Mastering Written Communication: Formal and Informal Writing Techniques

Mastering Written Communication: Formal and Informal Writing Techniques

Learning Objective

At the end of the lesson, you will be able to write formal and informal letters, articles, complaint letters, and essays using correct grammar, punctuation, and layout.

What do you already know about formal and informal writing?

Formal Letters

Formal letters are used for business, academic, and legal purposes. They have a specific format, including the sender's address, the date, the recipient's address, a salutation, body paragraphs, and a closing.

Informal Letters

Informal letters are used for personal communication. They do not have a specific format but should still follow basic rules of grammar, punctuation, and spelling.

Articles

Articles are used to inform, persuade, or entertain readers. They can be found in magazines, newspapers, academic journals, and websites. Articles should have a clear structure, including an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

Complaint Letters

Complaint letters are used to express dissatisfaction with a product or service. They should be written in a formal tone and should include specific details about the problem, as well as any attempts to resolve it.

Essays

Essays are used to express ideas and opinions on a particular topic. They should have a clear structure, including an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Essays should also use appropriate language, punctuation, and grammar.

Conjunctions

Conjunctions are used to connect words, phrases, or clauses. They include coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or), subordinating conjunctions (because, although, if), and correlative conjunctions (either...or, neither...nor).

Tense

Tense is used to indicate when an action takes place. The three main tenses are past, present, and future. Tense should be consistent throughout a piece of writing.

Layout

Layout refers to the formatting of a piece of writing. It includes elements such as margins, spacing, font size, and headings. Layout should be consistent throughout a piece of writing.

Capitalization

Capitalization is used to indicate the beginning of a sentence or a proper noun. It should also be used for titles and headings. Capital letters should not be used for emphasis.

Punctuation

Punctuation is used to indicate the structure and organization of a piece of writing. It includes elements such as periods, commas, and quotation marks. Punctuation should be used correctly to avoid confusion.

Prepositions

Prepositions are used to indicate the relationship between words in a sentence. They include words such as in, on, under, and beside. Prepositions should be used correctly to avoid confusion.

Articles

Articles are used to indicate whether a noun is definite (the) or indefinite (a/an). They should be used correctly to avoid confusion.

Exercise: Formal vs. Informal Writing

Provide a sample letter and ask students to identify whether it is formal or informal.

Exercise: Punctuation

Provide a paragraph with missing punctuation and ask students to add the correct punctuation.

Exercise: Layout

Provide a sample article with incorrect layout and ask students to identify the errors.

Activity: Writing a Formal Letter

Provide a scenario and ask students to write a formal letter to address the situation.

Write down 3 things you learned in this lesson.

Write down 2 things you want to know more about.

Ask 1 question about something you haven't quite understood yet.