children writing letters

The Mailbox Buddies Penpal Pilot Program is a new, year-long initiative spearheaded by the NAFCC Professional Development Department.

This exciting program was conceptualized by Tessie Ragan, a dedicated Family Child Care (FCC) provider and NAFCC State Representative. The mission and vision of this program is to bring early literacy and national connection to life through the power of the written word.

The Mailbox Buddies Penpal Pilot Program aims to connect FCC programs together creating community and connection through monthly letters written by children to become “Mailbox Buddies”. This program fosters social emotional learning by building relationships nationally, practicing emergent writing, creativity, and learning about the postal service. This program will be provided for NAFCC members only. The Mailbox Buddies Penpal Pilot will launch August 2025 and include 20 FCC programs across the United States during its first year of implementation.

Program Benefits

  • Foster Emergent Literacy & Language Development:
    Children will engage in meaningful reading and writing experiences that support oral language and print awareness.
  • Encourage Writing Skill Development:
    From scribbles and drawings to full sentences, children will practice expressing their thoughts, stories, and questions in written form.
  • Peer Mentorship Across Ages:
    School-age children can serve as writing mentors or reading buddies to younger peers within the same program.
  • Postal System Exploration: :
    Children will learn how the U.S. mailing system works and explore the role of community helpers like postal workers.
  • Foster Community & Cultural Exchange:
    Children will build friendships across state lines, learning about different people, places, and traditions while promoting unity and pride in their FCC program.
A boy writing a letter

Program Expectations

  • Children enrolled in FCC programs will write and send letters to children in other FCC programs in different states.
  • Each participating program will be matched with a similarly sized program based on enrollment and age group.
  • If a program is over ratio, they will collaboratively create and send a class letter instead of individual ones.
  • Children will exchange thoughts, drawings, and reflections with their pen pals monthly, developing social-emotional bonds and communication skills.
  • FCC educators will also share their “grows and glows” with their matched peers to build a broader professional learning network.
writing supplies

Mailbox Buddies Penpal Toolkit Includes:

  • Envelopes
  • Crayons, pencils, markers
  • Writing paper
  • Postage stamps
  • Letter-writing templates and prompts
  • Implementation guide with literacy tips and best practices
Dezire'e Mattocks

Dezire’e Mattocks M.Ed., Ed.S.

Director of Professional Development
DMattocks@nafcc.org

NAFCC Quality Ambassador Training in Raleigh, NC

Jocelyn Dionne Jones

Training Specialist
jjones@nafcc.org