Learn how letters travel from one place to another, step by step, with a simple map of the mail journey.
Mail is how we send letters and packages to people far away! Here’s a simple way to understand how letters travel from one place to another.
First, you write a letter to someone. You might tell them about your day or ask them a question. Make sure to write the address of the person you want to send it to on the envelope, along with your return address in case they want to write back!
Once your letter is ready, you put it in your mailbox outside your house. The mailbox is where all the mail gets collected.
A mail carrier (a person who works for the post office) comes to your neighborhood to collect all the letters and packages from the mailboxes. They gather the mail and take it back to the post office.
At the post office, the mail is sorted. This means that the workers there will separate all the letters based on where they need to go. They use big machines and sometimes even do it by hand! Each letter gets put into a bag or a box that is going to the same place.
Next, the bags of sorted mail are put onto a delivery truck or even an airplane! They travel to another post office that is closer to where the recipient lives.
Once the mail arrives at the local post office, it gets sorted again. Now, it’s ready to be delivered. The mail carrier will take the mail and deliver it to the person's house.
Finally, the letter arrives at the recipient’s mailbox! They can now open it and read your message.
Your House ---> Mailbox ---> Mail Carrier ---> Post Office ---> Sorted by Workers ---> Delivery Truck/Airplane ---> Local Post Office ---> Final Mail Carrier ---> Recipient's House
And that’s how mail travels! Next time you send a letter, you’ll know just how far it has to go to reach your friend!