Free Stamp Collecting Education Kit

USPS's Community Connection website is promoting Mail Mattters and their Stamp Collecting Education Kit. USPS is inviting elementary educators "to participate in Mail Matters – a complimentary online Education Kit that uses the mail to teach Language Arts and Social Studies through content and visuals that appeal to students and teachers alike."

The free downloadable kit contains teacher's materials, student materials and classroom materials such as...

• A 4-page teaching guide with suggestions for setting up an in-school or in-class Mail Processing Facility, with desired outcomes and curriculum standards addressed (single-page for letter paper or double-page spread for legal paper)
• Why Mail Matters class discussion prompts
• Mail Matters postal facility job descriptions (reverse of Why Mail Matters)
• Four pages of expository content with questions for thoughtful consideration
• Four pages of cross-curricular learning activities
  • A Math-based activity based on barcodes
  • A Geography activity based on ZIP Codes
  • A US History lesson based on stamps
  • A Language Arts activity based on letter-writing
• Badges for Mail Matters student personnel
• Signs for Mail Matters identity and directions (plus Drop Box, Facility, and Road Signs)
• A Mail on the Move poster that cleverly illustrates today’s mail system.

According to the site, "All of the content in the class discussions and learning activities are based on the Common Core State Standards in Language Arts and the Social Studies curriculum standards of the National Council for the Social Studies. A Postmaster Primer has been furnished to postmasters across the country to support your Mail Matters program efforts."

To download the materials, click here.