MARKING CRITERIAS

PART 1 : SHORT COMMUNICATIVE MESSAGE

WRITING AN E-MAIL
WHAT ARE THE TASKS IN PART 1?

a. An email will be given as a form of question for you to reply.

1.

b. An email template will be prepared for you to write in.

c. The email should be at about 80 words

d. It requires a personal and concrete response on general social and everyday matters

e. You MUST complete writing it.

2. AN EXAMPLE OF THE QUESTION:

Read the question carefully. Highlight the keywords.

Identify the receiver of the email.

Highlight the MAIN question(s) in the

email

Memorise expressions to be used in an informal email.

 GREETING  Dear James,
Greet the  Dearest James
person you are  To James,
writing to.  Hi/Hello/Hey James!
 How is it going?
 How have you been?
Friendly opening

 How are you (keeping)?

 How are things? I hope everything’s OK.

RESPONSE  I’m glad to hear from you.

Begin your  It’s good to hear from you.
email and  I’m so excited to hear that…….
say why you  I received your email yesterday
are writing.  It’s been ages since we last spoke.
 Sorry for not being in touch for so long, but…
 Thanks for writing to me
 Thank you for your email.
 Thank you for reminding me about…….
 Wow! That’s great / wonderful/ fantastic news!
 I couldn’t believe when I read that…
To Express  I am pleased to hear that….
Enthusiasm  Guess what. I’ve some good news.
 What a great news!
 I’m thrilled for you. Congrats.
 Why don’t you try…
CONTENT  Have you ever thought about….
Highlight  I recommend that you..
questions in
 I feel you should..
the email that
 Perhaps you should..
you need to To Suggest  I think it’s a good idea to..
answer.
Answer  You simply have to …
particularly to the  What about…
questions asked  I’d suggest that…
and do not divert  The best thing to do is….
the focus of
 If I were you, I’d..
questions
 I think it’d be better..
To Advise  How about..
C1 E1
 It would be good if..
C2 E2
 It’s a good idea to… because…
C3 E3
 I don’t think you should………
To Give Opinion  I believe…… is the best.
 I don’t recommend that you..
 due to..
To Justify  The reason is …...
 It’s a good idea because..
  Well, that’s all for now.
 Do keep in touch/Keep in touch.
 Write back soon.
 Write soon.
Friendly closing

 Bye!
CLOSING  Bye for now.
State anything  All the best.
you want to
 Speak to you later.
emphasis and
 I hope my suggestions are helpful.
end your letter.
 I’m looking forward to hearing from you.
 I’m looking forward to your next email.
 I hope to hear from you soon.
 Waiting for your email/reply.
 Give my love/regards to everyone.

G R C C

When writing an emaiL based on prompt,

Use the informal language and expressions (e.g well, of course, anyway, you know, you see, actually, by
the way)
Use contractions (I’m , doesn’t, can’t)
Use exclamations (That’s a great news!)
Use direct questions (e.g What are you up to?)
Use standard grammar and spelling conventions. Avoid forms such as wanna, cu l8r,
etc.
Read prompts carefully and include all the points in the notes in your answer.
Don’t just copy the notes. Try to rephrase them and add any comments and / or
information that is relevant.
Use appropriate expressions to give suggestions / opinions, express enthusiasm, accept / refuse
invitation or give news etc.
SAMPLE ANSWER

To: Amygirl@bookface.com Subject: Picnic

Hi Amy,

I am so glad that you have brought this up as I had nothing planned for the holidays. I am
totally excited and I know just the place for our picnic. It will be at Central Park just beside
East Road. We could also play ball there as the park is huge. Don’t forget to bring an extra
mat to place our foods on just in case I lost mine. Don’t worry about the supplies, I can
handle them, though you could bring some snacks if you would like too. The more, the
better. I was also thinking that we could have Jack and David come. It will be more fun with
them around. Alright, do update me if something comes up. Bye!

