Writing a LetterMarch 19th 2015

The 6 parts to a letter:• 1. Opening salutations• 2. Opening paragraph• 3. Paragraph 1• 4. Paragraph 2• 5. Closing paragraph• 6. Closing salutaitons

Opening Salutations:• Here you are saying who you are writing the letter to.• If you are writing to a friend of someone you know you

can use their first name. If you are writing to a person you don’t know very well (a future boss, your landlord, someone in a positions of power, someone older than you) you use Mr./ Ms.

• The standard beginning to an opening salutation is:• Dear Mr./Ms. ______________• Dear Jonathan• Dear Dr. SmithIF YOU DON’T KNOW THE SPECIFIC NAME OF THE PERSON YOU ARE WRITING TO YOU WRITE:To whom it may concern,

Opening Paragraph• Here is where you state the reason you are writing

the letter.For example:• I’m writing today to tell you about the trip that I took last

month to Europe.• I am writing to ask you about the family reunion you were

talking about planning. • I’m writing in reply to the letter you sent me last week.If you are writing to a friend or someone you are close to you can begin the letter with:How are you?/ Hope you are doing well./ How are the kids doing?Then move on to state the reason you are writing.

Opening Paragraph• In your opening paragraph you will identify the

reason that you are writing the letter then provide two topics of conversation. These will be the topics (greens) of your two paragraphs.

• For example: I’m writing to tell you about my trip to Europe this summer. We stayed in beautiful hotels and had the chance to visit many historical sites. It was an amazing trip!

First Paragraph• Following the structure of writing a paragraph that

we covered in class, you will write your first paragraph based on the first topic you mentioned in your opening paragraph.

• In the example this was that you stayed in beautiful hotels.

• Therefore your paragraph will start:First, we stayed in many beautiful hotels.

Second Paragraph• Your second paragraph follows the same format.

This time you will be talking about the second topic that you mentioned in your opening paragraph.

• In the example this was that you had the chance to visit many historical sites.

• Therefore your paragraph will start:• Second, we went to visit many historical sites.

Closing paragraph• This paragraph has different functions based on

the purpose of your letter. It could be to mention the key points of the letter again, it could be to wish someone well, it could be telling someone that action must be taken.

For our example it could read:I hope you enjoy your summer vacation as much as I enjoyed mine.

For a more formal letter it could read:Action must be taken about this cause. I hope you will join me in raising awareness.

Closing Salutations• Here you can be pretty free in your choice of

ending your letter. Here are some examples of a signature for an informal letter in English:• Best wishes,• Kind regards,• Best regards,• Lots of love,• Love,

• If you are writing to someone you don’t really know you should use a more formal closing salutation.