Informal Letters

Task 23. Work in pairs. Think and write down a list of as many purposes as you can for writing an informal letter. Compare it with other students’ ideas.

Task 24. Conventions of informal letters.

A) Read the following reference about informal letters.

NOTA BENE

An informal letter or a personal letter is a letter to a close friend or an acquaintance. So, informal letters are generally written to our friends, colleagues, to our parents, loved ones or our partners. Thus, informal letters can be written like your wish and there is no such perfect template for informal letters. But, since it is a letter, a common general format is described so that it gives a clear picture of what it says.

(based on http://www.letters.org/miscellaneous-letter/informal-letter-template.html)

B) Informal letters usually have the following structure:

1. Return or sender’s address.

2. Date

3. Recipient’s address

4. Salutation / greeting

5. Body / content in paragraphs.

6. Complimentary close.

7. Name and legible signature

8. Post Script

C) Take a look at the informal letter below, written by Tom Smithies to one of his friends about his memories of the Sixth form. Match the structural parts of the letter from the part B (from 1-8) with the places they appear in the given letter (from a- h)

  a) 305, International House University of Utah Salt Lake City b) June 29, 2009   c) McHales R.C. School, Manchester Road, Lancashire, England, M11 8SZ.   d) Dear Bob,   e) Many thanks for your letter and our Prom pictures, which arrived this morning Sorry, I have not been writing as regularly as I should.   The fact is I’ve started new life here in Utah. I live with some of my groupmates in the hostel. By the way, they call it dormitory here in the USA.   I enjoy being a student but still miss all my classmates. I must confess everything has changed. I’m glad I have many pleasant memories from the Sixth form.   Do you remember our last History exam? Finishing it signaled the completion of 12 years that I once thought would never end. We used to go to school five times a week, 39 weeks a year. It was so annoying! As the day I had looked forward to for years approached I expected a feeling of elation of breaking free – just think: old “So- and-So “ cannot criticize my homework ever again!. Yet in the event it was rather sad.   I miss our friends that have left. It has taken until now for me to understand how important these friendships are! Some have taken years to build up. I can’t help thinking it is possible that our paths will not cross again. Just two months ago they were lending me their calculators or sharing a bag of crisps and the latest joke… I remember our teachers that regarded us as halfway humans. That was so nice.   By the way, you’ve also just started college. Do you have the same feelings? I’m truly sorry to bother you with all this stuff but I think that you can understand the way I’m feeling at the moment. May be I’m a little bit still homesick What about meeting during our Christmas break in London? It would be great to see you again. See you soon, I hope. Bye for now. f) Best wishes, g) Tom h) P. S. Please call or write back a.s.a.p.!

Task 25.Read the following useful phrases for writing an informal letter. Write down your personal options in the blank spaces.

Salutation	Openings	Ending
Dear Mr / Ms	Thanks for your letter	Best wishes
Hello, …	It was great to get your letter	Yours sincerely
Hi,	I’m writing to ask you a favour	Yours faithfully
	Sorry for not writing for so long	Kind Regards
	Sorry, I have not been writing as regularly as I should.	Catch you later
		See you
		Take care
		Lots of love
		All the best
		Bye for now
		Looking forward to hearing from you

Task 26. Imagine that Tom Smithies is your former classmate and a friend of yours. Write him a reply letter (about 200-250 words) which is an account of your own feelings about leaving high school and being a student. Use the phrases from the Task 24.

Your letter may cover the following points:

· Your reaction to what Tom wrote

· Your memories about school life

· Comparing your own experiences

· Some recent changes in your life as a student

· Etc

Part 3. Further and higher education

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