Cover lesson · Design Technology · Year 9 · Advanced
DCF: Interacting and collaborating → Communication
Also assessed, LNF: Literacy → Writing → Planning and organising for different purposes, audiences and context
Name: Class: Date:
What this practises: using email properly for a real job. Pupils judge 2 badly written emails against a 10-point etiquette checklist, plan and write a formal email asking an invented Welsh supplier for a quote for the materials for 30 phone stands, then reply to the supplier’s answer, which offers a substitute material. The literacy assessed is the plan in Step 2 and the formal email in Step 3. No email is actually sent, and no computers are needed.
Print: this sheet and the stimulus sheet “Phone stand project: supplier quote pack”, one of each per pupil. Pupils need a pen and 2 highlighters of different colours.
Run: 5 min read sections 1 to 4 of the stimulus · 10 min Step 1, judge 2 emails · 8 min Step 2, plan · 15 min Step 3, write the email, in silence · 9 min Step 4, read section 5 and reply · 3 min Step 5, check. Total 50 minutes. Ask pupils not to read section 5 until Step 4.
Collect: this sheet. The worked example has the answers and a model email. The two things to check first: the email goes To Nia Hughes at ysgolion@, not helo@, with Cc to Mrs Pugh only; and in Step 4 the pupil chooses option 1, because the acrylic must be 3 mm.
Designers and manufacturers spend a lot of time emailing suppliers. A clear email gets an accurate quote the first time; a vague one gets the wrong material, a delay or a question back. You will find out what goes wrong in 2 first attempts, then write the email Mrs Pugh will send, and deal with the supplier’s reply.
Read Emails A and B in section 4 of the stimulus. Highlight every problem you can find. Then put a tick (meets it) or a cross (fails it) for each checklist point, with the worst example in the last column.
| Email etiquette checklist | A | B | Worst example (quote it) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. A clear, specific subject line | |||
| 2. A polite greeting to the right person | |||
| 3. Purpose in the first sentence | |||
| 4. Specific details, numbered: quantities, sizes and units, date, address, reference | |||
| 5. A polite close that says what you want next | |||
| 6. A signature: full name, role, school, school phone | |||
| 7. Attachment named so the reader knows what it is | |||
| 8. To, Cc and Bcc used correctly | |||
| 9. No personal data shared | |||
| 10. Checked before sending: spelling, register, facts |
(b) Which mistake in Email B could cause the most harm, and to whom? Explain.
(c) Would a phone call be better than an email for asking for this quote? Give one advantage of each, and decide.
| Purpose: what is the email for? | |
|---|---|
| Audience: who reads it, and what do they need? | |
| Context: what is the situation, and the deadline? | |
| Register: formal or informal? Give 2 features you will use. | |
| After reading, the reader should |
Paragraph plan. One line of notes for each part.
| Opening: who you are, why you are writing, reference | |
|---|---|
| Details: the numbered list | |
| Delivery and what you want back | |
| Close and signature |
Write 150 to 220 words, from the greeting to the sign-off. Use a formal register: full sentences, no contractions (I am, not I’m), no text-speak, no capitals for shouting. Put the materials in a numbered list.
| To: | |
|---|---|
| Cc: | |
| Subject: | |
| Attachment: |
Now read section 5 of the stimulus. (a) Which option should you choose? Give 2 reasons from Mrs Pugh’s notes.
(b) Write a reply of 60 to 100 words. Thank the supplier, give your choice and reason, quote both references, confirm the delivery, and say who will place the order. Write the To, Cc and Subject lines first.