[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 1
PAPER 2, Part 1 (You must write one of the following: an article, essay, letter, report, review or story)
Some Basic Parts of Formal and Informal Letters
Divide the following expressions into formal (F) and informal (I).
Allotted time: 2-5 minutes
Beginning It was great to hear from you. __
I am writing with reference to your letter of 25 May. __
Thanks for writing to me. __
Congratulations
Well done! __
I would like to offer congratulations on your recent promotion. __
Please allow me to congratulate you on your recent success. __
Advice / suggestion
Why not try __
What about going __
It is recommended that you contact __
You could visit __
I urge you to consider the points I have made. __
If I were you I’d __
Linkers
Moreover, __
Then again, __
Furthermore, __
Better still, __
What’s more, __
Additionally, __
Endings
Do drop me a line if you have time. __
I look forward to hearing from you without delay. __
Hope to hear from you soon. __
Keep in touch. __
I hope to hear from you at your earliest convenience. __
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 2
Some Basic Parts of Formal and Informal Letters
ANSWER SHEET
Divide the following expressions into formal (F) and informal (I):
Beginning
It was great to hear from you. _I_
I am writing with reference to your letter of 25 May. _F_
Thanks for writing to me. _I_
Congratulations
Well done! _I_
I would like to offer congratulations on your recent promotion. _F_
Please allow me to congratulate you on your recent success. _F_
Advice / suggestion
Why not try _I_
What about going _I_
It is recommended that you contact _F_
You could visit _F_
I urge you to consider the points I have made. _F_
If I were you I’d _I_
Linkers
Moreover, _F_
Then again, _I_
Furthermore, _F_
Better still, _I_
What’s more, _I_
Additionally, _F_
Endings
Do drop me a line if you have time. _F_
I look forward to hearing from you without delay. _F_
Hope to hear from you soon. _I_
Keep in touch. _I_
I hope to hear from you at your earliest convenience. _F_
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 3
How to Write an Informal Letter
These are the various parts of an informal letter:
Dear/Hi (first name),
Beginnings
Asking
Referring to their news
Giving news/information
Apologies
Invitations
Requests
Thank you/ Congratulations/ Good luck
Making suggestions and recommend
Endings
Signing off
Informal letters are usually to
your friends or family;
therefore, you should only use
their first name. You should greet the
person.
Perhaps ask them how
they are doing? You may have to respond to some sort of
event such as a birthday invitation or a
job promotion.
Perhaps something happened in your
life and you want to notify a friend or
family member. Maybe you are
getting married or your dog died. Did you do something wrong?
You may have to say sorry to
someone.
Getting married or having a birthday
party? You may have to invite
someone to this special event.
Perhaps you need help. You may need to borrow
money or have someone take you to the airport in
the future.
Whether you have good or bad news, you
should thank the person for reading your
letter or email.
Sometimes they will ask you for help or advice.
You will have to come up with some
recommendations. This is similar to thank
you.
This will include your name or
signature at the end of the
letter.
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 4
Samples of Phrases for Each Part
Dear (first name),
Beginnings
Thank you/Many thanks for your (recent/last) letter/postcard.
It was good/nice to hear from you recently.
I’m sorry I haven’t written/been in touch for such a long time.
It’s ages since I’ve heard from you. I hope you’re/you and your family are well.
Asking
Hi! / How are the things? / How are you? / How’s it going?
Referring to their news
Great news about … Glad to hear that … Sorry to hear about …
Giving news
Listen, did I tell you about …? You’ll never believe what …
Oh, and another thing … This is just to let you know that …
I thought you might be interested to hear about/know that …
By the way, have you heard about/did you know that …
Apologies
I’m writing to apologise for missing your party but I’m afraid I was with flu.
I’m really sorry that I forgot to send you a birthday card but I was busy with my new job.
If you let me know where you bought it/how much it cost I’ll gladly pay for it/replace it.
Please let me know how much the bill is and I’ll gladly pay it.
Invitations
I’m/We’re having a party on Friday 19th and I/we hope you’ll be able to come.
Would you like to come/go to see ‘Room With a View’ with me at the weekend.
I was wondering if you’d like to go to the theatre/come on holiday with us?
Could you let me/us know if you can come/you’d like to join us?
Thank you very much for your invitation. I’d love to come.
Thank you for asking/inviting me to … but I’m afraid I won’t be able to …
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 5
Requests
I’m writing to ask for your help/you (if you could do me) a favour.
I wonder if/I was wondering if you could help me/do me a favour.
I hope you don’t mind me asking but could you (possibly) …?
I’d be very/really/terribly grateful if you could …
Thank you / Congratulations / Good Luck
I’m writing to thank you for your hospitality/the wonderful present.
It was so kind of you to invite me to stay with you.
I really appreciated all your help/advice.
Congratulations on passing your exams/your excellent exam results!
I wish you good luck/Good luck in/with your exams/your driving test/your interview.
Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll pass/do well.
Do be on time, won’t you, and don’t forget to …
Making suggestions and recommend
Why don’t you …? Maybe you could …? How about …?
You can’t leave New York without doing sth
I’m sure you will enjoy doing sth If you like, we can …
Do visit somewhere Don’t forget to do sth (Imperative -> Strong Recommendation)
I’m told that … People say that … (If you heard sth is good)
Endings
Give my love/regards to … Say hello to … Hope to hear from you soon.
See you soon! Write soon. Once again, thank you for all your help.
Signing off
Love,
Lots of love,
All the best,
Best wishes,
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 6
PAPER 2, Part 1 (You must write a replying letter or email, formally or informally)
Task type: Informal Letter
Determining Which Parts You Need
Most letters – not all – may have a beginning, asking, ending and signing off.
