← 📝 English as a Second Language
Writing an email or letter
Planning and writing a clear, well-organised email that covers every point in the task with the right register.
📌 Key points
- Read the task carefully: identify who you are writing to, why you are writing and every bullet point you must cover.
- Cover all the bullet points; missing one out lowers your content mark.
- Develop each point with details, reasons or examples rather than writing one short sentence for each.
- Organise the email in paragraphs: an opening that states the purpose, a paragraph for each main point, and a short closing.
- Begin with a suitable greeting and end with a suitable closing phrase and sign-off that match the register.
- Choose a register that suits the reader: informal for a friend, formal for a manager or organisation.
- Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures, including linking words, but accuracy matters more than showing off.
- Keep to the word count stated in the question; plan briefly before you write and check your work at the end.
- In an informal email, show interest in the reader, for example by asking a question or referring to their news.
📖 Key terms
- Bullet points
- The prompts in the task that tell you what content to include.
- Content
- What you say: how fully and relevantly you cover the task.
- Develop
- Add details, reasons or examples to a point.
- Greeting
- The opening words of an email, such as 'Dear Mrs Ali' or 'Hi Sam'.
- Sign-off
- The closing words before your name, such as 'Best wishes' or 'Yours sincerely'.
- Paragraph
- A group of sentences about one main idea, separated from the next by a new line.
✏️ Worked example
Task: You recently went on a school trip. Write an email to a friend. Tell them: where you went; what you enjoyed most; why they should go there. How should you plan your email?
- Identify the reader and register: a friend, so the email is informal and friendly.
- Opening paragraph: greet your friend and say why you are writing — 'Hi Maya, I've just got back from an amazing trip!'
- Paragraph 2 (bullet 1): say where you went and add a detail, such as how you travelled.
- Paragraph 3 (bullet 2): describe what you enjoyed most and explain why.
- Paragraph 4 (bullet 3): give reasons why your friend should go, linked to their interests, then close: 'Write soon, Leo'.
- Answer: one paragraph per bullet point, each developed, with an informal greeting and sign-off.
Tick off each bullet point in the question as you write it. A well-written email that misses a bullet point cannot get top marks for content.
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