Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Lesson Objective
Warm-Up
A. Writing
Choose one of the following three topics. Write a letter to a manager
ofabusiness. Write for five minutes in your notebook or on the back
ofyour paper, or on your electronic device or computer. Do not
correct your writing. Just write!
B. Vocabulary Preview
Match these words to their correct definitions.
1.
on behalf of
2.
recipient
3.
letterhead
c) the part of a letter where you address the recipient (e.g., Dear Sir,)
4.
triple-check
5.
salutation
e) as a representative of a group
6.
colleague
7.
applicable
8.
inquiry
9.
resignation
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
Task 1
B. Date
Task 2
Date Formats:
March 2, 2015
March 2nd, 2015
Mar 2, 2015
Monday, March 2, 2015
C. Recipients Information
After the date, leave another space. Now add your
recipients name, title, and address. Triple-check that
you spelled the name of the company and recipient
exactly as it should be.
Mrs. Alley Freeman
Director of Sales
Furniture Forever
3 Main St.
Rochester, NY 14605
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
Business Formal
Business Casual
(between colleagues)
Good morning,
Good afternoon,
Hello,
Hi Erica,
E. Body
Leave a space after your salutation,
and then start the body of your
letter. A business letter should be
separated into paragraphs. Each
paragraph should be about a single
subject. One or two paragraphs may
be enough. Use plain text (without
indentation). It is common to
leaveaspace between paragraphs.
1. S
tart with a friendly greeting. Introduce yourself (if its the first time youve
contacted this person). Be cordial (polite) even if it is a letter of complaint.
[space]
2. Identify your reason for the letter.
Use more than one paragraph if necessary.
[space]
3. Provide
any special information. Identify any attachments if its an electronic
letter. If applicable, state exactly what you want or need from the recipient.
F. Closing
Leave a space after the final body paragraph. Then write a closing phrase
(this is optional). Leave another space and write a closing word(s), followed
by a comma. On the next line, add your name and title. Add a phone
number if you want to becontacted by phone. Sign yourname by hand
ifits a printedletter. Print your name andtitle beneath your signature.
Closing Phrases (optional)
Closing words
Example
Sincerely,
Respectfully,
Best,
Best regards,
Best wishes,
Warm regards,
Thank you,
Sincerely,
Sincerely,
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
1. Inquiry
5. Thank You
2. Resignation
In this type of letter, you notify
a supervisor or manager that you
are planning on leaving/quitting
your job. You may or may not
state a reason.
3. Cover
This type of letter comes before
a resume when you are applying
for a job. It is a short letter of
introduction that doubles as
athank you note.
4. Reference
This is a letter that you write
for someone else. You may
provide a personal or a business
reference. Inthis letter, you state
how long you have known the
person and why you recommend
him or her. Youmay include the
personsstrengths.
6. Complaint
In this type of letter, you state
concerns or disappointment
aboutgoods, services, or businessrelated issues. It is important to
remain polite. Do not use ALL
CAPS or inappropriate language.
Dont send a letter of complaint
while you are angry. Reread your
letter and decide at a later time
ifyou should send it or not.
7. Request
There are a variety of things you
may need to make a request for in
business, including internally (e.g.,
a deadline extension, a reference
letter) or externally (e.g., a contact
name, a replacement part).
8. C
onfirmation
or Follow-Up
This is a letter to confirm that
something has been received.
Occasionally email or packages
go missing or end up in a
spam mailbox. Dont follow
uptooquickly.
9. Sales or Marketing
Businesses send many letters to
potential customers or clients to
introduce new products or make
special announcements. These
are often written by a president or
CEO of a company.
10. Notification
In this type of letter, a company,
organization, or individual may
provide information about a
persons account, membership,
orjob position. Notifications may
be about updates or changes.
Theymay contain good or bad
news for the recipient.
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
Useful Phrases
Which type of business letter might contain these phrases?
Would you find the phrase in an opening line, a middle paragraph,
oraclosing line? Discuss these questions with a partner, and
keepthislisthandy while youre writing.
