EMAIL WRITING!

BASICS

100

WHAT IS THE MAIN PURPOSE OF THE SUBJECT LINE IN AN EMAIL?

A. To greet the reader
B. To tell the reader what the email is about
C. To end the email
D. To introduce yourself

B. TO TELL THE READER WHAT THE EMAIL IS ABOUT.

200

WHICH GREETING IS THE MOST APPROPRIATE WHEN WRITING AN EMAIL TO YOUR TEACHER?

A. Yo!
 B. Hey bro!
 C. Dear Mr Lim,
 D. What's up?

C. DEAR MR LIM, 

300

Which of these should you normally avoid when writing a formal email?

 A. Complete sentences
B. Polite expressions
C. Text-message abbreviations such as "u" and "pls"
D. Paragraphs

C. Text-message abbreviations such as "u" and "pls"

400

A student wants to email her teacher because she was absent from school. Which subject line is BEST? 

A. Hi
B. Important!!!
C. About yesterday
D. Absence from Class on 15 August

D. Absence from Class on 15 August

500

Your friend writes:

"Hey teacher, I can't come 2 school tmr. Pls tell me what I missed."

Identify two problems with this email.

• The greeting is too informal.

• It uses text-message language ("2", "tmr", "pls").

• The tone is not polite/formal enough.

• The email needs a clearer explanation.

STRUCTURE

100

Name three important parts of an email.

Subject line, greeting, body, closing/sign-off.

200

Which part of the email contains the main information? 

A. Subject line
B. Greeting
C. Body
D. Sign-off

C. Body

300

Put these parts in the correct order:

1. Sign-off
2. Greeting
3. Subject
4. Body

3 → 2 → 4 → 1

400

Why is it useful to divide a long email into paragraphs?

It makes the email easier to read and helps organise different ideas.

500

Your teacher asks you to write an email about a school trip. You need to:

• explain why you are writing
• ask about the trip
• thank the teacher

Which information should appear in the opening, middle and closing of the email?

• Opening: State the purpose of writing.

• Middle: Ask questions about the trip.

• Closing: Thank the teacher and end politely.

LANGUAGE & TONE

100

Which expression is the most polite? 

A. Tell me the answer.
B. Give me the answer.
C. Could you please tell me the answer?
D. I want the answer.

C. Could you please tell me the answer?

200

Change this sentence to make it more polite.

"Send me the homework."

"Could you please send me the homework?"

300

Which sentence is more suitable for an email to a teacher? 

A. I wanna ask about the homework.
B. I would like to ask about the homework.

B. I would like to ask about the homework.

400

Difference between formal and informal language?

Formal language is more polite, respectful and appropriate. Informal language is more relaxed and is commonly used with friends.

500

Improve this sentence:

"I need you to tell me why I got a bad mark."

"Could you please explain why I received a low mark?"

SPOT THE MISTAKE!

100

"Dear Teacher,"

What is wrong?

Dear Mr Tan, or Dear Ms Lee,

200

I am writing this email because I wanna askin' u abt sumthin.

Is this sentence correct?  

I am writing this email because I want to ask you about something.

300

Dear Sir,
I hope you are fine. I wanna ask about the school trip.

Identify the problem.

"wanna" is too informal for a formal email.

400

Hi Teacher!!!
I didn't come to school yesterday because I was sick lol.
Can u tell me what homework I have?

Find at least 3 PROBLEMS.

• Too many exclamation marks.

• Informal greeting.

• "lol" is inappropriate.

• "Can u" uses texting language.

• The tone is too informal.

• It should explain the absence more appropriately.

500

Subject: School Trip

Hi Sir,

I want to know about the school trip. What time are we going? What should I bring? Is lunch provided? Also, I don't know where to meet. Tell me quickly because I need to know.

Thanks.
Ali

1. Use a more appropriate greeting.
2. Make the opening more polite.
3. Combine/organise the questions into a clearer paragraph.
4. "Tell me quickly" sounds demanding.
5. Add a more appropriate closing.
6. Make the subject more specific, e.g. Questions About the School Trip.