Having a pen pan is one of my favorite memories from childhood. If you would like to introduce a pen-pal system for your students, here’s how you can get started…

First decide if you want to use email (if your students have computer and internet access at school or home) or traditional mail (it would be nice to keep this beautiful tradition alive). If you chose the latter, you can check out International Pen Friends. It’s a website that has tons of listing of potential classes around the world that your students can write to using the old fashioned pen-and-paper letter and mailing system (for a fee).

You may also be interested in this blog post about books that teach your students about other forms of writing including how to write a letter. Also, I saw these story books by Alma Flor Ada on amazon that will make a great way for you to introduce letter writing because each book has a series of short letters written back and forth between popular folk tale characters.

 Dear Peter Rabbit 

One of the Three Little Pigs is hosting a housewarming, and Peter Rabbit would love to go. But he’s in bed with a cold after a narrow escape from Mr. McGregor’s garden. Meanwhile, Goldilocks is planning her birthday party and hoping her new friend Baby Bear can come (he’s forgiven her for breaking his favorite chair). But with the Big Bad Wolf on the prowl and Little Red Riding Hood heading off to grandmother’s house, there’s no telling how things may end!

 With Love, Little Red Hen

Hidden Forest has a new resident. Little Red Hen and her seven little chicks have moved into a cottage and plan to grow a bountiful crop of corn in the nearby field. The problem is that none of the Red Hen’s neighbors are willing to help with the hard work. “Not I,” says the dog, the goose, and the lazy cat. So Goldilocks, who has heard about the new arrivals from her friend Little Red Riding Hood, comes up with a neighborly idea: Why don’t all the residents of Hidden Forest chip in and work on the garden? Better yet, why not make it a surprise? 

 Yours Truly, Goldilocks

Everyone who’s anyone will be at the Three Little Pigs’ housewarming party. Goldilocks and Little Red Riding Hood have already marked it on their calendars.  Unfortunately, so have the wolves — those who’ve caused the Pigs to build their brick house in the first place!  In this wonderfully creative sequel to Dear Peter Rabbit, Alma Flor Ada imagines what it would be like if a few beloved fairy-tale characters were pen pals.