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Level 3Week 30WritingVocabularyReading

Dear Sir or Madam, or Hi Sam? Formal and informal letters

Students compare an informal message to a friend with a formal letter to a stranger, sort the language that belongs to each, and write an exam-style formal letter of about 100 words.

Ages 10 to 14A2 to B160 minutesChecked 7 November 2026

At a glance

From
Level 3, Bridge English: Week 30, Digital footprint and sources
Grammar
question tags; formal and informal register
Key language
Dear Sir or Madam, / I am writing to ask whether... / Could you please tell me...? / I would be grateful if... / Yours faithfully, / Hi Sam! / Guess what! / Can't wait! / Cheers,
Children make
A formal letter of about 100 words with correct opening, closing and register.
Class size
Works with 10 to 50 children; pair and group steps say how to scale.

Objective

Students choose language that suits the reader and write a formal letter. This links to UK Year 5/6 grammar: choosing vocabulary and structures that fit formal or informal writing.

Success criteria for children

  • I can say whether a phrase is formal or informal.
  • I can rewrite informal sentences in formal English.
  • I can write a formal letter with a correct opening, closing, a clear purpose and two questions.

Timing: 60 minutes

MinutesStageWhat happens
0 to 6Warm-up: who am I talking to?Say one sentence in three ways for three readers.
6 to 16Read two messagesCompare the informal and formal texts.
16 to 26Teach: features of registerGreeting, closing, contractions, polite requests, vocabulary.
26 to 38Practice: sort and rewriteWorksheet tasks 1 and 2.
38 to 44Plan the exam-style letterUse the plan: why I am writing, two questions, closing.
44 to 56Write: exam-style letter (task 3)Write about 100 words in formal style.
56 to 60Exit ticketMake one sentence formal.

Materials

Step by step, with teacher talk

0 to 6 minWarm-up: who am I talking to?

  1. Write "I want some water." Students say how they would ask a friend, a grandparent, and a stranger on a train. Note how the words change.

6 to 16 minRead two messages

  1. Read both texts. Ask: "Who is writing? Who is reading? What do they want?" Both are about a class visit to a science museum.
  2. Students underline in two colours: phrases that sound like speaking, and phrases that sound like a letter to a stranger.

16 to 26 minTeach: features of register

  1. Build a table on the board: Informal: Hi Sam, contractions (can't), exclamation marks, short phrases (Guess what!), phrasal verbs (find out). Formal: Dear Sir or Madam, no contractions, "I am writing to...", "Could you please...?", "would like", Yours faithfully.
  2. Teach the UK convention: Dear Sir or Madam with Yours faithfully; Dear Mr Jones with Yours sincerely.
Concept-check questions
  • Is "Cheers!" suitable for a letter to a manager? (No: informal.)
  • Do we use contractions in a formal letter? (No: do not, I would.)
  • "Dear Sir or Madam": which ending? (Yours faithfully.)

26 to 38 minPractice: sort and rewrite

  1. Students complete task 1 (F or I) and task 2 (rewrite). Check in pairs, then as a class.

38 to 44 minPlan the exam-style letter

  1. Read the task. Students number a quick plan: 1 opening and purpose, 2 date and group, 3 two questions, 4 closing. They choose Yours faithfully.

44 to 56 minWrite: exam-style letter (task 3)

  1. Set a time limit of about 10 minutes. Remind students to include both questions and to avoid contractions.
  2. Early finishers swap letters and check for contractions and slang.

56 to 60 minExit ticket

  1. See below.

Differentiation

Support

  • Give a letter frame with the opening, purpose sentence, question starters and the closing.
  • Allow 60 words instead of 100 for the exam-style letter.

Stretch

  • Use two formal linking phrases: "In addition,..." and "I would also like to know whether..."
  • Write the informal version of the same letter to a friend and compare the two.
  • Check the register: replace any informal phrasal verb with a formal verb (find out, enquire).

Reading passage

Both are original. The museum and the people are invented.

Reading passage: Two messages about the same trip

Informal (to a friend). Hi Sam! Guess what? Our class is going to the science museum on 12 June!!! I can't wait. Can you find out if your class is going too? It would be so cool to go together. Let me know ASAP. Cheers, Ben

Formal (to the museum). Dear Sir or Madam, I am writing on behalf of Class 8B to enquire about a visit to your museum. We would like to come on Friday 12 June with 28 students and two teachers. Could you please tell me whether a workshop is available on that day, and how much the tickets cost for groups? I would be grateful for a reply by the end of the month. Yours faithfully, Amara Osei

Questions

  1. Who is Ben writing to? How do you know?
  2. Why is Amara writing to the museum?
  3. How many students and teachers will visit?
  4. What two things does Amara ask?
  5. Give two features that make Amara's text formal.

Printable worksheet

Prints on its own A4 page. Use Print the worksheet above, or print the whole plan and the worksheet starts on a new page. One copy per child, or one per pair to save paper.

Litlings Free English · Level 3 · Week 30NameDate

Formal or informal?

1. Write F (formal) or I (informal).

  1. ( ___ ) Hi Sam!
  2. ( ___ ) Dear Sir or Madam,
  3. ( ___ ) I am writing to enquire about...
  4. ( ___ ) Guess what!
  5. ( ___ ) Could you please let me know whether...?
  6. ( ___ ) Cheers!
  7. ( ___ ) I would be grateful for a reply.
  8. ( ___ ) Can't wait to hear from you!

2. Rewrite each sentence in formal English.

  1. Can you tell me how much the tickets are?
  2. We want to come on Friday.
  3. Thanks a lot for your help!
  4. Write back soon.

3. Exam-style. Your class wants to visit a farm park. Write a formal letter (about 100 words) to the manager. Say who you are and when you want to visit. Ask two questions.

Free to copy for classroom use.english.litlings.com/lesson-plans/formal-and-informal-letters-writing-lesson/

Answer key

Reading passage questions

  1. His friend Sam. He says "Hi Sam", uses slang (cool, ASAP) and "Cheers".
  2. To ask about a group visit.
  3. 28 students and two teachers.
  4. Whether a workshop is available, and the cost of group tickets.
  5. Any two of: Dear Sir or Madam, no contractions, "I am writing to...", "Could you please...", "I would be grateful...", Yours faithfully.

Worksheet

  • 1: I, F, F, I, F, I, F, I.
  • 2: Sample answers: Could you please tell me how much the tickets cost? / We would like to visit on Friday. / Thank you very much for your help. (Thank you for your assistance.) / I look forward to hearing from you.
  • 3: answers will vary. Mark: correct opening and closing for the opening used (Sir or Madam with faithfully; a name with sincerely), a clear purpose, the date, two questions, no contractions or slang, about 100 words.

Exit ticket

Make this sentence formal: "Can I bring my friends too?" (Could I please bring my friends as well? / Would it be possible for my friends to come too?)

Homework

Find an email or letter at home (with permission) or write one: an informal message to a friend about the weekend. Then rewrite it formally as if to a stranger.

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