In the age of email, Twitter, and texting, the old-fashioned letter is an endangered species. So, as the U.S. Postal Service fights for its continued existence, let’s take some time to participate in National Letter Writing Week, which lasts from January 8 to January 15. National Letter Writing Week just so happens to follow the holiday season, perhaps attempting to remind errant gift recipients to write those belated thank you letters.

Children (and, often, adults) of all ages tend to despise writing thank you letters. After all, having grown up in the techno-era, thank you letters must seem awfully antiquated. Yet making thank you letters a habit can pay off tenfold later in life.

First, writing thank you letters encourages children to, well, write. Study after study and test result after test result has shown that today’s students are not proficient writers, and while this may not seem overly important to some students, writing is an essential skill for success in nearly any career field. Students who read and write often become stronger writers, allowing them to craft stellar college and grad school admissions essays, highly effective papers and reports for classes, strong resumes and cover letters, and, eventually, impressive business-related correspondence. By encouraging your children to make letter-writing a habit (even if it’s a habit that only appears after receiving a gift), you can help to encourage stronger writing skills later in life.

Moreover, writing thank you letters is just plain nice. Who doesn’t enjoy receiving heartfelt thanks for a thoughtful gift? Instilling this kind of prompt gratitude not only encourages your children to be mindful of others, but may even pay off in adulthood. Who knows – the day may come when a well-written thank you letter could net your child an important business contact.

So take some time during National Letter Writing Week to encourage your children to catch up on those thank you letters. Get them to take a break from email and texting in order to craft a truly heartfelt thank you for a loved one – and get them to exercise those latent writing muscles as well!