37
STUDY AND WRITING SKILLS
4.4
10
b
Find phrases in the email that you use when you
want to:
1
tell someone about something that you have just
remembered
2
change the subject you are talking about.
10
c
Can you find any other features of informal
writing in the email?
11
Find one phrase in each box that we do not use in
informal emails (or letters).
Greetings
Hello Hi Dear Jane Hiya Dear Sir/Madam
Opening phrases
How’s life? How are things? How are things going?
Hope you’re OK/well. How are you?
Thank you for your message of 26 May.
Hope everything’s OK. Hope all’s well.
Endings
Take care Yours faithfully Bye for now Love
See you soon Cheers With love Love from
12
a
Find the two examples of
thanks
in the email.
Then decide if these statements are true or false.
1
You use
thanks
with
for +
a noun (phrase) or a verb
ending in
-ing.
2
You can put other words after
thanks
, e.g.
very
much, again.
12
b
After saying
thanks
, we often add another
sentence for support. Match the phrases (1–4) with the
supporting comments (a–d).
1
Thanks for your advice.
2
Thanks for doing the shopping.
3
Thanks for dinner.
4
Thanks for the chocolates.
a
It’s my turn next time!
b
They were delicious!
c
It was lovely.
d
It’s been really useful.
13
Look at these sentences. What does
’s
mean:
is
,
has
or the possessive (e.g.
Simon’s health)
?
1
She’s had an operation.
2
It’s a boy!
3
There’s no problem with Dana’s eyesight.
4
The doctor’s skills are very useful there.
5
John’s broken his leg.
14
Write an informal email to a friend. Choose either
situation 1 or 2 below.
1
Thank your friend for a present or for helping you to
do something.
2
Tell your friend about something that has happened
in your life recently.
WRITING SKILLS
AN INFORMAL EMAIL
7
Discuss these questions with a partner.
1
How many emails do you receive a day? Do you
read them all in full?
2
Tell your group about an email you received that
made you happy.
3
Who do you send emails to? Why do you send those
emails? How much do you usually write?
4
Do you pay attention to spelling and punctuation
when you write emails?
8
Inferring
Read the informal email below and answer
these questions. Use the ideas in this lesson to help
you understand any difficult words or phrases.
1
Why has Abi written this email?
2
Where do you think Abi is living at the moment?
3
What do you think is happening in Abi’s bedroom at
home?
4
What kind of relationship do you think Abi has with
her mother?
5
How do you think Abi’s mother felt when she read
this email?
9
Which of these people can you send an informal
email to?
1
a brother or sister
3
a doctor
2
a bank manager
4
a friend
10
a
Here are two features of informal writing:
•
informal vocabulary (e.g.
guys
)
•
contractions (e.g.
I’m
)
Find other examples of these in the email.
Subject:
Hi Mum
Hope you’re OK. Have you watched any of the tennis this
week?
Thanks very much for that pile of mail. Most of it was junk,
but there was one very important letter from the bank!
Anyway, this is basically to let you know I’m feeling a
lot better about things now. On Monday, I went to see
one of the Health Officers here at the uni. She was really
helpful, though quite strict, too! She’s given me some
ideas to help me sleep. I’ve now cut out coffee in the
evenings completely, and there’s already a big difference.
And ... guess what? I’m even thinking about doing some
sport – but not until after the exams!
By the way, have those guys finished in my room yet?
I can’t wait to see what it looks like!
Thanks again for sending my mail. See you next month.
Love
Abi
inbox
6
