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Quiz

Test your understanding of this English lesson

Test your understanding of the English lesson by answering these questions. You will get the answers and your score at the end of the quiz.
You want to write to your friend, John Smith. How will you start and end your letter?





You're writing to your bank manager, Tom Brown. How will you start and end your letter?





You are writing to a teacher named Natalie Brown.  You don't know her very well. How will you start and end the letter?





You are requesting a quotation from  a company called Swift Movers. You don't know anyone there.





You're requesting information on English courses from Maria Wheaton, Director of ABC School.





You're applying for a job at Microsoft. The Human Resources Manager's name is Jason Bright. How will you start and end your covering letter?





You're writing a letter of complaint to a department store.  You don't know who is in charge of customer service.





You just had a new baby and are requesting information from your insurance agent, Sunil Gupta.  You have both become good friends over the years.





You're writing to a local travel agency requesting information on fares from Vancouver to Tokyo.  You are not acquainted with anyone working there.





You're replying to your sister's letter.  Her name is Deborah.







comments
Comments

93 Comments on “IELTS Writing – Letters – How to start and finish”

Leave a Comment

Dear Rebecca!

Thank you very much for this helpful information. It is very helpful resource for english learners. I did personally take advantage of these free advice you provide to learners. Along with learning a great number of valuable advice, it is a great opportunity to improve listening skills.

I just cant find words to express my huge gratitude to you for such a wonderful opportunity you provide us with.

Thank you very much dear Rebecca !
I adviced your website to more than 300 people among my students and people who want to learn english.

I will continue doing that.

You are a great teacher!

Sincerely,
Fargani

Wednesday, November 12th 2008

Fargani – Thank you very much for your kind words and for recommending our site to your students. Please let us know if there are particular topics you would like to see lessons on. We would be happy to produce those lessons which would be most beneficial to ESL students around the world. Keep checking back as we will be adding new lessons often. Thanks, again.

Thursday, November 13th 2008

    Dear Rebecca!

    My name is Amir. I am student of Kazakh-British Technical University. I would like to pass IELTS exam, and now I am preparing. Your lesson is very good and everything is clear! I have one suggestion; it would be perfect if you will teach about modal verbs, “may”, “can”, “could”, “would”, “must”, “need”, “should”. Because sometimes it is very difficult to distinguish it.

    Thank you in advance.

    Sincerely,
    Amir.

    Tuesday, June 23rd 2009Reply to this comment

Dear. Rebecca
I appreciate your assistance to new english learner.
Currently, I am preparing for me TOEFL exam and I find your site and videos VERY beneficial. I just wanted to thank you for your hard work and keep it up!!!!

-Ji Hoon Hong
S.Korea

Thursday, November 13th 2008

Dear Rebecca,

I am writing to you to thank you for the useful information you published on the net for the public students.

fortunately, i was on of those student who get the benefits of using this information which i found it on uyube web site, currently i am preparing for the IELTS exam.

At the end, i would like to thank you again for this grate effort and keep it up.

Yours Sincerely.
Samih Rajab

Wednesday, December 10th 2008

Thanks Ji-Hoon and Samih for your comments. Glad I was able to help you.

Monday, December 15th 2008

Dear Rebecca ESL,
I really thankful to you as I was in search of great teacher like you.
Thanks God also. Kindly keep up it.

Your Sincerely,
G. N. Asif

Monday, December 29th 2008

    Thank you kindly, Ghulam. Please let me know if there are any special areas in which you experience difficulties. Good luck with your English studies and your future.

    Rebecca

    Saturday, February 7th 2009Reply to this comment

Dear rebecca thank you for your advice , i“learning from your video classes, and i would like you to talk about “How to improve pronunciation in secondary students because i`m oing a project about that , and I want to know that .
sincerely

Monday, December 29th 2008

    Hi Zoila

    I will be recording pronunciation videos in the future, so stay tuned.

    In the meantime, please do make use of the many fine books and CDs on the market which can help with pronunciation. Of course, there are different accents in English, but there are still guidelines that will help improve pronunciation of non-native English speakers.

