Plea to card publishers to expand Maped Helix’s Pen Pals 4 Pupils project
Getting kids to put pen to paper – and greeting cards – is the aim behind Maped Helix’s National Stationery Week initiative that’s going to last a whole school year.
And the writing equipment giant has asked for the help of the greetings industry with its Pen Pals 4 Pupils project so youngsters learn the joy and importance of sending both cards and letters, while proving the truth of NSW’s hashtag #WritingMatters.
Maped Helix has set up the free project to link youngsters in Years 3 to 5 with their peers in other parts of the country, offering them a safe way to swap handwritten letters and build lifelong friendships as part of the annual event which kicks on Monday, running through to Sunday, May 15-21.
“It’s perfect that Pen Pals 4 Pupils is starting off the 2023 National Stationery Week campaign,” said NSW coordinator and indie retailer Sarah Laker, who owns Stationery Supplies in Marple and Wilmslow, “it will help children’s social, communication and handwriting skills and also let them experience the joy of both sending and receiving letters and cards – the true spirit of National Stationery Week.”
The project will continue after National Stationery Week 2023 so schools have until May 22 to sign up, and will be notified by June 5 of their partner school, and Maped Helix will provide support throughout the 2023-24 academic year.
To help the youngsters enjoy their correspondence, Maped Helix is hoping card publishers will send a few notecards and birthday cards suitable for children aged seven to 10, which it can also distribute to the schools.
Sarah added: “As it’s going on throughout the year, the children should get to know each other quite well so will be celebrating birthdays, and it would be great if the greeting card industry could help by providing a few spare cards, and notecards will make more interesting sends for them too – even just a handful would be fantastic!”
All UK schools with Years 3 to 5 pupils are invited to take part and, once signed up, Maped Helix will match each class with a suitable group elsewhere in the country so they can start sharing stories and ideas with their new pen pals, helping improve literacy and boost imagination in a fun and exciting way.
Five of the schools will be selected at random to win a fabulous Maped Helix stationery bundle as well as signed copies of bestselling children’s author Chris Smith’s new book, Clarity Jones And The Magical Detective Agency.
For schools to find out more and register to take part in the Maped Helix Pen Pals 4 Pupils project visit www.mapedhelix.co.uk.
Publishers with spare birthday cards and notecards should email marketing@mapedhelix.co.uk to make arrangements to get the cards to Maped Helix for distributing them to the schools around the country.
