1. An email with recent news.

Read this email written to a friend. Mark the statements true or false.

Hi Lisa,
I hope this finds you well. I thought it was about time I wrote to you again and got in touch. How are you? How are Jon and the kids? Well, I hope.

Over here things are going fine. As you know, Billy's just started school now and he loves it. Kate's also fine – she still rides around all the time on that bike you gave her in the summer.

The only problem we've had recently was with my mother. She was taken ill and had to go into hospital. They had to do loads of tests. But she's OK again now and staying with us – that way we can keep an eye on her!

Have you thought any more about Christmas? We've booked the cottage I mentioned and, of course, the offer's still open. We've got it from the 21st to the 30th , so we're travelling down on the overnight train on the 20th. Let me know what you decide. You could always come for part of the time if you wanted, or we could meet you there. Anyway, that's about all for now. Write back soon.

Lots of love,
Susan

2. An email with recent news.

Use the phrases to complete the email.

3. Reconstruct the letter.

Choose the correct option to reconstruct Susan's email from exercise 1.

4. Write.

Choose ONE of the alternatives below.

Alternative 1 – Recent news
Write an email to your tutor giving him or her your recent news, including family, work or studies.

Use the email in exercise 1 to help with the organisation, and look again at the language that you have studied in this unit to help you write the email.

Write about 150 words. Check spelling and grammar before you send it to your tutor.


Alternative 2 – Getting in touch
Read the story and decide what the best title is from the four titles below.

  1. A bad friend
  2. Lost and found
  3. My best friend
  4. My Facebook friend

I lost touch with my friend Tim for nearly 20 years. We shared a flat while we were at university, but then I moved to Italy to continue my studies. We kept in touch by phone and whenever I was in the UK we sometimes met for a coffee. The last time I saw him was in 1996. He came to Milan for a conference. As always, it was great to see him and we had lots to talk about. A month later I phoned him to say that I was coming to England. But the phone number I had was invalid. For the next couple of years I tried to find him, but in the end I gave up.

A couple of weeks ago I was checking my Facebook account and I saw that I had a message. I opened the message and discovered it was from Tim! We have exchanged a number of emails and we are planning to meet next time I go to England.

Now compare your answer with the suggested answer.

"Lost and found" is the best title. The writer describes how she lost a friend and then found him again.

Write a letter to your tutor describing how you lost touch with somebody and how you found each other again.

Write about 150 words. Check spelling and grammar before you send it to your tutor.