Informal writing - pre-intermediate

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• havo
• Leerjaar 1

Informal writing 

Goals:

1. At the end of the lesson you know the difference between formal and informal.

2. At the end of the lesson you know how to start and end an informal letter

Look at these two texts. What are the differences?

Yo bro! How u doin? I haven't seen you in aaaaaaaages! You asked me about my hobbies, but I don't have any hobbies. I just like to sleep all day, when I'm not at school. Sometimes I hang out with my friends after school or at the weekend. Let me know what you do after school?

Rob

Look at these two texts. What are the differences?

Dear Brett,

How are you? I haven't seen you in ages!

You asked me about my hobbies, and I can tell you a bit about them in this letter. I really enjoy doing sports, but I also often play computer games. Sometimes I hang out with my friends after school or at the weekend.

Will you let me know what you do after school? I look forward to your letter!

All the best,

Rob

What is the difference between formal and informal?

Informal

Formal

Dear Tom, 

Haaai Tom

Wanna hang out?

How are you doin?

Kind regards,

Yours faithfully,

I am writing this letter to let you know

An informal letter - structure

Salutation

intro

body

ending

your name

Dear Kevin,

intro

body

I hope to hear from you soon.

Kind regards,

Jane Bond

Let's practice!

Note!

- Capital letters

- Punctuation

- Space

- Structure

How do you start an informal letter?

How do you end your letter?

Informal letter

Goals:

1. At the end of this lesson you know how to structure an informal letter.

2. At the end of this lesson you have practiced writing an informal letter.

What can you include in your intro (first paragraph)?

With what sentence can you end your letter?

You got a letter from your new pen pal. Read the letter, then read the instructions for the reply you will send to Kevin.

Dear pen pal,

I am writing from Germany and my name is Kevin. I’d like to be your new pen pal! I am 13 years old and share a room with my older brother. I’d love to receive a letter back from you about who you are and some information about your friends. 

I can’t wait to read your letter!

Kind regards,

Kevin

The task: use the lay-out of Kevin's letter to write your own reply

Thank Kevin for his letter

Then tell Kevin:

About your best friend.

What your room looks like.

About one of your classmates.

Something about your neighbourhood.

What the date is today.

What items you usually carry with you.

About your favourite subject at school and what day / time you have this subject.

Use between 125-150 words

Peerfeedback

Thank Kevin for his letter(2)

Then tell Kevin:

About your best friend.       (2)

What your room looks like. (2)

About one of your classmates. (2)

Something about your neighbourhood. (2)

What the date is today. (1)

What items you usually carry with you. (2)

About your favourite subject at school and what day / time you have this subject. (2)

Use between 125-150 words

15 points

Peerfeedback

- Capital letters (2)

- Spelling (2)

- Sentence structures (2)

- Punctuation (2)

8 points

How can you improve your letter?

Rewrite your letter and implement the feedback you received

Informal letter

1. How can you improve your writing?

Letter to a friend.

Write a letter to a friend. 

- You haven't seen your friend in a while. Ask your friend how he/she is doing.

- Ask about the Christmas break, what did he/she do?

- Tell your friend about two activities that you are planning to do in the upcoming break. 

- Ask if he/she wants to join in one of these activities. 

- Tell something about your school/class.

150 words.

- You haven't seen your friend in a while. Ask your friend how he/she is doing. (2)

- Ask about the Christmas break, what did he/she do? (2)

- Tell your friend about two activities that you are planning to do in the upcoming break. (2)

- Ask if he/she wants to join in one of these activities.  (2)

- Tell something about your school/class. (2)

- Write the time in full. (1)

150 words. (1)

- salutation (1)

- structure (1)

- ending (2)

- punctuation (2)

- spelling (2)

- full sentences (2)

- sentence structures (2)

Total: 24 points

Tip

Write something extra to gain more points. This will not only help you gain more points, it will also help with your wordlimit.

Are you going to rock the formative test?

Yes!!! I feel confident about writing an informal letter.

Yes! I think I will do a good job and get a sufficient.

Hmmm, I am not so sure yet. I think this is quite difficult.

How in the world am I going to write a letter in English.... aaaa!