    Are you a teacher or a student? All the best to you.

    Rebecca

    Saturday, February 7th 2009Reply to this comment

Dear Rebecca,

I am glad to see something very useful for free on your website, your way of teaching is great!
Currently i am preparing for my IELTS exam, i would be really greatful to you if you please help me in advising regarding my exam prepartion and could recommend some good practice and tips.

Thanks & Regards
Usman Butt

Monday, January 12th 2009

    Hi Usman

    Please have a look at my website Good Luck IELTS.

    It has a lot of information on the IELTS, and many tips for doing better on each part of the exam. I have also recently added some sample essays there and a list of essay topics.

    Please watch the video on How to Structure Your TOEFL Essay ( on this site) to help you write your IELTS essay with ease. The IELTS essay is shorter than the TOEFL essay but the principles of structuring it are the same.

    Which IELTS exam do you need to do? General or Academic?

    I wish you all the best,

    Rebecca

    Saturday, February 7th 2009Reply to this comment

Really mem,you have great tip i need help for general reading tips in which i got only 4.5 band otherwise my overall band is 6 so pl could you help me

thanks
hetal pandya

Tuesday, January 27th 2009

    Hi Hetal

    You too could benefit from my website Good Luck IELTS. There is lots of information there about each section of the test, including reading.

    There are also specific practice books available to improve your General Reading skills. You should analyze which of the different types of questions you usually get wrong: true, false & not given, fill in the blank, multiple choice or something else. Each question type requires a different strategy. Learn the best strategies and do many practice questions to develop your ability to answer those kinds of questions. By understanding exactly which types of questions you get wrong, you can work in a more targeted way to improve your score. The IELTS reading section can be tricky so please try this approach.

    Also watch the video recommended to Usman above to help you score higher on the essay writing part of your exam.

    All the best to you,

    Rebecca

    Saturday, February 7th 2009Reply to this comment

dear Rebecca
i want to learn English very well .can you give me some advices and lessons please tks you so much

Thursday, February 12th 2009

    There are so many wonderful resources available today that you can surround yourself with English wherever you are. Read, write, listen, speak, sing… do as much as possible in English on a regular basis and you will definitely improve quickly.

    It is best if you can find a private English teacher who can give you regular feedback.

    Another intensive option is to study English in Canada or any English-speaking country. This is the fastest way to pick up the language. You are invited to join us at Diplomat Language School in Toronto, Canada.

    Thursday, April 9th 2009Reply to this comment

Hi
Thanks for this helpful website and the whole movies..Your phonetics also so clear that I almost catch every word you say..Thanks a lot.

Tuesday, March 3rd 2009

Dear Rebecca,
This Nicolas from Mexico.
I just got this amazing site,and I am so thankful.
I’d like to know how to improve my English.
How to speak fluent,and fast too.
Can you give me some advice please?

Thank a lot.

Nick.

Tuesday, March 31st 2009

    Hi Nico

    Please look at the response to faty above. That should give you some ideas.

    There are also so many great online learning options, such as Skype lessons, which some of our teachers offer too.

    Any chance of your traveling to Canada for some time? We have many warm and enthusiastic students from Mexico and around the world.

    Thursday, April 9th 2009Reply to this comment

Dear Rebecca.

I just would like to thank you for such a clear and concise lesson. It was easy for me to understand as your pronunciation and speed was perfect for ESL learners. I’m also delighted to have found this web site. I’ll be here to explore more topics that would hepl me improve my speaking and writing skills.

Thanks a lot.

Yours truly,

Sheree

Sunday, April 5th 2009

    Hi Sheree

    Thanks for your feedback.

    I would like to compliment you on your English. You wrote an almost flawless letter! The only mistake was just a typing error, I believe. You have obviously invested a lot of effort in improving your English and it shows! Good for you.

    Please do tell others about our website so we can continue to produce more lessons.

    All the best to you, Sheree.

