The Flat Stanley Project is very simple. Students make a paper Flat Stanley and mail it, along with a blank journal, to someone on the List of Participants or to a celebrity or politician. The recipient treats the visiting Stanley as a guest and takes it places. After a few weeks Stanley is mailed back with a completed journal and perhaps some photographs, post cards, and souvenirs. You share with your class what Stanley has done, where he has been and plot his travels on a map.
Some classes send out hundreds of Stanleys.
Having your class on the list means being prepared to have others send Stanleys to you, too. This Flat Stanley Project was begun using electronic text-based contacts in 1995 and was put on the Web on August 1, 1996. Since then there have been unique visitors to this site.