Flat Stanley was sent to me in an envelope from a fifth grader in Mrs. Wendy Water's (who is my neice) classroom in Mason City, Iowa. I had heard of Flat Stanley when I saw him on Live With Regis & Kelly when Kelly's son had a Flat Stanley come to their house and Kelly had brought Stanley to work with her. This was the first Flat Stanley to come to my house for a visit and I was determined to show him a good time in Huntsville!
In case you don't know about Flat Stanley, he is based on a book by Jeff Brown, called, what else?, Flat Stanley. Jeff Brown, who died in 2003, was on the editorial staffs of The New Yorker, The Saturday Evening Post, Life, and Esquire magazines. In Jeff Brown's own words, here's how the Flat Stanley story came about:
"More than thirty years ago, I was saying goodnight to my now grown-up sons, J.C. and Tony (Flat Stanley is dedicated to them), and JC stalling for more chat time, asked me not to leave the bedroom. He was scared, he claimed, and when I asked him what he was afraid of he couldn't think of anything. As I started out again, he had an inspiration. 'I'm afraid my big bulletin board will fall on me,' he said. I told him that that was ridiculous; the big board on the wall above his bed had been securely mounted by me, and even if it got loose it would do so so slowly that he wouldn't even notice it, just go off to sleep, and by the time it rested fully upon him he'd be sound asleep and wouldn't wake, so the board would just lie there all night. Then I thought of a small joke and said: 'Of course, when you wake up in the morning, you'll probably be flat.' Both boys thought that was a hoot and many evenings after that one, we'd make up stories about adventures you could have if you were flat."
In 1995, the now popular Flat Stanley Project was born and ever since teachers have been sending Flat Stanley out to visit interesting places. It is easy to send Flat Stanley in an envelope to anywhere you want. Students are learning all about different parts of the world with this unique teaching aid.
One of Flat Stanley's favorite times was when he visited The White House. Flat Stanley is now ready for some adventures in Huntsville. Come along as Flat Stanley checks out Huntsville, the Space & Rocket City!
Flat Stanley on "The Scarecrow Trail" at Huntsville Botanical Garden
Flat Stanley at 2004 Oktoberfest in Huntsville
Flat Stanley Explores the U.S. Space & Rocket Center
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