Because we are made in the image of God who is a great communicator and a relational being, we also have a great capacity (and are designed) to be communicators and relational beings.
Of all the ways God—who calls himself the Word—could have chosen to create, he decided to speak the universe into existence. He has passed down history and truth through relationship with His people and through His written word, the Bible, where His story and rescue plan are revealed through His love letter to us.
We pass on Biblical worldviews to our children when we teach, nurture, and encourage these image-bearing realities in their lives.
A fun way to do this— to encourage our children to develop a great capacity to communicate and relate— is to set up a letter writing center for them.
I came across the idea for a letter writing center in an e-course I took a couple of years ago on creating Playful Learning Spaces in your home. I immediately got to work setting one up and it has gotten (almost) daily use since its inception. (To make ours happen, I had to save left over grocery money for a few weeks and also used some from our homeschooling budget. If you are not in a place to purchase new materials a simple basket or bowl filled with letter writing supplies works just as well!)
Here is our letter writing center— tucked away in a kitchen corner (I moved this to our basement for a while but found that it gets most use when it is in sight, in an area where we spend a lot of time):
The simple phrase cut-outs say things like Hi., How are you?, and I miss you., which my preschooler glues onto her letters since she isn’t writing yet.
Here is what the mini binder looks like inside (I pasted photos of friends and family members to correspond with their mailing labels— again for my preschooler who is not yet reading). I printed out mailing labels for grandparents, cousins, and friends so that my kids can complete the entire letter writing/envelope addressing process any time, on their own:
Like I mentioned above— another option is to set out supplies in a bowl, basket, bucket, or box that you already own:
We hit the jackpot over the summer when we found a large stash of stationary for next to nothing at a garage sale, but if you have a dollar store near you that is also a good place to find stationary. I like to add seasonal bits so ours is currently stocked with Valentine cards and stickers. We also use Playful Learning’s free printable stationary here (stage 1 writers), here (stage 2 writers), and here (stage 3 writers).
Our mini binder and teal office accessories are from the Staples Martha Stewart Line— sheet protectors for address labels found here.
It has been fun to watch my girls develop a love for letter writing and grow a desire to communicate and connect with friends and family this way. They often now receive letters in return which is such a delight to them! What little kid (or adult!) doesn’t love to open the mailbox to find a letter from a friend?! With Valentine’s Day approaching, why not take the opportunity to send letters to your own kids or to have them express their gratitude— through a letter— to loved ones?! Happy writing!
If you are interested— here are more ideas for creating writing and mail centers.
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About Anne Everitt
Hi Anne – What a lovely, thoughtful space! You have thought through every last detail… I am so glad to hear that you daughters have been inspired by their space.
Thanks for the inspiration and great ideas Mariah!
This is great! I’m definitely going to make up some of those printed phrases for Sophie to use in her letters. Thanks for posting
Thanks for reading Abby— maybe our girls should be pen pals?!
That’s a wonderful idea! When it is organized like that, I’m sure the kids are quicker to sit down and put together real cards and letters.
I have saved every card my granddaughter, Elisabeth, has sent. She just turned eleven on Saturday and it has been so much fun seeing the difference in her handwriting over the years.
Receiving mail is wonderful when we live so far apart from each other.
Thanks Brenda. Yes it wasn’t organized as well at first and it was always all over the kitchen. Much better now! That is so special that you are saving all of your granddaughter’s letters— I’m sure she will love to look back at those when she is an adult!
Love this idea Anne! And I love how purposefully creative God has made you:). You inspire me often!
Thanks Sarah!
Anne,
This is a wonderful idea! I’ve done it for myself, but not my kids I’m passing on your wisdom to others. Thank you!
Thank you Debi!
What a great service you are doing for your kids and others, in this age of instant and therefore easily forgotten. A letter even hand assembled with the glue stick will always be a winner/keeper. And the stickers are an Awesome touch, my mother in-law and her sister always use cute/coordinating/relevent stickers. That extra touch just adds another touch from family. So neat!
Thanks Anna. I’m with you… I think hand-written letters portray a level of thoughtfulness and personal touch that things like email cannot communicate. And they do love the stickers!
I love this idea Anne!!! I wish I had done this while in the states but I really may need to set something like this up in Africa so my kids can keep up with all if their pen pals! So fun to hear from you at Mom Heart!
Jodie— it was so great to see you too! I’m excited to be getting your updates now and look forward to following along as you journey overseas! I’ll be praying for you and your team.
Thanks for the resources!
You’re welcome Amanda. Thanks for reading.
really really REALLY! love this whole idea and the intention behind it! a great idea for those of us who do not have family nearby. a wonderful way to stay in touch!
Thanks Andrea!
We just put together a mini-letter writing center with the massive collection of stationery that I had from my youth.
I love the idea of having the pre-printed mailing labels.
Joyce— the labels have been great. We ran out at one point so I was addressing all of the letters… sometimes many at a time. The kids (and I) like it better when they are able to do it themselves, ha! I think they feel like they are being entrusted with “grown up” supplies and they think it’s pretty neat.
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