Kids Write Back: Postcards to the Parks

By Kaitlin de Blanc, National Park Service Education Intern at the Crissy Field Center

Have you ever sent a postcard of the Golden Gate Bridge to someone? In Crissy Field Center school programs this year, we had participants send their postcards to us! 

We, the school programs team at the Crissy Field Center, have made some successful additions to our weekly programs. The Garbology 101 program currently features a “comic book-style” activity booklet featuring a loveable narrator, Arty the Artifact. With a little guidance from program leaders, students get a feel for the life and times at Crissy Field and the Presidio during the Ohlone, Spanish Colonial, and Early American periods. The activity book includes drawings of the Ohlone people, pictures from the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition (World’s Fair), and photographs of artifacts that the archeology team finds at the Crissy Field Marsh.

The program team has also included a reflection piece to give us a little feedback on our work. Now, with every program, teachers will be sent back to class with a self-addressed and stamped envelope containing simulation postcard pieces that each student can fill out after their program. The postcards feature an empty space on one side for a drawing and lines on the other side for written comments. The envelope can be resealed and dropped in the mail. Postage is already paid.

The school programs staff members love to get these postcards back and read what the students liked best. Many student drawings feature the marsh, local flora and fauna, and the Golden Gate Bridge. The Bridge’s classic lines and distinctive color make it appealing—but perhaps also a little difficult to draw from memory. Some of our favorite drawings depict rather creative interpretations.

Because of the success of these postcards, other Crissy Field Center programs are considering beginning their own postcard activity. We can’t wait to see what drawings we receive from other program participants!