Flant Stanley Comes All the Way From America

The origin of Flat Stanley comes from a book by a 1964 children's book by Jeff Brown and illustrated by Tom Ungerer.

According to Wikipedia.com, the synopsis of the book is this. "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 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."

This book is read by many teachers and students in the classroom across the world today. The idea of mailing Flat Stanley to relatives and friends around the world and having them document their travels has become common place in American classrooms. One of my daughter's friends, Zoe Schearer, asked if we could show Flat Stanley what it is like in Switzerland, so I introduced him to the Beehive International Preschool where students had the chance to welcome him in our classroom. I wonder where he will travel next?