Topics to Write About

• Choosing a topic to write about may be difficult for some seventh graders communicating with a pen pal. However, most of the time, the most natural subjects are those familiar to children of all different cultures: emotions, experiences and questions about life transcend cultural barriers and bring people of all ages together. It may also be interesting for a child of that age to inquire about the cultural differences between his country and his pen pal's country. This is one of the unique benefits of writing to a child from a completely different culture.
  
  

Method of Communication

• Another factor to consider when writing to an international pen pal is the preferred method of communication for both children. Depending on the country her pen pal is from, email or social network messaging may be preferable to mail because of delivery issues; however, it may be more of a personal experience to receive letters that are handwritten. Communication with the child's pen pal will answer the questions she has about her particular situation.
  
  

Amount of Communication

• How often he will communicate with his pen pal is another thing to consider. It may be a difficult experience to be faithfully writing to his friend, only to suddenly stop receiving letters. This decision may depend on the reason he is corresponding in the first place; is it for a school project, or is it out of his own free will? If it is for a school project, will he continue when the semester is over, or will he conclude with a final letter? He should also be in communication with his pen pal if he thinks one of his letters may have gotten lost in the mail.
  
  

Meet Up

• This is by far the most complex of all the seventh grade pen pal ideas; meeting up with the international student she is corresponding with may be difficult or altogether impossible. Whatever the case, meeting up may be something she eventually wants to do, especially if she has corresponded for quite some time. Meeting the pen pal she has been writing to will introduce her to a completely different culture, and the experience will be much more hands-on than writing letters alone.