READING - WRITING 5

NGUYEN HUU TAN – B.A

M.A LEARNER AT UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
 GREETING
BONJOUR こんにち
 

HELLO你好 は
안녕하세요 HOLL
HOLA
A
สว ัสดี
XIN CHÀO
 WEEK 1:
COURSE INTRODUCTION
 ABOUT THE TEACHER

Any questions?
CLASS SCHEDULE
COURSE FOCI
READING:
Develop reading skills for texts at level B2+.
WRITING:
How to write letters.
TEST FOCUS:
Vietnamese Standardized Test of English Proficiency (VSTEP) and
TOEFL iBT.
RESOURCES - READING
RESOURCES - WRITING
TIMELINE - WRITING

Week 1: Course introduction

Week 2: An Introduction to letters
Week 3: Writing an Informal letter: Giving news
Week 4: Writing an Informal Letter: Making a suggestion
Week 5: Writing a semi – formal letter: Asking for and giving information 
Week 6: Writing an informal or formal letter: Asking for/ Giving advice
Week 7: Review 1 – Groups 1, 2, 3
Week 8: Midterm Test
TIMELINE

Week 9: Writing a formal letter: Letter of Complaint

Week 10: Writing an informal/ formal letter: Letter of Apology
Week 11: Writing a letter of application
Week 12: Writing a transactional letter (1)
Week 13: Writing a transactional letter (2)
Week 14: Review 2 – Groups 4, 5, 6
Week 15: Consolidation
Week 16 and go on: Final Test
COURSE HANDOUTS

A monitor?
Randomized individual?
THE TEACHER ON ZALO

0965278394
CLASS POLICIES

8 groups
Groups 1-8
4 members / a group
CLASS POLICIES

LESSON HOMEWORK
Writing:
• Groups 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 write a letter.
• Groups 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 review (check, correct, comment and improve) the letter.
• Vice versa
The teacher reviews 1 letter randomly.

Submit before 23:59 every Saturday (Writing)/Monday (Reviewing).

CLASS POLICIES

Be serious
Be hard-working
Be as dynamic as possible
Be respected and respect
ASSESSMENT – A1 (20%)
Throughout the course, if you are:
 Completely present, punctual and prepared: +9
 Dynamic: +0.25 for each time.
 Absent without a reason: -1
 Absent with a justifiable reason: -0.5
 Unpunctual: -0.5
 Unprepared: -2
ASSESSMENT – A2 (30%)

Reading: Objective Test

Writing: Written Test
 Any questions about the class schedule,
materials, timeline, policies and assessment?
Which group do you belong
to, 1 => 8?
Forgive and tolerate me
NEXT CLASS PREPARATION

Group 1-4: Be ready to write a letter.

Group 5-8: Be ready to review a letter.
 IDIOMS OF THE DAY

GIVE IT YOUR BEST

SHOT!
 IDIOMS OF THE DAY

HARD WORK PAYS

OFF
Wish you a new term of success!
Goodbye and see you next week!
 WEEK 2

ARE ONLINE FRIENDS A THREAT TO

DEVELOPMENT?
EXAM PRACTICE
AN INTRODUCTION TO LETTERS
TAKE NOTES,
NOT PHOTOS
CHALLENGE 1: TEN LEXICAL ITEMS EACH WEEK

Words Pronunciation Explanation Meaning

Acquaintance (n) /əˈkweɪntəns/ A person you know Người quen

Empirical (adj) /ɪmˈpɪrɪkl/ Based on experiments Thực nghiệm

Diverse (adj) /daɪˈvɜːs/ Various and different Đa dạng

Evolve (v) /ɪˈvɒlv/ To develop gradually Tiến hóa

Narcissist (n) /ˈnɑːsɪsɪst/ A person who love Người ái kỷ

himself too much
CHALLENGE 1: TEN LEXICAL ITEMS EACH WEEK

Words Pronunciation Explanation Meaning

Tie (n) /taɪ/ Connection Sự kết nối

Adolescent (n) /ˌædəˈlesnt/ Teenager Thanh thiếu niên

Nurture (v) /ˈnɜːtʃə(r)/ To nourish Nuôi dưỡng

Hyper-connected (adj) /ˈhaɪpə(r) kəˈnektid/ To be connected via the Kết nối qua mạng
Internet
Empathy (n) /ˈempəθi/ The ability to Sự đồng cảm
understand others
CHALLENGE 2: VOCABULARY PRACTICE
CHALLENGE 2: VOCABULARY PRACTICE
CHALLENGE 3: QUICK READING
CHECK
Effect = impact
Often discussed =
much-debated
CHECK
Claim = criticism
Untrue = unfounded
CHECK
A wider range = a much
more diverse set
Online = social network
CHECK
advantageous = social
benefits
Emotional health =
psychological well-being
CHECK
Cause = negatively affecting
Different behavior =
character
CHECK
Technology = these devices
Fully control = have
complete control
CHECK
Not easy to manage =
unpredictable; difficult to
deal with
CHECK

Not want to be
on their own = no
longer
comfortable
being alone
CHALLENGE 4: MATCHING
CHECK
 CHALLENGE 4: EXAM PRACTICE

LITERATURE
 WRITING

An introduction to letters
WHAT IS A LETTER?
CLASSIFICATION OF LETTER

Formal letter: Letters that are written in a strict and specific format; written to someone
YOU DON’T KNOW or whose HIERARCHY is higher than yours.
Semi-formal letter: Letters that are written in format; written to someone YOU KNOW
but is NOT very close to you.
Informal letter: Letters that are written in an informal format; written to someone are
VERY CLOSE to (friends, family members,…).
COMMON STRUCTURE OF A LETTER

