In this set of activities adaptable for grades K-3, parents and educators will find ideas for teaching about writing letters and email. These activities are designed to complement the BrainPOP Jr. Email topic page, which includes a movie, quizzes, online games, printable activities, and more.
Classroom Activities for Teaching About Email
Foster new friendships and help students practice their reading and writing skills. Pair students up in the classroom (or with students in other classrooms) and have them exchange email addresses. Ask one to write a message to the other and start an email change. You may want them to write about a specific topic, such as a response to an issue or a piece of writing, or you may want them to just share what happened that day. Once your students are comfortable with this, they could become e-pen pals with students in another city, state, or country!
Many government and community leaders, such as the mayor, governor, and even President of the Untied States, have email addresses that people can write to and share their thoughts. Discuss different issues in the community with your students. What can be changed? What seems unfair? What issues should leaders be working on or improving? Brainstorm different ideas and then have students write emails to their community or government leaders. Remind them that in formal messages, they should refrain from abbreviations and emoticons.
Family and Homeschool Activities for Teaching About Email
Safe Address Book
Establish a list of safe contacts for your child. Create an address book just for your child. You can do this easily in their email accounts. Show how to select the contact from the address book to write a message. Remind your child to never email strangers or open any attachment from someone they do not know and trust. You may want to set aside a half-hour each week to help your child email friends and family members.
Dear Annie and Moby
Have your child write an email to Annie and Moby. You can use the link off the Bulletin Board. What does your child want to ask Annie and Moby? What movies did they like best? What movies would they like to see? Encourage your child to be creative and remind him or her to proofread the message for proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation.