:Thank You Letter
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Approach:  Independent Level: Year 4 and year 8
Focus:  Writing a formal ‘thank you’ letter.
Resources: Letter in envelope.

876KB
Questions/instructions:

Give one envelope and answer sheet per student.

This activity is called “Thank You Letter”.

Read the letter in the envelope. Imagine that your class received this letter with the cheque. Write a letter to the Playground Trust, thanking them for the donation.

% responses
2002 '98
y4
y8
Return address:
at top of letter
3 (3)
12 (20)
Date: 
full, in correct place
5 (2)
22 (21)
partial or in incorrect place
2 (5)
8 (10)
Address of Trust: 
full, in correct place
0 (0)
4 (2)
partial or in incorrect place
1 (0)
2 (2)
Opening salutation:
Dear Mr Fit/Dear Sir
21 (13)
46 (33)
Dear Secretary/Playground Trust
30 (29)
39 (45)
Form and language: 
highly appropriate
4 (3)
37 (29)
moderately appropriate
50 (49)
53 (65)
final salutation
31 (37)
78 (75)
name or signature of sender
50 (51)
68 (62)
on behalf of
4 (4)
23 (24)
Content of letter:
clear ‘thank you’
95 (88)
97 (97)
money will be spent on playground
55 (56)
77 (75)
children will be involved in the planning
5 (2)
19 (16)
some ideas for playground
17 (13)
31 (21)
expressing excitement about new playground
36 (37)
53 (48)
Total score:
10–17
2 (2)
26 (25)
7–9
17 (15)
44 (33)
4–6
42 (41)
23 (34)
0–3
39 (42)
7 (8)

Commentary:
Perhaps because thank you letters from year 4 students would often be collected and sent with a covering letter by the teacher, year 4 students followed business letter conventions much less fully than did year 8 students. Only about 25 percent of year 8 students included a good proportion of desirable elements.
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