A good message on paper: to, subject, body, attachment
ICT Prep 1 Term 1, Lesson 5: pp. 44–54
GoalWrite a good message on paper with the parts to, subject, body and attachment, and list safe e-mail habits.
New words
recipient · the person you write to; the address goes in the “To” boxsubject · a short title that tells what the message is aboutbody · the main part of the message, where you write what you want to saygreeting · a polite first line such as “Dear teacher” and a polite closing
Explanation
A good message has clear parts. In the “To” box you write the address of the person who should get it. The subject is a short title, so that the receiver knows at once what the message is about. The body begins with a polite greeting, then says one clear thing, asks one clear question if needed, and ends with a thank-you and your name. If a file must travel with the message, it goes in as an attachment, and the body says what it is. Before sending, read the message again: is the address right, is the subject clear, is the tone polite, is the attachment the right one? Keep private details out of messages. Never write a password, a home address or a phone number. In class we write on paper and use invented addresses, so you can practise all the habits without a device.
Part
What to write
Example (invented)
To
the address of the receiver
~teacher.a@example.eg
Subject
a short, clear title
Question about the trip date
Body
greeting, one clear point, thanks, name
Dear teacher, may I ask the date of the trip? Thank you. Pupil D
Attachment
a file, only if needed
my permission note, mentioned in the body
Worked examples
Weak subject
Good subject
hi
Question about homework, page 12
A weak subject is “hi”. A good subject is “Question about homework, page 12”. The good one tells the teacher at once what the message is about, so she can answer faster.
Marwan checks his paper message before “sending” it to the invented “teacher.a”. Is the address right? Is the subject clear? Is the greeting polite? Is anything private written in it? He fixes one mistake and then passes the paper to his teacher.
Safe habit
Risky habit
keep the password secret
tell a friend the password
open attachments from known people only
open every attachment
sign out on a shared computer
leave the account open
ask a grown-up about strange messages
answer strange messages
This table shows safe habits and their opposite. Choose the left column every time.
Class activity
Write on paper a short message to an invented “Teacher A”, asking when the next class trip is. Draw the boxes To, Subject, Body and Attachment, and fill them in. Use a greeting and a thank-you. Swap papers with a partner and check each other’s list: address, subject, greeting, nothing private.
Practice
1
What goes in the subject of a message?
A short, clear title that says what the message is about.
2
Name two things you should never write in an e-mail.
A password and a home address (also a phone number).
3
Which subject is better? Say the letter.
A
B
Hello
Question about the library visit
B, because it says what the message is about.
4
Why do we read a message again before sending it?
To check the address, the subject, the tone, and that nothing private is in it.
