Where did you get this idea?
During the 2005-2006 school year, my class was involved in two projects, a traveling buddy project and a postcard exchange. While searching on the internet for a new project for the 2006- 2007 school year, I stumbled onto Bev Adam's wonderful site (which is, unfortunately no longer on line) and learned about Owney!!
Owney was a real dog that was adopted by Postal workers in the late 1800's. He traveled around the country on trains from post office to post office. You can learn more about this famous dog at the National Postal Museum. Bev began this project in 1996 after her class read Owney's story in their reading book. Her class sends a stuffed Owney to classrooms around the US, who mail him quickly to the next class in an effort to have him circle the country (and return home) in one school year! It became an annual project for her class (and for many teachers who participated each year in classrooms around the country).
I loved Bev's idea because it combined both a traveling buddy (in her case a stuffed puppy also named Owney) and a postcard exchange! Unfortunately, she already had a participant for Virginia. So I decided to use her project as a model for my own 2006-2007 project... Thanks Bev! :o) We are now beginning our 4th year of Ollie's Travels!!!! This year our project will have a new twist--see below for details!
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Who will be traveling in this project?
Our project will center around a stuffed puppy... Ollie! He will be like his "cousin" Owney who traveled around the country. But instead of visiting post offices, Ollie will visit classrooms across the United States before school lets out! THIS YEAR, Ollie's twin brother Oscar has decided to join him in this project. Ollie and Oscar will be racing across the USA to see who can visit 25 states first! It will be an exciting twist to an already memorable project!!
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How is the project set up?
We are looking for a participating class from each of the 50 states (sign up below if you are interested)! Ollie and Oscar will race across the country. They will have time to visit each class for 1 day only. Be sure to pack a ton of fun into your special day with Ollie or Oscar! Why only one day? Remember...this is a RACE and both Ollie and Oscar want to earn "bragging rights" for being the fastest puppy! Oscar won in the 2009-2010--who will win this year!?
In Ollie or Oscar's box you'll find a folder of information (and books about Owney). There is also a notebook for you to sign so we can see how many new friends they meet! Before sending out the box you may want to add a small pin or souvenir (this is optional, though). After Ollie and Oscar continue on their trip, you'll send the other 49 classes a postcard so they can learn about your state! Then email Mrs. Stamp details and pictures of your visit, so it can be added to the online travel journal for everyone to read!!
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What will I need to do to participate?
1. Sign up below (unfortunately, I can only accept one class per state). Any elementary age class is welcome to participate (PreK-5th grade). States in bold do not yet have a participant.
2. Collect 49 postcards for the other participating classes (and have them addressed and prepared for mailing). See below for resources for inexpensive and FREE postcards! I will email you an address template that can be printed onto labels once our list is complete.
3. Read books and check out online resources (about Owney, the postal mascot, the postal service and mail, and our 50 states)-- see below for some ideas to get you started!
4. Get ready to have Ollie or Oscar for a 1 day visit! Let your traveling puppy participate in all the fun you have during your school day!! His box will include a journal. Please sign your names in his journal and include it when you mail him to the next class. It will be great to see how many people Ollie and Oscar meet in their travels! Feel free to include a small pin or souvenir in the box (this is optional).
5. Mail Ollie or Oscar to the next class the same day or the next day after he arrives. This is very important, so that we can find out who will win this great race across the USA! Let's make sure ALL the classes get to meet our furry friend! Put a package tracker or delivery confirmation on the box so we can always be aware of Ollie and Oscar's location. There will be an address label sheet in the box, so you will just need to pull off the next label, attach it to the box, and send it! Email Mrs. Stamp to let me know the package tracker/ delivery confirmation number.
6. Send 1-2 paragraphs to Mrs. Stamp which will be posted in Ollie and Oscar's online travel journal. Include details about your experiences with Ollie or Oscar, digital photos, and your classroom or school website.
7. Mail the postcards to the other classes within one week of his visit to let them know Ollie or Oscar has visited you (include information about your state so we can learn about your area too). Please don't wait to mail Ollie or Oscar until your postcards are completed... we don't want to slow down their journey!
8. Keep up-to-date of Ollie's travels and Oscar's adventures in the USA by reading the travel journal! Watch your mailbox for postcards as the puppies make their way around the USA!! How many people will they meet? How many miles will they travel? Who will win this RACE ACROSS THE USA!? Let's find out!!
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Do you still need a participant from my state?
