Submitted by Rene Carroll
Students at Cape Horn Skye Elementary are connecting with an unlikely set of new friends. They are writing letters to help brighten the day of senior citizens who are cut off from family during the Stay Home Stay Healthy order.
“A parent with a daughter who works at Touchmark Senior Citizen retirement home in Vancouver called to say that many residents there are feeling very isolated from their families,” said Penny Andrews, CH-S principal. “She asked if we could have students write letters and share what life was like now that they were learning from home.”
Andrews embraced the idea and sent word out to families over Facebook, and teachers incorporated letter writing into some of their lessons. “So many students want to be able to do something for someone else and this is a perfect opportunity,” Andrews said.
Families are invited to drop off letters in the “senior citizen’s mailbox” at the school entry or mail them from home with Cape’s return address.
“This is a great example of authentic writing, or writing for a purpose, that we practice in the classroom all the time,” said Andrews. “It is also a wonderful opportunity for community service for our students. Hopefully, writing about daily life will give students a chance to reflect on the importance of family, health and friendships.”