COMMUNICATIVE ORGANISATION LANGUAGE

CONTENT ACHIEVEMENT

5 5 5 5

All content relevant Uses straightforward Uses cohesive Uses basic vocabulary
to task ideas devices appropriately which is relevant to
 Where shall we the topic
go? Ⓒ Consistent appropriately
 What can we do friendly tone in
informal register Uses simple
there? Ⓒ
grammatical forms
 What should we with a good degree
bring? Ⓒ of control

Reader is fully Mostly compound

informed about the and complex
planned picnic sentences

Simple error
 PART 1 (80 WORDS: 20 MARKS)

SAMPLE QUESTION: You received an email from your friend, Jenny who wants to know about your experience
joining an essay writing competition.

Hi,
Congratulations for becoming the second runner-up for an essay writing competition. How did you know
about the competition? Who inspired you to join it? How did you react when you when you knew the
result? I am so proud of you!

REMEMBER : G-R-C-C

GREETINGS Hello Jenny.

RESPONSE Thank you for your wish.

CONTENT 1 How did you know about the competition?
I knew about the competition from the poster shared by the organizer in Instagram.

What made you want to join it?

Elaboration 1 Initially, the poster really attracted my attention because of the topics given.
CONTENT 2 Who inspired you to join it?
When I asked Madam Wan Sharifah about it, she encouraged me to enter.

Elaboration 2 Without any doubt, she also helped me out by checking my grammar and sentence
structures.
CONTENT 3 How did you react when you when you knew the result?
Of course, it was unbelievable at first, then I screamed out loud.

Elaboration 3 I am really happy because I had the courage to join the competition.
CLOSING Well, that’s all for now. Do keep in touch.

SUGGESTED ANSWER:

To: jenny@gmail.com
Subject: Essay Writing Competition
Hello Jenny.
Thank you for your wish. I knew about the competition from the poster shared by the organizer in
Instagram. When I asked Madam Wan Sharifah about it, she encouraged me to enter. Without any
doubt, she also helped me out by checking my grammar and sentence structures.
Of course, it was unbelievable at first, then I screamed out loud. I am really happy because I had
the courage to join the competition.
Well, that’s all for now. Do keep in touch.
Bye.
LONGER RESPONSE USING TWO ELABORATIONS FOR EACH CONTENT

GREETINGS Hello Jenny.

RESPONSE Thank you for your wish.

CONTENT 1 How did you know about the competition?
I knew about the competition from the poster shared by the organizer in Instagram.

Elaboration 1A What made you want to join it?

Initially, the poster really attracted my attention because of the topics given.

Elaboration 1B One of the topics was close to my heart.

CONTENT 2 Who inspired you to join it?
When I asked Madam Wan Sharifah about it, she encouraged me to enter.

Elaboration 2A Without any doubt, she also helped me out by checking my grammar and sentence
structures.

Elaboration 2B In addition, she said I could sharpen my writing skills.

CONTENT 3 How did you react when you when you knew the result?
Of course, it was unbelievable at first, then I screamed out loud.

Elaboration 3A I am really happy because I had the courage to join the competition.
CLOSING Well, that’s all for now. Do keep in touch.

SUGGESTED ANSWER:

To: jenny@gmail.com
Subject: Essay Writing Competition
Hello Jenny.
Thank you for your wish. I knew about the competition from the poster shared by the organizer in
Instagram. Initially, the poster really attracted my attention because of the topics given.
One of the topics was close to my heart. When I asked Madam Wan Sharifah about it, she
encouraged me to enter. Without any doubt, she also helped me out by checking my grammar and
sentence structures. In addition, she said I could sharpen my writing skills.
Of course, it was unbelievable at first, then I screamed out loud. I am really happy because I had
the courage to join the competition. Thank you for your wish.

Well, that’s all for now. Do keep in touch.

Bye.
 PRACTICE:
PART 1 (80 WORDS: 20 MARKS)

You received an email from your cousin, Gina, who wants your opinion on something.

( Part 1 SPM 2021 )

Hi,
I’ve been asked to choose a sports club but I can’t decide which club to join. Which sports club do you
think I should choose? Why do you think it’s suitable for me? What can I learn from joining a sports
club?

I hope to hear from you soon.

Bye!

REMEMBER : G-R-C-C

GREETINGS

RESPONSE
CONTENT 1

Elaboration 1
CONTENT 2

Elaboration 2
CONTENT 3

Elaboration 3
CLOSING
 Write an email to your cousin in about 80 words in the space provided.

To: gina@email.com
Subject: Sports Club

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