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 Irvington, NY - Third-graders will be “sworn in” on March 26 by Donna Ryder, the local postmaster, as part of a pilot program that creates a working post office at Dows Lane School.
The post office, not open to the general public, is part of the United States Postal Service’s literacy program, Wee Deliver, which promotes reading, writing and life skills.
The event will take place take place on Wednesday, March 26, from approximately 11:35a.m. to 12:25 p.m in Room 125 at Dows Lane School (official address is now “125 Friendship Freeway”).
Letters can be written by ALL students (K, 1, 2, and 3) as well as teachers, administrators and staff, and can be sent to students, teachers, staff, and administrators. They will be collected, sorted and delivered to rooms by student letter carriers. All students will be expected to use proper addressing techniques – otherwise the letter may be stamped Return to Sender by the “nixie” clerk. Students will practice skills related to reading, writing, and responsibility while building a greater sense of community and school spirit.
The project combines the character education, good citizenship and community building objectives of the Dows Lane Action Plan (Goal #3), and has been organized by occupational therapist Ann Grundstein, special education teacher Cait Leggett and school psychologist Susan Schermerhorn.
The Wee Deliver program was launched by the US Postal Service in 1990 and, while no longer sponsored formally, our local post office is supporting this initiative by supplying mailboxes, stamps and their own postmaster to “swear in” the third-grade postal workers.
As part of this initiative, the hallways and common areas at Dows Lane have been named using character-based themes. Students were given three choices for their hallway (e.g., Loyalty Lane, Friendship Freeway, and Respect Road) and then voted for their favorite name. Traffic signs (e.g., Yield, Stop, Keep Right, etc.) will be posted soon to inform school members of the “traffic” flow, which will foster the feeling of a small village within a village.
For more information, contact Dr. Susan M. Schermerhorn at (914) 591-8696, or
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