Reintroduce: Friendly Letter/ Email
From FreeReading
| Lesson Type: | Reintroduce |
| Grade: | 1, 2, 3 |
| Group Size: | Small Group, Large Group, Whole Class |
| Length: | 20 minutes |
| Goal: | Given a graphic organizer, students will become familiar with the five parts of a friendly letter (date, greeting, body, closing, and signature). |
Materials: Chart paper or board, copies of the Friendly Letter Organizer (print here) for each student
What to Do
Prepare
Display a sample friendly letter on the chart paper or board (print sample letter here). Make copies of the Friendly Letter Organizer.
Model/Instruct
1. Show students the sample friendly letter and review the purpose of a friendly letter.
Who can tell me the purpose of a friendly letter or email? Why would someone write a friendly letter or email?
2. Confirm or clarify the purpose.
People write friendly letters or emails to share or ask for information.
3. Explain today’s lesson.
Today we will use an organizer to learn about the parts of a friendly letter or email.
Practice
4. Direct students to their copies of the Friendly Letter Organizer.
The first part of a friendly letter or email is the date. What do you notice about how the date is written? That’s right, the month begins with a capital letter and there is a comma between the date and the year. Write today’s date on your sheet.
The second part is the greeting. The most common greeting for a friendly letter is Dear. What do you notice about how the greeting is written? Yes, the greeting and the name of the person begin with capital letters and there is a comma after the greeting. Take a moment to think of someone that you would like to write to. Now write a greeting.
The third part is the body. This is where you write the information that you plan to share. The body should have a beginning, middle, and end, similar to many stories that we have read. The beginning of the body tells your purpose for writing and grabs the reader’s attention. The middle of the body provides details. The end of the body reminds the reader of the purpose of the letter. You will work on the body of your letter at the end of today’s lesson.
The fourth part is the closing. What do you notice about how the closing is written? The closing begins with a capital letter and there is a comma after it. Now write a closing on your organizer sheet.
The last part is the signature. What do you notice about how the signature is written? All names begin with a capital letter. Notice that the date and the signature line up together on the page. Now sign your name on your organizer sheet.
5. Review a friendly letter's purpose and its five parts.
Who can tell me the purpose of a friendly letter or email? The purpose of a friendly letter is to share and ask for information. Now who can tell me the five parts of a friendly letter? The five parts are the date, the greeting, the body, the closing, and the signature.
6. Explain how the students should work on their letters.
Now you will have some time to write the body of your letter. Be sure to include one sentence that explains the purpose of your letter, three sentences that include some details that make your point clear, and a final sentence idea that reminds the reader of your letter’s purpose.
Adjust
For Advanced Students:
Encourage these students to add more details or ideas to the bodies of their letters.
For Struggling Students:
Some students may struggle with writing the body of the letter. You may want to have them dictate their thoughts to you.
For ELL Students:
Provide these students with a list of common greetings and closings for letters. Provide explicit instruction about the format for writing dates in English.
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Categories: Activity | Core | Writing