An Email to a New Friend
Reply to an email from a student in another country. Answer her questions about your school, your free time and your town.
- Time
- 20 min
- Length
- 70-100 words
Writadia · A2 · Emails
NameClassDate
The situation
You are in an online exchange project. A student called Elif sends you her first email.
Hi! I'm Elif and I'm fourteen. I live in Bursa with my parents and my older brother. I go to a big school near the centre and my favourite subject is art. At the weekends I go cycling or bake cakes with my grandmother. What about you? What's your school like? What do you do in your free time? And what's your town like? Write soon! Elif
Your task
Write a reply to Elif. Answer all three of her questions and ask her one question.
Writing toolkit
Open these only when you need them. Try the first draft on your own.
Plan it in steps
- Thank her for her email in the first line.
- Write one short paragraph for each of her questions.
- Join ideas with and, but, because, so.
- Ask her a question at the end.
- Close with a friendly phrase.
Useful phrases
Opening
School
Free time
Town
Asking and closing
Tap a phrase to add it to your text. Gaps (…) are selected so you can type over them.
Vocabulary
- quite
- a little, not veryMy school is quite big.
- famous for
- well known because ofBursa is famous for its silk.
- centre
- the middle of a townThe library is in the centre.
- neighbourhood
- the area around your homeMy neighbourhood is quiet.
- look forward to
- be happy about something in the futureI look forward to your email.
Model answer (108 words)
Read it after you’ve written your own version. Notice the highlighted parts. The numbers explain why they work.
Hi Elif,
Thanks for your email. It was great to hear from you!1
My school is quite small, only about 300 students, but I like it because the teachers are friendly. My favourite subject is music because I play the guitar.2
In my free time, I usually play basketball with my friends. At the weekends, I sometimes go to the cinema with my cousin.
My town, Kerava, is in the south of Finland. It isn't very big, so there isn't much to do in the evening, but there's a lovely lake near my house.
What kind of cakes do you bake with your grandmother?3
Write back soon! Aino
- A warm first line before you answer anything.
- Giving a reason with "because" makes your answers longer and more interesting.
- A question about something in HER email shows you read it.
Teacher notes
Task completion first: at A2, many exam marks come from answering every point. Ask students to tick the three questions in the email before they write.
Peer check: partners read each other's emails and write Elif's next question.
Extra challenge
Write Elif's reply to your email. Answer your question and tell you one surprising thing about Bursa.
Lesson plan
- 5 minWarm-up
Show the situation on the classroom screen and ask: “What would you write in this situation?” Take two or three quick answers.
- 6 minWord pool
Open “Word pool” on the classroom screen. Students make one sentence each with: quite, famous for, centre, neighbourhood, look forward to.
- 7 minModel text
Reveal the model sentence by sentence in “Model text” mode. At each sentence ask: “What job does this sentence do?” Write these phrases on the board: “Hi Elif,”, “Thanks for your email. It was great to hear from you!”, “My school is quite small, but ...”.
- 15 minWriting
Start the timer. Students write their own text; anyone stuck can use the plan in the toolkit. (70-100 words)
- 5 minPeer review
Students swap texts and fill in the peer-review sheet.
- 2 minWrap-up
Set the extra challenge as homework.
The task’s own teacher notes give extra ideas for the warm-up and focus.
Assessment rubric
| Criterion | 4 · Excellent | 3 · Good | 2 · Developing | 1 · Beginning | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Task | All the requested information is there. | One point is missing. | Several points are missing. | Little connection to the task. | |
| Organisation | Sentences in order; and, but, because used well. | Mostly in order. | Order is confusing. | Unconnected sentences. | |
| Vocabulary | Topic words used; most spelled correctly. | Simple but enough. | A lot of repetition and spelling errors. | Words do not carry the meaning. | |
| Grammar and mechanics | Capitals, full stops and basic tenses correct. | A few errors, meaning clear. | Frequent errors, meaning sometimes lost. | Hard to understand. | |
| Total | / 16 | ||||
Each criterion scores 1–4 (total 16). Use the task checklist below to tick what the student actually did.
Task checklist
- I answered all three questions.
- I asked one question.
- I used because or so at least twice.
Teacher comment
Peer-review sheet
Students swap texts and give each other feedback with this sheet.
Before you finish
Before you finish
- I answered all three questions.
- I asked one question.
- I used because or so at least twice.
Writadia · A2 · Emails
Assessment rubric: An Email to a New Friend
| Criterion | 4 · Excellent | 3 · Good | 2 · Developing | 1 · Beginning | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Task | All the requested information is there. | One point is missing. | Several points are missing. | Little connection to the task. | |
| Organisation | Sentences in order; and, but, because used well. | Mostly in order. | Order is confusing. | Unconnected sentences. | |
| Vocabulary | Topic words used; most spelled correctly. | Simple but enough. | A lot of repetition and spelling errors. | Words do not carry the meaning. | |
| Grammar and mechanics | Capitals, full stops and basic tenses correct. | A few errors, meaning clear. | Frequent errors, meaning sometimes lost. | Hard to understand. | |
| Total | / 16 | ||||
Each criterion scores 1–4 (total 16). Use the task checklist below to tick what the student actually did.
Task checklist
- I answered all three questions.
- I asked one question.
- I used because or so at least twice.
Teacher comment
Writadia · A2 · Emails
Peer-review sheet: An Email to a New Friend
WriterReviewer
Read your partner’s text carefully. Be kind and specific: say why, not just “good”.
Task checklist
| Yes | Partly | No | |
|---|---|---|---|
| I answered all three questions. | |||
| I asked one question. | |||
| I used because or so at least twice. |
Questions
- Does the text give all the information asked for?
- Does every sentence start with a capital and end with a full stop?
- Did the writer use and, but or because? Copy one example.
Two stars and a wish
★ Something I liked
★ Another thing I liked
→ One suggestion
Writadia · A2 · Emails
Lesson plan: An Email to a New Friend
- 5 minWarm-up
Show the situation on the classroom screen and ask: “What would you write in this situation?” Take two or three quick answers.
- 6 minWord pool
Open “Word pool” on the classroom screen. Students make one sentence each with: quite, famous for, centre, neighbourhood, look forward to.
- 7 minModel text
Reveal the model sentence by sentence in “Model text” mode. At each sentence ask: “What job does this sentence do?” Write these phrases on the board: “Hi Elif,”, “Thanks for your email. It was great to hear from you!”, “My school is quite small, but ...”.
- 15 minWriting
Start the timer. Students write their own text; anyone stuck can use the plan in the toolkit. (70-100 words)
- 5 minPeer review
Students swap texts and fill in the peer-review sheet.
- 2 minWrap-up
Set the extra challenge as homework.
The task’s own teacher notes give extra ideas for the warm-up and focus.
Did you use this task in class?
If you used it, tell us. It helps us see which tasks work.