    Thursday, April 9th 2009Reply to this comment

dear rebecca,
would you please write down the body parts of letter as well if possible.i checked your video in youtube.that was very helpful.
but if you can be able to show the body parts of the general writing too i would be grateful to you.thanks for your help.
yours faithfully
umang

Friday, April 17th 2009

    Thanks for the suggestion, Umang.

    What I’ll do is add some sample letters to the goodluckielts website. Keep checking, and good luck with your exam.

    Saturday, June 27th 2009Reply to this comment

mam i wanna english pronounciation…..

Sunday, April 26th 2009

Dear Rebecca,

Please tell me whether I should use tab (Blank spaces) before starting each paragraph during my writing tasks on IELTS or not? Your feedback would be really helpful.

Yours faithfully
Arif

Sunday, May 3rd 2009

    You can either use the tab to indent each new paragraph, or else you need to leave a line space between each paragraph.

    Hope this helps.

    Saturday, June 27th 2009Reply to this comment

Dear rebecca

Can you please help me with introduction in both letter and eassey writing for general module.I would like to know is it possible that u could score my writing and give me feed back.I need at least 6.5 band score so i know how is i am doing.I would be very greatful for your reply.Thank you.

yours faithfully
vibha

Monday, May 4th 2009

Dear Rebecca,

I appreciate your great endeavour for providing free IELTS learning materials. I found you site when i was surfing the net. But unfortunately, my netwok link is slow that’s why i cann’t listen your vedio clip. I am trying to find out any download links but fail to download the vedio clip. Would you please give me some information about how can I save it in my local PC after then i can listen it smoothly.

Sunday, May 24th 2009

Dear Rebecca,

First of all I want to say thank you very much for your very useful video lessons. Now I understand a little bit but I really want to improve my english because I got 70.00 your quiz it’s too bad. But I have to study well english with your website. Thanks all.

Yours sincerelly.
Nandin.

Saturday, May 30th 2009

Dear Rebecca

Thanx for such a usful information and all the best for such a deligent effort you are putting into to make people like us worth something.

Yours sincerelly
Nimit Jain

Sunday, June 7th 2009

    My pleasure. Every single person has his or her unique potential. I wish you all the best with your English.

    Saturday, June 27th 2009Reply to this comment

Dear Rebecca,

Thanks again for your great teaching. I really hope to get my English improve from you.

Yours Sincerely,

Juu

Wednesday, June 17th 2009

Glad I could help.

Saturday, June 27th 2009

Dear Rebecca,

I’d like to thank you for the useful information that you have given us so far, and for your time and your great effort.

Sunday, July 5th 2009

Dear Rebecca.

I would like to İELTS exam and I have to get 6.5 skore from the exam.
You should give me some advice regarding the İELTS exam. I will apply on 5th September 2009. I have limited time and I do not knom how to study well. Please send me a relating mail to me. I would like to thank you very much.

Yours faithfully.

Tuesday, July 7th 2009

    First, check which IELTS you need to take – Academic or General.

    Then, get hold of a copy of the Cambridge IELTS exam papers so you cna see samples of previous exams. Do a sample test and you will know what your strengths and weaknesses are. You will need an English teacher to check your writing.

    The best thing is to join the best IELTS preparation program you can find in your area or else to find a private teacher who can help you prepare for the exam. Make sure the teacher has experience in IELTS preparation and not just in general English.

    To do well on this exam, you need to learn specific strategies to get the highest marks.

    You could also check my website below for general tips on how to do well in each section and to read soem sample essays I have written:

    http://www.goodluckielts.com

    All the best to you!

    Friday, July 10th 2009Reply to this comment

    First, check which IELTS you need to take – Academic or General.

    Then, get hold of a copy of the Cambridge IELTS exam papers so you cna see samples of previous exams. Do a sample test and you will know what your strengths and weaknesses are. You will need an English teacher to check your writing.

    The best thing is to join the best IELTS preparation program you can find in your area or else to find a private teacher who can help you prepare for the exam. Make sure the teacher has experience in IELTS preparation and not just in general English.

