Writing a letter to your loved ones may sound meaningless in today’s time but Imagine sending a handwritten letter to your friend or cousin who lives in a different state or overseas. It surely helps you connect with them on a more personal level fostering a strong bond for life. Unfortunately, in the modern age of technology, letters have lost their charm.
However, writing letters is not just a way of expressing but also a significant form of learning language and writing skills. Teaching letter-writing skills to students or individuals form an essential part of enhancing language and communication. It may have lost its essence in normal day-to-day life but it still forms an important part of formal settings.
So, in order to introduce letter writing to students, it is important to follow a systematic approach that not only builds a strong base but also captivates students to learn and practice. In this case, a lesson plan comes into the picture.
The lesson plan is a structured format of all the important points and information of the subject matter which is easy to follow for anyone who wants to teach letter writing to their kids. Considering this, In this post, we’re sharing a carefully drafted lesson plan to teach letter writing to kids or to anyone who wants to learn to write letters from scratch.
Letter Writing Lesson Plan
Letter writing is surely a creative process to freely express ideas considering the subject matter. Considering the need for exposure to different topics and the essence of letter writing, this lesson plan is curated with thoughtful ideas and research.
Letter Writing Lesson plan is designed to familiarize students with the types and format of writing letters effectively. The following are the main objectives for learners.
- Learners get an opportunity to identify and work on the crucial elements of a letter.
- Learners receive in-depth knowledge about writing letters for different purposes and occasions.
This lesson plan requires the readily available basic materials which are –
- Basic stationery
- Blackboard
The lesson plan begins with an icebreaker where learners are motivated to think deeply about their thoughts. Any random topic is given to help them accumulate their thoughts and put them into words. It helps them set the tone for writing and helps them explore information. Icebreaker activities often act as a fresh start to a new learning concept or methodology.
The essence of letter writing is comprehensive and that is how the lesson plan is prepared covering various important aspects of the subject. The lesson begins with a short introduction to letter writing. Learners gain knowledge about the purpose of writing letters and how communication has evolved over the years.
It also throws light on the significant components of writing a letter along with the types and formats of formal and informal letters. At this step, you may show some real-life examples of letters that may have been drafted for official and unofficial purposes.
Following the explanation, a short summary makes it easy for students to understand the overall concept of both letters. Some interesting topics are listed for practice. You may use the topics and challenge learners to attempt their favorite one with precision and correct format. For further reference, the list of 40 formal letter-writing topics is also helpful in offering diversified learning.
Essentials of letter writing: Components and strategies to teach
Learners willing to write letters are sure to come across different elements of grammar and the English language. Individuals with a grip over language and grammar are likely to understand the essence of the letter and deliver results as per the expectation. Hence, the below-mentioned elements can be taken into consideration for enhancing the skill.
1. Written Communication
Written communication plays an important role in letter-writing skills. When students are equipped with different aspects of communication with reference to the usage of grammar and punctuation, they are more likely to develop good language skills. It enables them to write letters effectively and convey thoughts in a comprehensive manner. Written communication activities and games can be used to naturally enhance this skill in learners.
2. Vocabulary
While it seems ordinary, vocabulary skills are a must during letter writing. Vocabulary skills include knowledge about different words with reference to their context. At times, individuals might mess up with the word and its application due to misunderstanding of its meaning. Hence, different vocabulary games and activities help promote learning in a creative way.
3. Reading
The more you read, the more fluent you become. Reading is an essential element for developing letter-writing skills. Participating in reading helps individuals to become more creative and improve good pronunciation. Reading also exposes individuals to a wide range of words and sentence-building ideas. Different independent reading activities act as a boosting factor in enhancing the skill.
4. Sentence Building
Sentence building sets the tone for different creative writing activities for individuals. Such a skill ensures the formation of correct sentences and phrases. Letter writing requires individuals to form concise sentences hence, sentence building skill helps individuals write letters with accuracy. Many sentence-building activities and applications help develop the practice of making correct sentences.
5. Grammar
Grammar helps individuals form the correct and meaningful sentences in the right format. Knowledge of grammar introduces learners to a plethora of topics including complex sentences and phrases. Only when grammatical skills are in-line with the expectations of the language can learners accurately draft letters. Fun grammar games and activities might be super helpful for everyday learning.
Conclusion
Lesson plans are helpful for students, teachers as well as adults to get into a creative zone of writing. With a structured plan, learners get to focus on the subject and manage their sentence-building ideas with well-drafted pointers. Our letter writing lesson plan ensures high engagement of learners along with a sense of relatability through examples. It ensures deploying knowledge on the crucial aspects thereby helping learners explore the subject effectively.
An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’,