This is a trip that every preschooler must do.
This group, however, was not preschoolers but homeschoolers with ages ranging from the very young up to my 12 year old. We learned a great deal about this process that quietly touches our daily lives. Parents and students alike had oodles of questions for our guide. How is the mail sorted? How is it assembled for the route? How does the zip code work? What do those 4 extra numbers on the zip code mean to our post-person? How long does it take to sort the mail? What sort of test and what qualifications do you need to work for the postal system? Is the post office part of the federal government or a private entity? Do postal employees really get bit by dogs?
So many questions and some of the answers would really surprise you!I've done this field trip with my kids as preschoolers so I was a bit skeptical about doing this again with my two who are now 8 and 12. Well, we were not disappointed. In fact, I think this was a wonderful time for a repeat visit. They have a better understanding of what the post is all about, they both have several pen pals, and consequently they both had lots of good pertinent questions. They also figured out which group of slots and bins were handling our mail. My kids are very fond of the woman who delivers our mail and were thrilled to see her station all decked out with pictures drawn by her own daughter!
