with a two. The last job is delievering to the Post Office. Taking onfiltered bucket at a time the child reads the address and puts it in the matching mail box. This sounds kinda diffficult but really isn't. The biggest thing is management. Each day I go through the boxes and make sure everyone's is in the right box when the kids are not in the room. I then take a rubber band and separate the "checked" mail. In the past my students are so disappointed when Valentine's Day comes. So I always leave the Post Office open for a few more weeks as a writing center.

Oh, those red boxes are decorated in the Art Area on Valentine's Day with paint, glitter, buttons, whatever the choose.

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