To learn more about our products and services, please visit our website.
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
Morris Photography
2-8908 Water St.
Chicago, IL 60005-1234
March 2, 2015
Mr. Carlson Louis
Fine Photo Prints
34 Harbor St.
Chicago, IL 60001-6789
Dear Mr. Louis,
I am a long-term customer of Fine Photo Prints. WhileIve always
appreciated your companys excellent serviceand products, Im
writing to express dissatisfaction about a recentorder.
Firstly, the cost of printing has increased significantly since my
last order. I didnt expect to pay $100 more than usual, and as a
result, I have not charged my clients enough to cover my costs.
Secondly, my prints werent of the usual quality. Several images
had black streaks in the middle. The envelope was also wet when
it arrived in my mailbox.
As a long-term customer, I would appreciate a refund or a reprint
(free of charge). My mailing address and order # is attached. If
you have any further questions, you can reach me by phone or
email. Please respond at your earliest convenience.
Sincerely,
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
Business Envelopes
A. Formatting Tips
Here are some tips for formatting mailing addresses properly in North America:
B. Sample Envelope
ELLA MORRIS
MORRIS PHOTOGR APHY
STAMP
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
Comprehension Check-In
Work with a partner and answer the
following questions based on the lesson so far.
1. What is letterhead?
2. What is the proper order for writing the date in the US?
3. How many types of business letters can you name?
4. What is a cover letter?
5. What is a reference letter?
6. What should NOT be used in a business letter?
7. W
hich punctuation mark is used after a
closing word(s), such as Warm regards?
8. How are zip codes and postal codes formatted differently?
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
Pair Activity
A. Write a Business Letter
Write a letter of complaint to a
manager of a company that you
recently made a purchase from.
Express your dissatisfaction with
a product in a polite way. Include
the sender, recipient, subject,
salutation, body, and closing.
Besure to use useful expressions
from this lesson. Use this space
foryour rough draft.
Proofread your letter later
today ortomorrow. Refer to the
checklist! (You could also type
yourletter on a computer and
print it.) Then write or type an
envelope with a fictional address
and exchange your letter with
yourpartner.
B. Write a Reply
Respond to your partners letter.
Use this space for your rough draft.
Be sure to use useful expressions
from this lesson. Write or type an
envelope using the return address
from the envelope you received
from your partner. Give your letter
of response to your partner.
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
10
LEVEL: Intermediate
TIME:
1.52 hours
Warm-Up
Useful Phrases
A. WRITING
You could have your students organize the useful phrases into
a chart form. Which type of business letter might each phrase
B. VOCABULARY PREVIEW
1. e
3. d
5. c
7. f
9. i
2. h
4. b
6. j
8. g
10. a
Put students in pairs or small groups and have them read and
discuss the two examples. There are a few ways in which the two
letters differ, and answers may vary. One is a complaint, and the
other is a response/apology. One states a problem; one offers a
solution. The second letter is also different in that it contains a
closing phrase (If you have any concerns, please do not hesitate
tocontact me.).
Business Envelopes
Optional:Does your computer lab have a program for typing
envelopes? Have students practice typing envelopes and labels
using the proper format.
Have they written any of these letters in the past? Which are
the most difficult to write?
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
11
Comprehension Check-In
SPELLING NOTES:
This lesson shows the American spelling of the words Inquiry,
Inquire, Apologize, and Practice. Most other English-speaking
countries spell these words this way: Inquiry, Inquire, Apologise,
and Practise (when used as a verb; Practice when used as a
noun). Make it a challenge for your students to find these words
in the lesson and see if they know the alternate spellings. Also
1.
note thatthe term email can be spelled e-mail, and Mar 2 can
bewritten as Mar. 2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Pair Activity
If you have computers in the school, or if your students have
computers at home, they can type these letters on a computer.
Ifnot, have them do this activity by hand.
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
12
on behalf of
recipient
letterhead
triple-check
salutation
colleague
applicable
inquiry
resignation
Copyright 2014, Red River Press Inc. For use by members of ESL Library in accordance with membership terms.
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