***2010-2011 Sign Up AVAILABLE NOW!! ***
States listed in BOLD are needed for our 2010-2011 project.
1. Alabama: Mrs. Protz's 2nd grade class
2. Alaska: Mrs. McKinley's kindergarten class
3. Arizona: Mrs. Ballard's 2nd grade class
4. Arkansas: Ms. Vernon's 1st grade class
5. California: Ms. Dixon's 3rd grade class
6. Colorado: Ms. Pennell's kindergarten class
7. Connecticut: Mrs. Weir's 1st grade class
8. Delaware: Mrs. Russell's 1st grade class
9. Florida: Mrs. Sullivan's 4th grade class
10. Georgia: Mrs. McDavid's 2nd grade class
11. Hawaii: Mrs. Glaser's 1st grade class
12. Idaho: Mrs. Taylor's 1st grade class
13. Illinois: Mrs. Corn's 1st grade class
14. Indiana: Mrs. Hamilton's kindergarten class
15. Iowa: Mrs. Pickhinke's transitional kindergarten class
16. Kansas: Mrs. Gotsche's 2nd grade class
17. Kentucky: Mrs. Bertrand's 3rd grade class
18. Louisiana: Mrs. Danzy's kindergarten class
19. Maine: Miss Kent's kindergarten class
20. Maryland: Mrs. Durst's pre-kindergarten class
21. Massachusetts: Mrs. Simmons' 1st grade class
22. Michigan: Mrs. Rogman's 2nd grade class
23. Minnesota: Ms. Jones' 2nd grade class
24. Mississippi: Mrs. Mosely's 1st grade class
25. Missouri: Mrs. Blankenburg's 2nd grade class
26. Montana: Mrs. Lipp's kindergarten class
27. Nebraska: Mrs. Sullivan's 4th grade class
28. Nevada: Mrs. Isham's 2nd grade class
29. New Hampshire: Mrs. DeFreze's 4th grade class
30. New Jersey: Miss Siersma's 3rd grade class
31. New Mexico: Miss Romero's 1st grade class
32. New York: Mrs. Diagostino's pre-kindergarten class
33. North Carolina: Mrs. Thompson's kindergarten class
34. North Dakota: Mrs. Hudson's kindergarten class
35. Ohio: Mrs. Finnegan's 1st grade class
36. Oklahoma: Mrs. Shiplett's 1st grade class
37. Oregon: Mrs. Bollen's 2nd grade class
38. Pennsylvania: Mrs. Hibb's 2nd grade class
39. Rhode Island: Mrs. Walker and Mrs. Saila's 1st grade
40. South Carolina: Mrs. Davidson's K, 1st, & 2nd multi-age class
41. South Dakota: Mrs. Lone's kindergarten class
42. Tennessee: Mrs. Shedd's kindergarten class
43. Texas: Mrs. LeGault's 4th grade class
44. Utah: Mrs. Lee's 3rd grade class
45. Vermont
46. Virginia: Mrs. Stamp's kindergarten class
47. Washington: Mrs. Reynold's pre-kindergarten class
48. West Virginia: Miss Miller's 1st grade class
49. Wisconsin: Mrs. Dana's Head Start class
50. Wyoming: Miss Steuhm's kindergarten class
Here are the details for the participating classes so far:
| Pre-K or Transitional Kindergarten |
5
|
| Kindergarten |
12
|
| First Grade |
13
|
| Second Grade |
10
|
| Third Grade |
4
|
| Fourth Grade |
4
|
| Fifth Grade |
0
|
| Multi-Age |
1
|
| TOTAL |
49
|
|
We still need
|
1
|
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How can I sign up?
Complete the form below or email me with the required information.
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Where can I find inexpensive postcards?
**Many retailers (like Wal-Mart) and Target have postcards of your state and local attractions.
**Another great resource is VistaPrint! I just got 50 FREE postcards and only had to pay shipping ($5.25)... at 11 cents a postcard, it's still a terrific deal!! UPDATE: I realized that I ordered "oversized postcards" so they will require $ .39 postage rather than $ .24 postcard postage... oh well, what can you do? Here's the link for the standard postcards (100 FREE postcards for $5.25 shipping= 5 cents each) Click here for this offer.
****You can edit, move, or add text boxes and search a directory of over 70,000 pictures (just double click on an image to change; adding your own images costs extra).
