The Geography of Stamps:
Exploring, Decoding and Creating

Before we had a postal service, what were some of the ways people could get messages or important information to those who lived somewhere else?

In neighboring villages

In other territories

         In different countries

What makes stamps a significant part of history? Why would people want to collect these little bitty pieces of paper?

         Go to this webpage and then to the section that says, “Why Collect.” This is a short but interesting explanation of this man’s
                 view of why stamp collecting is a worthwhile hobby. Overview of the Stamp Collecting Site

History on Stamps The history of stamps. Includes links to forgeries, errors, and albums.	Just for Kids - History of Stamps History of where the idea of the stamp came from and what people did to send messages before stamps were invented.
Their Stamp on History Information on the people, places and events that have been honored on stamps.	Just for Kids - Stamps Through the Years A brief history of postage stamps through the years.
Sammler.Com A short overview of the world of stamps.	Fact Monster Women who left their “stamps” on history.
History of Postal Systems History of the postal systems from ancient Egypt on.

Start a class-wide stamp collection.

         Send a note home with each student explaining your project and have the
              parents, family members, neighbors and friends start tearing off the section of
              their envelopes that have stamps on them. Have the students bring those in. Go
              to the same website from the PRE-visit section for some great tips on how to
              sort the stamps, take them off the paper, and how to display them.
              (Overview of the Stamp Collecting Site )

        Collecting stamps is not only a fun hobby, but gives students the opportunity to
             view the world in a different way. Stamps can say so much about the important
             people, animals, places, customs, and traditions of a culture.

        This could also be the perfect opportunity to start a Pen Pal project. There are
            many sites online that can help your students find a class from another part of the
            world to communicate with. It is more expensive and time consuming to mail
            letters than to email, but the rewards are great! Not only could you broaden your
            stamp collection with stamps from around the world, but you could also expose
            your students to the world in an exciting way. Track where the letters come from
            on a large map and then study characteristics of those areas. You could also have
            an exchange of small items such as postcards, pins, stickers, cartoons, unique
            pencils, etc.

Here are a few websites to look at if you are interested:

           World Pen Pals
           Student Letter Exchange
           Kids Space Connection: Pen Pal Box

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The Geography of Stamps: Exploring, Decoding and Creating

The Geography of Stamps:
Exploring, Decoding and Creating