Which other parts you might need will depend on the topic and what the FCE ask
you to do. Take a look at an example:
You have received the following letter from your English-speaking friend.
.............Thanks for inviting me to stay with you when I visit your country next month.
I'm not sure how to get to your apartment from the airport. Could you write back giving me some basic instructions? What would be the best method of transport for me? I'd prefer one that isn't too expensive!
Just one other thing - what will the weather be like when I get there? (Just so I'll know what clothes to pack!) .........
This is a letter from a friend, so we
know that this will be an informal
letter.
Referring to
the news
Making
suggestions
and
recommend
Making
suggestions
and
recommend
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 7
You should create an outline to organize your idea like the one below:
Beginning:
Referring to the news: excited/can’t wait
Asking: family
Suggestion 1: train across from airport Blue line to District One Marketplace St.
red apartment;
Expensive taxi = CAN$100; Cheap train = 2
Suggestion 2: jacket/gloves/scarf/extra socks Cold = 0-15 degrees = freezing
temperature=> dangerous
Ending:
Signing off:
Support your idea.
Explain how it is cold
or give examples.
Provide detail on
how to get to his
apartment.
Why?
Support your
topic or idea.
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 8
Sample Informal Letter:
Hi Jenny,
I got your letter today and I am looking forward to seeing you soon in Canada. By the way, how
is your family doing? Are they excited for you?
About your question on how to get to my apartment, you should take the train that is across
from the airport. Just ride the Blue line to District One which will stop at Marketplace Street.
Across from the street is my apartment. It is purple and easy to see. I’ll be outside the train
station to make sure you don’t get lost. I think this is the best way to go because it’s much
cheaper than a taxi. If you go by taxi, it will cost over 100 dollars, but a train ticket is just 2
dollars.
Also, you must bring warm clothes to Canada. Bring a jacket, gloves, scarf, and extra socks.
The temperature in Canada can reach between 0 and 15 degrees Celsius. This can be
dangerous.
Once again, I can’t wait to see you!
Love,
Trang
Asking
Referring to the news
Beginning
Suggestion #1
Suggestion #2
Ending
Signing off
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 9
Exercise 1: Write your letter in 120-150 words. You must use grammatically
correct sentences with accurate spelling and punctuation in a style appropriate
for the situation.
Allotted time: 30 minutes
Your Informal Letter:
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 10
You have received the following letter from your English penfriend.
I'm really pleased you're planning
to come to England to study. Let me
know what type of course you're
interested in and I'll ring some
colleges for details. The more
information you can give me the
better!
Exercise 2: Write your letter in 120-150 words. You must use grammatically
correct sentences with accurate spelling and punctuation in a style appropriate
for the situation.
Allotted time: 30 minutes
Make an outline before you write.
Your Outline:
A penfriend
is someone
you often
write to.
Talk about which
course you would like
to take in England and
explain why. Perhaps
you could ask her to
find other information
for you.
Maybe you can ask her
about accommodation
or transportation?
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 11
Your Informal Letter:
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 12
Sample Informal Letter:
Dear July,
Hi! Thanks for your letter, and sorry for not replying sooner. You see, I've been planning this for a long time and I came to a conclusion: I want to take up singing classes in London! What's cool is that I don't want to join a common class, but a group of people that expresses itself through the music and lets its spirit free while singing.
I'm really excited about this, and I'd love to have your opinion about it. It'd be fantastic if you could search for the appropriate singing classes in the city for me. Just check the prices well and give me the schedule of each place.
I guess the best place to stay is in a house with a host family, but if you've got a better idea, let me know. I think I'll stay for two months. The problem is that I'm not sure if I can afford everything. That's one of the things about London that gets on my nerves: everything is so expensive!
Ok, I've got to go now, so see you soon!
Love,
August
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 13
You have received the following letter from your English-speaking friend.
...We're doing a project this month
at school on eating habits and
customs around the world. Will
you be able to help me by telling me
what the traditional meals are in
your country, what people typically
eat and at what time of day?
Thanks very much!
Love Alison
Exercise 3: Write a letter in 120-150 words to your friend giving her the
information she needs. You must use grammatically correct sentences with
accurate spelling and punctuation in a style appropriate for the situation.
Allotted time: 30 minutes
Your Outline:
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 14
Your Informal Letter:
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 15
Sample Informal Letter:
Name: Magda Partyka
School: The Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland
Dear Alison,
I was very happy to hear from you. I will be glad to help you with your project, and I hope that I
can give you some details you could use.
Mostly the Polish people have breakfast before 7 am. They have some slices of bread and
butter, cheese, tomato, or cucumber and ham. They drink coffee with milk or tea.
We usually don't eat until we return home after work which is about 4 pm. Then we eat the main
meal of the day which usually consists of soup for the first course and a piece of meat, some
potatoes and a salad for the second. Sometimes we have some sweets for dessert.
Between 7 and 8 pm most Polish families have their supper which looks like breakfast but with
more food.
Good luck with your project!
Love,
Magda
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 16
You have received the following email from your English penfriend.
>It's a really brave step to take a
year out of >college to come and
spend 6 months in the >UK! What
are you planning to do with your
>time? Find a job? Learn some new
skills? >Write back and give me
more details of your >plans so I
can do my best to help you have a
>good time...
Exercise 4: Write an email in 120-150 words to your friend replying to her
questions. You must use grammatically correct sentences with accurate spelling
and punctuation in a style appropriate for the situation.
Allotted time: 30 minutes
Your Outline:
[WRITING – WS002]
Confidential | Intellectual property of AMA 17
Your Informal Email:
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________