****I also changed the back layout of my postcard. There was no charge for grayscale printing on the back.
****Be careful though, they offer lots of "exciting" deals... just decline or close any pop-up windows that appear and check the total carefully before you confirm (to make sure you got them for free!).
****Let me know if you have any questions about how I changed the postcard to fit my needs. Here is the front and back of the FREE postcards I designed:
**IDEA from Melissa Pritchett --"Also, a great resource you may want to share with everyone for state postcards is their state tourism and travel bureau! I didn't get all the postcards I needed from them, but I emailed them and they did send me over thirty Alabama postcards for FREE."
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How can I learn more about the real postal mascot, Owney?
**A good place to start is the National Postal Museum. You can learn more Owney at this website.
**Check your local library for books about Owney or purchase your own copies.
**Here are two books about Owney that are no longer in print, but can be viewed online (or purchased used from Used book stores or Amazon marketplace):
****One written in 1977 by Lynn Hall entitled, Owney the Traveling Dog.
****Another book about Owney was the 1966 book, Any Friend of Owney's, by Carl Biemiller.
**You can see many of Owney's tags and learn more about him on the Arago: People, Places, and the Post site. On the drop down menu, click "Popular Culture", then "Seals and Symbols", and finally "Owney the Dog". Get a close-up look at some of his most memorable tags!!
**The National Postal Museum has some neat, short videos the railway postal service. Check out: Mail By Rail and Mail-on-the-Fly.
**If you're near Washington, DC, visit Owney at the National Postal Museum!
Click here to see pictures of our field trip there in November 2006!
**You can even download Owney wallpaper for your computer!
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What other Postal Service and U.S. Mail resources might be helpful?
**The United States Postal Service has many classroom resources on its website. You can also learn postal history there.
**The National Postal Museum has many resources for educators and even an activity zone for kids.
**Read lots of books about mail and the post office. Below are just a few of the hundreds of fiction and non-fiction books on the subject:
TEACHERS: Have you found other great resources?? Please email them to me and I will add them to this list!
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What resources might be useful to learn more about the United States?
**There's a wealth of information on the 50 states.com site! This includes everything from the capital to what their license plate looks like.
**KidSpace is a great resource for kids to learn more about our 50 states too.
**The KidPort site provides lots of great information too! After learning key facts take a state quiz to test your knowledge.
**Check out First Gov for Kids. On this site, you can see a website for each state!
**Explore the country at America's Library! There are facts and trivia with a clickable map.
**Once you've studied the locations of the states, you can try your hand at this challenge. Can you correctly place each state? It's harder that it looks! :o)
**At State Animals.com, you can even make a report cover with your state animal on it!
**Find out which star on the US flag "belongs" to your state! You can also see each of the 50 state flags on this site.
**Do you wonder if there more boys or girls in your state? Find out more about each state's population at Fact Finder Kid's Corner from the US Census Bureau!
**Check out the Map Machine from National Geographic. You can plug in the zip code where Ollie and Oscar are traveling to see a road map and even a satellite image of their location!
**Of course, there are tons of books to read about our country as well:
TEACHERS: Have you found other great resources?? Please email them to me and I will add them to this list!
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Are there any books specifically about my state?
YES! Click here for lots of book resources for your state. The list includes both fiction and non-fiction books.
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What extension activities could I try?
**Start by reading some of the book ideas and visiting a few of the suggested sites (listed above).
**Calculate how many miles Ollie and Oscar travel on their journeys.
**Find the difference in temperatures from one location to the next.
**Determine the total postage costs for their journeys.
**Give each child a map to track Ollie and Oscar's trips. This could also become a class bulletin board.
**Make predictions as to the date Ollie or Oscar will arrive at your school... reward the child who was closest by letting him/her be the first to hold the puppy!
**Estimate how many signatures Ollie and Oscar will accumulate in their journals... how many friends will he meet?
**Write letters to Ollie and Oscar and/or keep a scrapbook of their travels.
**Research and learn more about the states Ollie and Oscar visit. Create a class book of your findings.
**IDEA from Mona Kerby (children's author of many books, including a forthcoming book, Owney, the Mail Pouch Pooch)--"The real Owney loved trinkets, medallions, little things he could add to his collar. Maybe students could design and draw a medal that represents their school or city or state?"
**The possibilities are endless, you can make this activity as simple or as extensive as you wish... have fun!!
TEACHERS: Do you have other great ideas?? Please email them to me and I will add them to this list!
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rs. 
tamp's 
indergarten
