Informal Email Lesson Plan for 9th Grade Students

Topic: Informal email

Objectives & Outcomes

• Students will be able to write an informal email in English with appropriate language structures and expressions.

Materials

• Computers with internet access
• Sample informal emails for inspiration

Warm-up

• Ask students to share some examples of informal language they hear or use in everyday life. Write their answers on the board.
• Explain that in this lesson, we will learn how to use informal language in an informal email.

Direct Instruction

• Introduce the concept of informal language and its purpose. Informal language is used to make text more personal and friendly, and to make the writer sound more relaxed and natural.
• Introduce the six informal language structures that we will be focusing on:
• Emotional language: words that convey emotion, such as "amazing," "terrific," or "sad."
• Colloquial language: words that are specific to a particular region or culture, such as "pacific" (US) or "pacify" (UK).
• Idiomatic language: phrases or expressions that have a specific meaning different from the individual words that make them up, such as "let the cat out of the bag" or "break the ice."
• Negative contractions: the use of "don't" instead of "do not" (e.g. "Don't worry, I won't be late.").
• Infinitive phrases: verb phrases that include the word "to" before the main verb (e.g. "to go," "to be," "to have").
• Explain that these informal language structures can be used in different ways, depending on the context and the intended meaning. For example, the word "amazing" can be used to describe something that is truly amazing, but it can also be used sarcastically to describe something that is not amazing at all.
• Have students read and annotate the sample informal email on the board, pointing out the use of the six informal language structures and giving examples of how they can be used differently.

Guided Practice:

• Have students work in pairs to write an informal email to a friend describing a favorite food.
• Have students share their emails with the class and provide feedback on the use of informal language.

Independent Practice:

• Have students choose a favorite food and write an informal email to a friend describing the food and giving some -tips on how to prepare it.

Closure:

• Have students share their emails with the class and discuss any vocabulary or structures they found challenging.

Assessment:

• Observe students during the guided and independent practice activities to ensure they are using the language structures correctly.
• Collect and review students' emails for correct use of language structures and overall content.