Write Letters and Friendly Emails

A letter or email is one of the most useful things you will ever write — because it is writing with a real audience and a real purpose. You are not writing just for practice; you are writing to another human being who will read your words, feel something, and respond. That changes everything.

Friendly Letter vs. Friendly Email

• A friendly letter is written on paper, sent by mail, and includes a date, a mailing address, and a handwritten signature.
• A friendly email is sent electronically (always with a grown-up's OK), includes a subject line, and uses "From / To" fields instead of a mailing address. The tone can be slightly less formal, but the three-part structure is the same.
• Both share the same core format: greeting, main message, and closing.

Part 1 — Greeting

• In a letter: write the date in the top right corner, skip a line, then write "Dear [Name]," — always with a comma after the name, not an exclamation point.
• In an email: write a subject line first — make it clear and specific: "Thank you for visiting!" not "Hi". The salutation inside still begins with "Dear [Name]," or "Hi [Name]," for informal messages.
• Match the greeting to your audience: "Dear Grandma," for a relative; "Dear Mr. Collins," for a coach.

Part 2 — Main Message

• Open with a connection: ask how the reader is doing, or refer to the last time you communicated. "I hope you are well." or "It was so good to see you last weekend."
• State your purpose clearly in the first paragraph: why are you writing this letter right now?
• Develop your message over one or two short paragraphs: share news, ask a question, make a request, or describe an experience.
• Ask a question at or near the end — it invites the reader to reply: "How is your garden coming along?"

Part 3 — Closing

• End with a warm sign-off followed by a comma, then your name on the next line.
• Sign-offs to know: "Your friend," / "With love," / "Warm regards," / "Take care," / "Yours truly,"
• Match the sign-off to the relationship: "With love," for family; "Your friend," for a peer; "Warm regards," for a coach or other adult.

Audience and Tone

• Tone is the feeling your words carry — how they sound to the reader.
• Friendly letters to peers can be casual: contractions, first names, informal language.
• Letters to coaches or other adults should be more polite and slightly more careful: no slang, full sentences, respectful vocabulary.