Page 43 - Grasp English B2 (Workbook)

4 Departures

Writing

A. Discuss with a partner.
1. Do you ever write letters?

2. Snail mail is dead. Do you agree? Why/Why not?
3. How do people communicate nowadays?

B. Discuss with a partner.
1. Why might you decide to write a thank you letter to someone, rather than send a message?
2. If you’re writing to someone who you don’t know well, what type of language will you use in your letter?

3. What elements should you include in a thank you letter?

Dear Dr Hesselberg,

I am writing to thank you for sending me through the information I requested regarding
the original details of Thor Heyerdahl’s Kon-Tiki expedition. It was incredible to be able
to read the original accounts of his preparation for the trip in Peru.
As I mentioned in my previous email, while I have been able to find numerous websites
devoted to the expedition, I wanted to ensure that the novel I’m writing presented the
voyage in the right tone.
Reading the accounts of Heyerdahl, as well as those of your great-grandfather and
other members of the crew, has given me a wealth of ideas for the direction I would
now like the novel to take.
I sincerely hope that you and other relatives of the Kon-Tiki explorers are happy with
the text and I would be happy to send through a copy of the manuscript before it goes
to print.

My warmest regards,
Ilona Paderewski

C. Answer the questions according to the letter you read.

1. What kind of text is Ilona preparing?
2. Why did Ilona write to Dr Hesselberg?
3. How does Dr Hesselberg have the information Ilona wanted?
4. What does she offer to do before the book is printed?

D. Read and do the task.

You recently stayed in a hotel and would like to write a thank you letter to the
manager, Mrs Li to compliment her on the good service you received. During
your stay, there was a problem, but the staff were able to fix it.

E. Now, write your thank you letter (160–190 words). Include details of the
problem and how the staff helped you.

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