I know this picture is a lot! Look carefully--it's more simple than it looks at first-glance.
The ORANGE arrows point to elements you should include in your email.
The BLUE arrows point to spacing you should include to make your text easier to read.
The ORANGE arrows point to elements you should include in your email.
The BLUE arrows point to spacing you should include to make your text easier to read.
Email Composition Guidelines:
Email Points to Consider:
Tone:
Good Topics for Email:
Bad Topics for Email:
- Wachusett faculty & staff email addresses are always [email protected]. If you are trying to email a teacher at an @wrsdk12.net address, they may not receive your message.
- Always use your SCHOOL email address when emailing teachers.
- We have no idea who you are when you use a personal address.
- A subject lets your teacher search for your email so they can help you faster, and immediately shows why you are reaching out.
- ALWAYS include a subject, greeting, closing, and signature
- Greetings and closings show respect. Remember: You are contacting a professional adult whose good opinion you would like to keep, not texting your friends.
- Greetings and closings should reflect YOU. Which greeting feels good to you? How do you like to sign your emails? I like "Hello" or "Good morning" as greetings, and "Thanks!" or "Have a great day," as closings--They're all positive and work in many contexts.
- After your closing, sign your name that you go by in class (nickname, the name you commonly go by, etc.). Use the signature for your full or formal name.
- A signature tells your teacher who you are and which class you are currently taking. This allows your teacher to most efficiently place you and figure out how to help you. Remember—some teachers have ~150 to 300+ students per quarter!
- Make sure you include white space between all elements. Blocks of text are difficult for the human brain to process. We do not indent paragraphs in emails, so white space (hitting Enter/Return at least twice between each element—i.e. greeting and body, closing and name, etc.—to give a blank line) helps make the email easier to read.
- Do not change the font. Plain, standard fonts like Times New Roman or Arial are easier to read.
Email Points to Consider:
- You may think your email is clear and respectful, but it may not come across that way to your reader. Proper formatting takes out some of the guesswork of communicating clearly and respectfully.
- It is VERY easy to be misunderstood in email, especially if your sense of humor tends toward dry/sarcastic.
- You can never be too formal. You CAN be too casual. How would you rather people see you and your words?
- Be more formal when emailing a superior like a teacher or boss. You can be less formal when emailing a peer or classmate.
- Your teacher may respond more casually than you wrote to them. That’s OKAY. Focus on you. Err on the side of being more professional. You look good!
- Never “Reply All” unless you are 100% sure everyone on the email chain needs to know what you have to say.
- Use bcc (blind carbon copy) when emailing a group of people who do not know each other. This hides the email addresses of the recipients and is a professional courtesy to respect other people’s privacy.
- You might not love writing emails—and that’s okay! Learning how to communicate clearly through email is a necessary life skill, and will serve you well if you take this format to heart.
- If your message is difficult to convey in writing, you can always use an email to schedule a face-to-face conversation, meeting, or phone call.
Tone:
- Without the benefit of body language, tone of voice, facial expressions, etc., your intention may not be as clear as you think it is.
- Write in a positive tone to receive a positive response.
- People tend to reflect the emotions they receive. If your email is hostile or confrontational, your recipient is less likely to respond to you positively.
- “If I complete the assignment” is negative. “When I complete the assignment” is positive. Why?
- Think about how your greeting, closing, and word choice affect the tone of your email.
- You do not need to feel positively about what you are writing, but if you choose positive words, you are more likely to get the response you want.
- If you have something negative to address, open and close your email with something positive. Sandwich your complaint/concern in the middle using polite language. (Note: Not everyone agrees with this strategy! I find it to be helpful -Mrs. S)
Good Topics for Email:
- Asking an easy question that can be answered in a paragraph or less
- Sharing a reasonable amount of information with a person or group who needs it
- Asking time-sensitive questions
- e.g. extra help, an extension, follow-up regarding an absence, technology problems, etc.
- Following up on a conversation or topic
- Scheduling an in-person meeting or phone call
Bad Topics for Email:
- Telling your teacher how to do his/her job
- Any topic that will require continuous back-and-forth conversation
- One-sided complaints or criticisms
- Anything that might be misinterpreted without the benefit of tone of voice, facial expressions, and/or body language
- Private information you do not want publicly in print
- Anything written when you are feeling angry or frustrated
- Sleep on it, and send the email when you are calmer :)