There’s something extra-special about getting a lovely card or letter in the mail. Preschoolers adore giving little cards to their loved ones and friends, so set up a Valentine’s Day Post Office center in the classroom. Supplemented with various writing centers around the room, students will have so much fun they won’t even notice how much they are learning!
Setting up the Valentine’s Day Post Office
Start by constructing the post office by repurposing the dramatic play area. The counters from the play kitchen, the dining table, and any other flat surfaces are all perfect for a post office. If there is a dramatic play station, grocery counter, or puppet theater in the room, it repurposes beautifully into a mail counter.
Items Needed for the Valentine’s Day Post Office
- Mailboxes for each student –store-bought orhome-made, both are great, as long as they are sturdy!
- Flag stickers (to be used as “stamps”)
- Heart stickers for decoration and pizazz
- Blank Valentine’s Day cards with envelopes
- Some blank envelopes for students who want to craft their own cards
- Construction paper or card stock
- Markers, pencils, pens, and/or crayons
- Books about valentines, mail carriers, and Valentine’s Day
- Labels, signs, and nametags
- A cash register
- Small shipping boxes (recycled)
- Baskets to hold everything
Here are some optional items to add some “wow” factor as well:
- A heart themed backdrop
- A mailbag for the delivery worker
- A toy mailbox for extra-special deliveries
- Toy mail trucks for decoration
- Mail Carrier costume
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Assembling the Center
Begin by setting up the mailbox station. Add a picture and name to each mailbox so that students can identify themselves and their friends.
Next, choose an area that is large enough to hold all of the mailboxes for the students. Remember, this needs to be easily accessible for the students. Adding inexpensive decor (purchased at a discount or dollar store) and a seasonal backdrop help complete the look of the mailbox area.
Next, set up the sales counter. This is where customers purchase stamps, stickers, envelopes, and can ship their packages. Sort the items into baskets and label them with pictures and words to increase expossure to environmental text. Don’t forget the Open/Closed sign.
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Valentine Dramatic Play Post Office Writing Center for Preschool and Pre K
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Writing Around the Room
Integrating writing stations with the dramatic play area makes them more enticing and attractive to students…which means they’ll visit them over and over again. Consider adding these centers around the room for students to create their own mail for the center.
Card Making Station
Preschoolers get to unleash their inner greeting card writer with this card making station. Provide markers, crayons, folded pieces of cardstock, stickers, and envelopes to inspire students to make their own valentines for their classmates, family, and friends.
A Valentine’s Day Post Office language board helps students spell their messages and increases literacy skills, all in one go.
Thinking through a project is an important skill for students to develop. Posting the sequence on how to get a valentine to a friend is a great way to help them organize their thoughts before they get started, or to remind them of what comes next.
More Centers for Valentine’s Day Post Office Fun
Specialty stamps always make a piece of mail even more special…so why not encourage students to design their own? This center sparks imagination as students design their own stamps and works their creativity and fine motor skills too. Using a checklist to make sure that they have all of the supplies is a great way to sneak in a little early literacy. Preschoolers check off boxes on their list that has both the word and a picture for each item. A similar activity, making a list of friends, encourages students to practice writing their classmates names ane then check them off as they deliver them.
Stopping by the Valentine’s Day Post Office
When playing at the Valentine’s Day Post Office, students follow similar roles as when playing with a standard Post Office Dramatic Play area. Lanyards with different roles on them help students see what different people do in the post office, and assist them in seeing what their friends choose as well. Going over these roles prior to opening the center can be helpful. Simply show each lanyard to the students and discuss what each person does. For example, “The customer is the person who is mailing the letter. They write the letter, put it in the envelope, buy a stamp and give it to the cashier. The cashier sells the stamps and stickers, and takes the letters to the mail sorter.” Naming these roles helps solidify the steps for students as well.
Delivering the Mail
Once behind the counter, the mail needs to be sorted by a very professional mail sorter. Learning to sort items is an important pre-math and pre-literacy skill. Once it is sorted, the students can either come check their own post office box, or a mail carrier can make a special delivery straight to the recipient.
Bonus Activity – Sending Real Mail!
For a special connection to student families, send home a message that students will create a valentine to mail to a friend or family member using the real post office. While many preschools cannot do field trips that invovle a drive, a class walk to the mailbox to put the letters in the mailbox is a low-budget way to help students make a real world connection. Families will love getting an adorable card from their preschooler as well!
