Parts of a Friendly Parts of a Friendly LetterLetter

5 Parts of a Friendly Letter5 Parts of a Friendly Letter

1.1. The HeadingThe Heading

2.2. The Greeting The Greeting

3.3. The BodyThe Body

4.4. The ClosingThe Closing

5.5. The SignatureThe Signature

1. 1. HeadingHeading

The heading of a letter has three lines:

The return address, which includes

– the street address on the first line

– city, state and zip code on the next line

The third line is the complete date

The heading goes at the top right side of the page. The left (beginning) letters are lined up with each other. Notice where commas go in the address and in the date.

72079 Maple StreetAbita Springs, LA 70420 January 6, 2011

2. 2. GreetingGreeting

The Greeting means “hello.”

It includes the word “Dear” followed by the name of the person who is receiving the letter.

It begins on the far left margin. Skip one line after the heading, then write the greeting.

All words in the greeting are capitalized.

The greeting ends with a comma.

Dear Mrs. Molina,

3. Body3. Body

The body of the letter contains the main text or message.

Each paragraph should be indented.

It should be written in your neatest handwriting, will all spelling, grammar, and punctuation correct. (Proofread!)

Things are going well for me at summer camp. My cabinmates are kind and funny, the food is plentiful and delicious, and the activities keep me so busy all day.

May I return to camp next summer? It has been such a great experience! Please write back.

4. Closing4. Closing

The closing means “good-bye.”

Line up the first letter of the closing with the first letters of the heading at the top of the page.

The first word of the closing begins with a capital letter. Here are some common closings:

– Sincerely,

– Your friend,

– Until we meet again,

– Love,

A comma follows the closing.

5. Signature5. Signature

The signature tells who wrote the letter. Write the first letter of the signature directly

under the first letter of the closing: Sincerely,

Mrs. Molina

Friendly Letter ExampleFriendly Letter Examplesee also Language book p. 521see also Language book p. 521

455 East Main Street

Anytown, PA 44556

March 12, 2011

Dear Michael,

Let me tell you some of the reasons I hope you will never smoke.

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

I hope you will consider these reasons as you grow older and are subject to peer pressure. This is the last paragraph.

Sincerely,

Jean Rogers