Usually, a letter may include 5 parts:

An appropriate greeting/salutation (Dear Sir/Madam, Dear Kathy, Dear Mr Brown).
An introduction clearly stating the reason you are writing.
A main body in which the subject is developed. Begin a new paragraph for each main point.
A final paragraph in which you sum up the topic or express your wish for something to be done.
An appropriate ending (Yours/Best wishes, + first name, Yours sincerely, Yours faithfully, + full name).
IDENTIFY THE PARTS OF THE LETTER
LANGUAGE FOR LETTERS
(SEMI)FORMAL LETTER

BEAR IN MIND
1. Avoid contractions.
All verb forms must be written in full.
Inappropriate: This isn't what we'd expect from a professional service.
Correct: This is not what we would expect from a professional service.
2. Do not use abbreviations.
Abbreviations like BBC and RADAR are perfectly acceptable, but avoid using informal abbreviations.
For example, do not write info for information; do not write ads for advertisement.
(SEMI)FORMAL LETTER

BEAR IN MIND
3. Limit the use of active verbs with the first person singular pronoun.
Inappropriate: I will send you all the relevant information asap.
Appropriate: All the relevant information will be forwarded to you as soon as possible.
4. Avoid the use of informal degree modifiers
Degree modifiers such as really and so are informal in nature. Avoid them. Instead, use extremely, highly,
entirely.
(SEMI)FORMAL LETTER

BEAR IN MIND
5. Limit the use of phrasal verbs/idiomatic language.
Inappropriate: I am on the cloud nine to hear from you
Appropriate: It’s my pleasure to hear from you.
LANGUAGE FOR (SEMI)FORMAL LETTERS:
Greeting: Dear Mr, Ms, Mrs, Ph.D, Asso Ph.D,…
Ending: Yours sincerely, Yours faithfully.
LANGUAGE FOR (SEMI)FORMAL LETTERS:
Use indirect speech for informing
 We are writing you with reference to (the above order)…………..
 With reference to your advertisement/letter of 10 March, I would like to write ………….
 I am pleased to write to you …………………
 We wish to remind you that…..
 I am writing this letter to request the cancellation of……..
 I am writing this letter to complain………………………
LANGUAGE FOR (SEMI)FORMAL LETTERS:
Use indirect speech for asking
Could you tell me ……………………
Would you mind telling me………..
I would be grateful if you could tell me………
I would like to know if……………………
LANGUAGE FOR (SEMI)FORMAL LETTERS:
Use polite language for ending
 We would be grateful if you could forward/send any further information (you may have) about….
 We will be pleased to supply any further information you require.
 We look forward to doing business to our mutual advantage.
 We would like to make a decision on this as soon as possible.
 In the meantime, we suggest that you call the ………
 We hope to meet your requirements.
LANGUAGE FOR (SEMI)FORMAL LETTERS
INFORMAL LETTERS

LANGUAGE FOR INFORMAL LETTERS:

Greeting: Dear, Hi ………..
Ending: Best, Best regards, Best, Best wishes, Kind regards, Many thanks,
Stay well, Thank you, Thanks, Warmly.
INFORMAL LETTERS
INFORMAL LETTERS

LANGUAGE FOR INFORMAL LETTERS

Introduction
 It’s great to hear from you. / Many thanks for your e-mail / letter.
 Sorry it's taken me so long to write back. / I haven't written for ages but …
 I’ve been really busy recently. / You’ve to know that I’ve been working really hard.
 How are you? / How are things (with you)? / How's it going? / How’s life?
 I hope you’re fine. / I hope you and your family are well. / I do hope this e-mail / letter will find you
in good health and spirits.
 Just thought I’d drop you a line.
INFORMAL LETTERS

LANGUAGE FOR (SEMI)FORMAL LETTERS

Referring to good / bad news
 Glad / sorry to hear / read about …
 I'm really glad / very happy to hear / read about …
 I'm extremely sorry / very sad to hear / read about …
INFORMAL LETTERS

LANGUAGE FOR (SEMI)FORMAL LETTERS

Moving the topic on
 By the way, have you heard about … / Did you hear about … / Tell me about
…
 Oh, another thing I wanted to mention … / So you want my advice about …
 Anyway, the reason I’m writing … / Anyway, I was wondering …  I
thought I’d write to tell / ask you …
INFORMAL LETTERS

LANGUAGE FOR (SEMI)FORMAL LETTERS

Ending
 Well, time to go / to close! / Got to go now! / I've got to leave off now! / That’s all for now.
 Looking forward to hearing from you. / Hope to hear from you soon. / Write back soon!
 Make sure you write soon! / Keep in touch! / Drop me a line if you have time!
 Take care of yourself! / Look after yourself!
 Let me know if you need anything. / Just give me a call if you have any questions left
INFORMAL LETTERS

LANGUAGE FOR (SEMI)FORMAL LETTERS

Sign-off
 Yours(,) / Your friend(,) /
 Best wishes(,) / All the best(,)
 Hugs(,) / Hugs and kisses(,)
 Love(,) / Lots of love(,) / All my love(,)
 Take care(,) / Bye for now(,)
MATCHING
PRACTICE – CIRCLE AND IDENTIFY
PRACTICE - REPLACE