A Post Box for Kind Notes
A cereal box with a slot cut in it. Everyone posts a note about somebody else, and you read them out at dinner.
Make a post box from a cereal box and have the family post notes saying something kind about each other, read aloud at the end of the week. Suits ages 3 to 8.
The short version
- Write and post the first one yourself — it shows them what is expected.
- Read them out loud. That is what makes it work.
- Drawings count as much as writing.
- Age
- Ages 3–8
- Prep
- 10 min
- Play time
- 20 min
- Mess
- Low
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Where
- Indoor
Why kids love this
Posting things through a slot is satisfying at any age, and there is a genuine surprise at the end when the notes are read out. Children also write far more willingly when somebody is going to read it aloud.
What you'll need
- A cereal box or shoebox
- Scissors (adult)
- Paper or wrapping paper to cover it
- Glue or tape
- Small slips of paper
- Pens
Before you start
Cut a slot in the top of the box, about a centimetre wide and long enough for a folded slip. An adult job — cutting a neat slot needs a blade or sharp scissors. Cut a stack of paper slips so nobody has to find paper each time.
How to do it
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Cut a slot in the top of the box.
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Cover the box in paper and let them decorate it.
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Write POST on the front, or whatever they want to call it.
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Put the slips and a pen next to it somewhere everyone passes.
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Explain the rule: write something kind or something you noticed about somebody in the house.
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Write one yourself first, and post it. That shows them how.
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Post notes across the week. Younger children can draw instead, or tell you what to write.
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At the end of the week, open it and read every note out at the table.
Make it easier
They draw a picture of the person instead of writing, or dictate one sentence and you write it.
Make it harder
Ask for something specific rather than general — something that person did this week, not just that they are nice.
Other ways to play it
- Do it for a week leading up to Valentine\'s Day or a birthday.
- Use it for thank-you notes instead.
- Post notes to one person only — a grandparent, or somebody having a hard week.
- Keep the notes and read them again in a year.
- Make a second box for the classroom or a club.
How it changes by age
- Three: drawings, and one word you write for them.
- Four to five: they dictate a sentence and post it themselves.
- Six and up: writing their own, and often several.
What they're learning
Noticing something good about somebody else and putting it into words is genuinely difficult, and it improves noticeably with practice. Writing for a real audience who will hear it read aloud is much more motivating than writing for a book nobody opens.
Clearing up
Keep the notes in an envelope with the date. The box folds flat and comes out again whenever you need it.