Many students do not take the time to write thank you letters or notes. This simple act is much appreciated and will help them when they start interviewing for jobs in the future.
Teach Students the Letter Basics
Letters contain these basic parts: return address, inside address, date, salutation, body and closing. The letter format can one of the block style or the modified block style, which is also known as the friendly letter style. The style will dictate how the parts are placed on the paper.
Block Style Letter
Most businesses use the block style, and it is the most simple. All paragraphs line up on the left and they are not indented. Since there is no indentation, spacing is critical.
The letter goes in this order down the left margin of the paper:
- the return address, which is sometimes called the heading
- the date
- the inside address, which is where the letter is going
- the salutation, such as "Dear somebody:"
- the body of the letter, which is what the writer has to say
- the closing lets the reader know that the reader is finished, such as Sincerely with a signature
Teaching the Lesson
Students will write two thank you letters: a formal and informal one. When introducing the lesson, ask students if they have written thank you letters. Some students may have had to write one to thank family members for gifts. Also, discuss how they might use thank you letters in the future, such as after a job interview.
Step 1: Brainstorm ideas of who to write the letters. Examples for informal letters are as follows: students can write letters to family members for gifts they have received in the past, for awards they have received or for compliments or kind words they have been given.
Examples of formal letters could be for the following: gifts or donations to the school or community. Ask the principal for a list of people who have recently donated money or items to the school. And, check with city or town government office to see if anyone has donated items to the recreation department or items for children in the community to use.
Step 2: Direct students to make one thank you card. The cards should be neat and colorful.
Step 3: Write a rough draft of the informal letter. The letters can be written on notebook paper. The informal letter should be sincere and include a date, salutation, body and closing.
These letters should be hand written neatly in the cards that were made in step two of the lesson.
Step 4: Write a rough draft of the formal letter. Once students have selected a person or group to write to, they need to write a letter in the proper format.
The body of the letter should include three paragraphs. The first paragraph should tell the recipient of the letter why the letter is being sent. This can be one sentence. The next paragraph should tell why the gift is appreciated and how it is being used. The last paragraph should wrap up the letter and thank the recipient once again for the generous gift.
Once a rough draft letter has been completed, students need to type a final copy of the letter.
Step 5: Send the letters. Ask students to bring in stamps so that the letters can be sent to the recipients. Most large department stores have card size envelopes.
This lesson is one that has real life applications. Students will now have the experience of writing two thank you letters. In addition, the recipients of the letters will be thanked properly and good will be spread.
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