School Life: A Welcome Email to a New Student
A student from another country is joining your class next week. Write an email to welcome them and tell them what to expect at your school.
- Time
- 25 min
- Length
- 100-130 words
Writadia · B1 · Emails
NameClassDate
The situation
Your teacher tells you that Lina, a student from Germany, will join your class next Monday. She is a bit nervous because she doesn't know anyone. Your teacher asks you to email her.
Your task
Write an email to Lina. Include:
- a friendly welcome and a short introduction of yourself
- what a typical school day is like
- one thing she will enjoy and one thing that might be difficult
- an offer to help on her first day
Writing toolkit
Open these only when you need them. Try the first draft on your own.
Plan it in steps
- Introduce yourself in two sentences.
- Describe the school day in order: start time, lessons, lunch, clubs.
- Mention one positive thing and one challenge, honestly.
- Make a practical offer: meet at the gate, show her around.
Useful phrases
Welcoming
The school day
Honest advice
Offering help
Tap a phrase to add it to your text. Gaps (…) are selected so you can type over them.
Vocabulary
- show someone around
- take a new person to see a placeI'll show you around.
- timetable
- a list of lessons and timesHere's our timetable.
- canteen
- the place where students eatThe canteen is on the ground floor.
- settle in
- start to feel comfortable in a new placeYou'll settle in quickly.
Model answer (133 words)
Read it after you’ve written your own version. Notice the highlighted parts. The numbers explain why they work.
Hi Lina,
Welcome to Atatürk Anadolu Lisesi! I'm Defne, and I'm in your new class, 9-B.1 Our teacher told me you're joining us on Monday, so I wanted to say hello.
Lessons start at 8:30 and we usually have seven lessons a day. At lunchtime, most of us eat in the canteen and then sit in the garden. After school there are clubs, and the photography club is really good.
You'll love our English teacher. She's very kind and her lessons are fun. The only difficult thing might be the size of the school, because it's easy to get lost at first.2
If you like, I can meet you at the main gate at 8:15 on Monday and show you around.3 I'm sure you'll settle in quickly!
See you soon, Defne
- A friendly welcome and a short introduction.
- Honest: one good thing and one challenge.
- A concrete offer of help.
Teacher notes
Theme link: School Life (Maarif Model, Grade 9, Theme 1).
Focus: future with will for predictions (You'll love...) and can for offers.
Pair task: swap emails and write Lina's short reply with one question.
Extra challenge
Write Lina's reply. She asks two questions about the school clubs.
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.
- 10 minWord pool
Open “Word pool” on the classroom screen. Students make one sentence each with: show someone around, timetable, canteen, settle in.
- 12 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: “Welcome to ...! I'm ..., and I'm in your new class.”, “Our teacher told me you're joining us on Monday.”, “Lessons start at ... and we have ... a day.”.
- 38 minWriting
Start the timer. Students write their own text; anyone stuck can use the plan in the toolkit. (100-130 words)
- 10 minPeer review
Students swap texts and fill in the peer-review sheet.
- 5 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 and content | All points covered in detail; purpose and reader clear. | All points there, one is thin. | One point missing or some off-topic content. | Task mostly not met. | |
| Organisation and flow | Clear paragraphs; varied linking words. | Paragraphs present; linkers repetitive. | No paragraphs or jumpy flow. | Ideas scattered. | |
| Vocabulary | Topic-specific, varied vocabulary. | Adequate; some repetition. | Limited; some wrong word choices. | Very limited. | |
| Grammar and accuracy | Range of structures, few errors. | Some errors, meaning clear. | Frequent errors affect meaning. | Errors block understanding. | |
| Total | / 16 | ||||
Each criterion scores 1–4 (total 16). Use the task checklist below to tick what the student actually did.
Task checklist
- I welcomed Lina and introduced myself.
- I described a typical day in order.
- I mentioned one good thing and one challenge.
- I offered specific help.
Teacher comment
Peer-review sheet
Students swap texts and give each other feedback with this sheet.
Before you finish
Before you finish
- I welcomed Lina and introduced myself.
- I described a typical day in order.
- I mentioned one good thing and one challenge.
- I offered specific help.
Writadia · B1 · Emails
Assessment rubric: School Life: A Welcome Email to a New Student
| Criterion | 4 · Excellent | 3 · Good | 2 · Developing | 1 · Beginning | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Task and content | All points covered in detail; purpose and reader clear. | All points there, one is thin. | One point missing or some off-topic content. | Task mostly not met. | |
| Organisation and flow | Clear paragraphs; varied linking words. | Paragraphs present; linkers repetitive. | No paragraphs or jumpy flow. | Ideas scattered. | |
| Vocabulary | Topic-specific, varied vocabulary. | Adequate; some repetition. | Limited; some wrong word choices. | Very limited. | |
| Grammar and accuracy | Range of structures, few errors. | Some errors, meaning clear. | Frequent errors affect meaning. | Errors block understanding. | |
| Total | / 16 | ||||
Each criterion scores 1–4 (total 16). Use the task checklist below to tick what the student actually did.
Task checklist
- I welcomed Lina and introduced myself.
- I described a typical day in order.
- I mentioned one good thing and one challenge.
- I offered specific help.
Teacher comment
Writadia · B1 · Emails
Peer-review sheet: School Life: A Welcome Email to a New Student
WriterReviewer
Read your partner’s text carefully. Be kind and specific: say why, not just “good”.
Task checklist
| Yes | Partly | No | |
|---|---|---|---|
| I welcomed Lina and introduced myself. | |||
| I described a typical day in order. | |||
| I mentioned one good thing and one challenge. | |||
| I offered specific help. |
Questions
- Does the text cover every point in the task?
- Are there paragraphs? What is each one about?
- Write two linking words the writer used.
- Is there a sentence you had to read twice?
Two stars and a wish
★ Something I liked
★ Another thing I liked
→ One suggestion
Writadia · B1 · Emails
Lesson plan: School Life: A Welcome Email to a New Student
- 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.
- 10 minWord pool
Open “Word pool” on the classroom screen. Students make one sentence each with: show someone around, timetable, canteen, settle in.
- 12 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: “Welcome to ...! I'm ..., and I'm in your new class.”, “Our teacher told me you're joining us on Monday.”, “Lessons start at ... and we have ... a day.”.
- 38 minWriting
Start the timer. Students write their own text; anyone stuck can use the plan in the toolkit. (100-130 words)
- 10 minPeer review
Students swap texts and fill in the peer-review sheet.
- 5 minWrap-up
Set the extra challenge as homework.
The task’s own teacher notes give extra ideas for the warm-up and focus.
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