After another long desert summer, a slight coolness can be detected in the mornings here. It is a signal to desert dwellers that a much needed break is coming. And it is a signal to us at Pinnacle Presbyterian Preschool that our dear friend Notty will be back soon. Notty has spent his summer in Colorado, as he does each year. Being a small woodland elf, the desert heat is simply too much for him. But last week, the classrooms at PPP each received a very special (and very tiny!) piece of mail. It was our first letter of the year from Notty! Notty shared that he would be making the trek back to Arizona over the weekend. He expected that he would be back at school by Monday morning, so friends should look for him and his camper when they went outside to play. Sure enough, there was Notty’s camper tucked under a tree! Students investigated his tiny house: a loft bed with a ladder, a soft and snuggly blanket for cooler nights, miniature cookware, and a treasure box full of Notty’s most special things. Questions immediately arose: Where was Notty? How did he get his camper to Arizona? What did Notty cook in his camper? How tall was Notty? What does he look like?

It is at this exact moment that the magic of Notty begins each year. PPP teachers gently guide the students’ inquiry. They show them where Notty’s mailbox can be found, and explain that if we write a letter to Notty, he will write one back. Teachers set up tiny letter writing stations in their classrooms, and spend time together in Kiva writing down the students’ questions, sounding out the letters in Notty’s name, and demonstrating to their eager students how to fold a sheet of paper small enough to fit into a tiny envelope. For the rest of the year, “Notty Mail” becomes an integral part of our emergent curriculum. The students’ chose to write, draw pictures, create tiny gardening tools, entire homes, in fact, for this little friend they have only corresponded with via mail. They worry about Notty when a storm comes during the night (“I was so nervous that Notty’s camper would have a flood!”). They LOVE Notty, the tiny elf who gives them such kind, positive feedback. And we love him, too, for all the amazing learning he inspires each day in our beautiful preschool home. Welcome Back, little friend!