Until the day before yesterday I had never heard of Flat Stanley, but I received an email from Stace in Arizona, who asked me if I would be able to take her nephew’s friend Flat Stanley somewhere with me on my travels.
I had a quick search on Google, and Wikipedia came up with the following information on Flat Stanley:-
Stanley Lambchop and his younger brother Arthur are given a big bulletin board by their Dad for putting pictures and posters on. He hangs it on the wall over Stanley’s bed, but during the night the board falls from the wall, flattening Stanley in his sleep. He survives and makes the best of his altered state, and soon he is entering locked rooms by sliding under the door, and playing with his younger brother by being used as a kite. Stanley even helps catch some art museum sneak thieves by posing as a painting on the wall. But one special advantage is that Flat Stanley can now visit his friends by being mailed in an envelope. Eventually Arthur, who tires of all the attention Stanley has been getting, reverts Stanley to his proper shape through an air pump used for footballs.
But the interesting thing is that this idea is now being used by schools and educators to teach children literacy and world awareness. In 2005, more than 6,000 classes from 47 countries took part in the Flat Stanley Project.
So why not help out, I thought, and on Wednesday Flat Stanley came with me down to Fremantle, where my first didgeridoo lesson took place. Yesterday he went with me to visit friends, and on the way home we visited Pinnaroo Cemetary, where he achieved his Australian goal of seeing kangaroos. He has really enjoyed being out and about on the motorbike in the sun!
