Table of Contents
SEND A LETTER!
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Take the Month of Letters Challenge! In the spirit of Nanowrimo, participants write a letter or postcard a day throughout the month of February. |
| The Letter Exchange is dedicated to connecting would-be letter writers – snail mail letter writers, that is. A subscription to their magazine – crammed with potential penpal listings and articles about letters and letter writing – costs $23/year. | |
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Got concerns? Go right to the top. Corresponding with the White House has an online feature and information on how to write a letter to the president. |
| How to Write Letters to Congress has helpful suggestions, letter formats, and links to snail mail and email addresses for all United States senators, representatives, and Supreme Court justices. | |
| From 30 Days, the Printable Summer Letter is an attractive template for kids spending some time away from home, with blocks for writing about (or illustrating) “What I’ve Been Up To” and “What I Love Best About Summer.” Appropriate for a range of ages. | |
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Sponsored by the Red Cross, Holiday Mail for Heroes is an annual program that collects holiday cards and letters for men and women in the military and in veteran’s hospitals. See the website for instructions and the address. |
ARTISTIC LETTERS
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From the Editors at Klutz, Lettering In Crazy Cool Quirky Style (Klutz, 2006) comes with colored pencils, felt-tipped pens, and stencils, plus instructions for designing gorgeous and creative words and letters. (Use them to write the best letters ever!) For ages 8 and up. |
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Joan Irvine’s Easy-to-Make Pop-Ups (Dover Publications, 2005) is a fun collection of pop-up cards and more, including not only pop-ups but springs, tabs, and revolving wheels. Over 30 cool projects for ages 7 and up. |
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Also by Joan Irvine, see How to Make Super Pop-Ups (Dover Publications, 2008) with another 30 projects, among them a castle, dragon, flying bird, Victorian turning circle, and noise-making robot. For ages 7 and up. |
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Learn to Draw a Graffiti Master-Piece (Graffiti Diplomacy, 2013) is a cool guide to word design. Step-by-step instructions for making bubble, block, and wild-style letters and more. Fun for ages 11 and up. |
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The Graceful Envelope Contest, sponsored annually by the Washington Calligraphers Guild and the National Association of Letter Carriers, is open to persons of all ages. The challenge: to design a creative envelope in the spirit of each year’s theme. (Theme for 2014 is “The Superlative Letter S.”) See the website for contest rules and an exhibit of past winning envelopes. |
| Learn how to make your own envelopes. | |
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Make envelope puppets! (You could even mail some to a friend. With a letter.) |
| Craft Projects Using Envelopes has instructions for several, including a set of surprise envelopes, a postcard display wall hanging, and a Hogwarts acceptance letter. | |
| Envelope Crafts for Kids has instructions for many projects and activities for making creative envelopes. Make origami envelopes, Christmas and Easter Bunny envelopes, heart-shaped envelopes, recycled envelopes, and more. |
LETTERS AND HISTORY
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By Cynthia Grady, Write to Me (Charlesbridge, 2019) is the story of the correspondence between Japanese-American children sent to internment camp during World War II and their hometown librarian, who does her best to support them. A difficult slice of American history gently presented for ages 4-8. |
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Simon Garfield’s To the Letter (Gotham, 2013) – subtitled “A Celebration of the Lost Art of Letter Writing” – is a fascinating account of the history, literature, and etiquette of the rapidly declining practice of snail mail. Chapter titles include “From Vindolanda, Greetings” (find out what the Romans wrote home from Hadrian’s Wall), “How to Write the Perfect Letter” (find out how to address the pope), and “Why Jane Austen’s Letters Are so Dull” (letters in fiction). A great read for teenagers and adults. |
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One-third of today’s 16-year-olds have never in their lives written a letter. Not one. Liz Williams’s Kind Regards (Michael O’Mara, 2012) does its best to buck the trend, covering the history and literature of letter writing, love letters and wartime letters, the invention of the fountain pen, and the life and times of the post office. For teenagers and adults. |
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Colin Salter’s 100 Letters That Changed the World (Universe, 2019) is a fascinating collection, running from ancient Greece (a crisp note from the Spartans to Philip II of Macedon) to the present day. For teens and adults. |
| Handwritten Letters That Made History include Henry VIII’s love letter to Anne Boleyn, Charles Darwin’s letter on the theory of evolution, and Winston Churchill’s refusal to make a deal with Germany. |