Article: Minding their manners// Helping kids write thank-you notes

In a perfect world, children would write thank-you notes as eagerly as they tear open holiday packages.

In reality, you probably have to nag your children to say thank you, let alone write it. Don't despair. Between Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa, there are plenty of opportunities for kids to practice.

Still, children find an amazing number of reasons for not putting pen, pencil or crayon to paper for etiquette's sake. "Men never want to handle personal correspondence, and I'm trying to change the stereotypical assumption that they can't do it," says Ann Armstrong, of Branchburg, N.J. To that end, Armstrong insists her son, Drew, write a thank-you note every time he receives a gift. ...