For some teachers, the learning never stops. Every lesson they prepare for their students offers them new insight and a chance to learn something too.

When Jolene Barron's third-grade social studies classes at Tamaqua Elementary School displayed an interest in learning more about individual states than the curriculum provides, she immediately began thinking of ways to nurture and fulfill that interest.She wanted the learning experience to be something fun, because kids learn better when they enjoy the subject. So, how do you make a project interesting, educational and fun?It came to her late on a mid-March night. What if the classes could travel the country by way of postcards?They could gather postcards from around the nation and then place them on a map of the United States. But how do you go about getting postcards from so many far away places?The answer turned out to be a private forum on Facebook the Tamaqua Then and Now page.Knowing the page had members from throughout the country, each with an interest in Tamaqua, Mrs. Barron posted a message on the page, asking if members from other states would be willing to send a postcard to her class. She didn't expect what happened next.Overnight, her message had been shared dozens of times. Within two days, it became hundreds of shares. Soon, her simple request went viral, attracting the attention of the media and then, the world.ProgressThe class received their first postcards two days after the Facebook posting.There were so many replies, and so much community interest, Mrs. Barron created a page on the Tamaqua Area School District website with a map of the United States.Here, she would be able to keep track of each postcard and its sender. She posted the webpage address on Facebook so the community could also keep track (and, in many cases, nudge their family members in other states to get busy sending postcards). The website was visited more than 6,000 times within one week.Six days after receiving the first postcard on March 18, the lone holdout was Idaho, but not for long.The very next day, March 19, the map was complete. In addition to postcards from throughout the country, the class has also received numerous packages, each containing something specific from the state where it originated.The Seattle Seahawks NFL team (Mrs. Barron's favorite) sent a package of gear.Truck drivers sent cards from along their route. From Florida came fossils of sting ray barbs and shark's teeth, as well as greetings from the House of Mouse.You can just imagine the children's excitement over opening a package sent by their favorite Disney characters.While the map is complete, the mail brings something new each day. With all 50 states covered, it's on to the world for the students. They've already received mail from Canada, Brussels, Singapore, Holland and Ireland.Lessons learnedThe 52 students in the social studies class will now each complete a project on a specific state. It will be up to them to decide what type of project, from posters, to brochures, to shadow boxes, or a different type, with the teacher's approval of course.Then the projects will be shared with the rest of the students and staff at the Tamaqua Elementary School some in the lobby, some in the classrooms.In addition to learning more about their country, Mrs. Barron hopes her students also learn a few lessons about social media."I hope they remember just how quickly something spreads on Facebook and other social media sites. It only took two days for this positive post to go viral. I told them negative things are spread twice as fast, so think twice before posting," she cautions.As for Mrs. Barron, she's learned just how much the community wants to be involved with education and that people are willing to help.All you have to do is ask.