The Friendly Letter
Essential Question: How does writing do our talking?
A Friendly Letter is defined as a letter written in a personal voice. A friendly letter should sound like you are speaking directly to the reader.
May 04, 2011
Dear Class, 101 North Merion Ave. Bryn Mawr, PA 19010 January 18, 2010 Hello! I am so excited to get to know each of you, and I thought you might want to know a bit about me, too. I am from Bethesda, Maryland, which is only half an hour away from the nation 's capital, Washington, D.C. My mother and father still live there, and my brother is a college student in Boston, Massachusetts. Sometimes it is hard for me to be so far away from my family, but that makes it extra special whenever we are all home. Some of my favorite things are very soft sweaters, the sound of Nlipping through a new book, and the smell of Spring. Two of my hobbies are cross- stitching and horseback riding. My favorite school subject is reading, because I like to hear other people 's stories. Math is my second favorite because I love the challenge of Niguring out puzzles. I am proud of my ability to listen to my friends when they are upset and help them feel better. Right now, the thing I am looking forward to the most is being your teacher in Room 122! Sincerely, Ms. Neudorfer
Introduction Letter Topics: May 04, 2011
Prewriting! May 04, 2011
On Cafeteria Food With your partner, write a friendly letter telling someone what you think of our cafeteria food. You will be writing to: a friend in our class, one of your parents, OR the principal! One partner will fill out the prewriting organizer, and the other will write the letter that you both come up with.
scan of writer's checklist May 04, 2011
Revising We all work to revise our writing and make it better, but sometimes other people can see ways for us to improve that we don't see ourselves. Peer Conferencing: Giving a classmate advice about how to make his or her writing better.
71 Boxwood Drive Atlanta, GA 30315 Dear Jessie, I just want to tell you what a wonderful time I had during the holidays. It was fun going places and doing things with you. I am already looking forward to my next visit. Will the ice on the pond still be thick enough so we can go ice-skating? I would love to try my brand new racing skates. Josh
scan of Writing Letters Comments sheet May 04, 2011
Our Conferencing Rules May 04, 2011
Proofreading Proofreading is how we check for grammar, punctuation, and spelling in our writing. We use different symbols to remind ourselves what to change. Proofreading symbols, or marks, are also a quick way for someone else to give feedback on grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
Rabbit's Burrow Hollow Oak march 25 Dear Pig One and pig To, What bad luck Here I Am missing another housewarming party. Are you having ice cream. I shure wish I could be there. But my mother says, "Absolutely not! I can't get out of bed as long as Im coughing. And know matter how hard I try not to it seems I always when she's nearby. (Just between you and me, I think that shes afraid I might go bak to the mcgregors' garden, even though I promiseed her I would'tn. I do hope both of you are having lots of fun. As soon as as I am better, I'll come visit you're new house. Love Peter Rabbit
Proofreading Marks! Insert : "Put this here!" Capitalize : "Make this a capital letter!" Make Lower Case : "Make this a lower case letter!" Reverse : "Switch these things around!" Delete : "Take this out!" Indent : "Put some space at the start of your paragraph!" Check Spelling : "Check and fix the spelling of this word!"
All About Letters! We have Learned: What we know about other kinds of letters: What we still want to know:
Tony's Bread Prereading: As good readers, we think about what we're reading before we even look at the first word! Look through the pages. What do you notice? What does this tell us?
Tony's Bread What role did letters play in this story?
Tony's Bread What is your opinion of Tomie depaola, the author of Tony's Bread?