    To do well on this exam, you need to learn specific strategies to get the highest marks.

    You could also check my website below for general tips on how to do well in each section and to read some sample essays I have written:

    http://www.goodluckielts.com

    All the best to you!

    Friday, July 10th 2009Reply to this comment

Dear Rebecca,
Thank you for such a nice work.Ms i have one problem in ielts and it is in Reading Section Ms Reading Section is very difficult for me.
Please Ms give me some special tips or strategies to improve my skill of reading.
Best Regards
Muhammad Tayyib

Sunday, July 19th 2009

    Thanks, Muhammad. The IELTS reading section can be quite challenging, so don’t feel bad that you’re having some difficulty.

    You really need to study each type of question to understand the right strategies for answering that particular type of question. There are several IELTS guidebooks which can help you with this.

    Also, please look at the tips on http://www.goodluckielts.com under the reading section. I hope this helps you.

    Most of all, practice as much as you can and identify the type of questions that you usually get wrong. Then work on improving your skills for that particular type of question.

    I wish you all the best in your exam.

    Monday, July 27th 2009Reply to this comment

dear Rebecca
hope you doing well and happy

1.can u send me any sample how to write an application…..
2. how i will improve my english in writting any letter or any offical letters.

keep in touch
thanks
omer

Monday, August 3rd 2009

    Hi Omer

    You could look for various resources online that may help you to write such letters.

    One excellent resource for learning official writing is a book called Company to Company
    by Cambridge University Press. I have used it for several years and it really helps my students improve their writing.

    My best wishes to you.

    Friday, August 28th 2009Reply to this comment

Hi Rebecca While searching English Listening Videos I watched your precious videos. The way of teaching is the best. I think those who know alittle English can understand your way of Teaching. Further you are looking a nice lady teacher .Really appreciate your services in this regard. Plz Reply

Tuesday, August 18th 2009

Hello Rebecca please tell me something about Figures of speech,Are these important to undestand English poetry.
I am waiting for your kind reply.
Thanks,

Tuesday, August 18th 2009

    Hi Jamshed

    Thanks for your feedback. Glad you find the lessons beneficial. Figures of speech, or idioms, are used more in conversation. Poets usually try to be more original.

    If you enjoy the lessons, please do tell your friends about our website through facebook, twitter, etc. It will help us to continue this service.

    Thanks, again and all the best with your English!

    Friday, August 28th 2009Reply to this comment

this is one of the best site for learning english specially for student want to appear in ielets exam

Wednesday, September 16th 2009

Hello Rebecca ! I hope you are doing well !
I just wanted to show my gratitude to you for all that you’ve done for the English language through your videos! Very very beneficial !
Thank you !
Sincerely

Zait Polozani

Thursday, October 8th 2009

Dear Rebecca

First off all thank you for helping so many students like me.
I have recentlly visited your website and registered myself. I am preparing for IELTS exams(general),which i need for immigration purpose. I live in UK so listening and speaking is not that bad. I feel like i am not good at writing and my reading is bit slow.
I have not got much time for prepration as i need to sit for exam in next month. Please advice me what i am suppose to do?

Thanks again

Rukhsana

Wednesday, October 14th 2009

Hi Ruksana

The IELTS is a challenging exam, even the general version, and you do need to prepare as much as possible to get a good score.

Please watch my video on How to Structure your TOEFL Essay. You can apply the same principles to your IELTS essay, except that your essay can be a little shorter on the IELTS (only 4 paragraphs in length). Try to write a little bit every day, and see if there is a teacher who can check your writing and offer you feedback.

Do as many practice tests as possible so you know clearly what kinds of questions to expect on the exam, and what kinds of questions you need to practice more.

I wish you all the best!

Sunday, November 1st 2009

Dear Miss Rebecca,

I am Maha from Emirate and I am very happy because when I want to learn the IELTS I found this great website, I understand all the word I feel it’s very easy for me and I am quickly learn and understand thank you very very much.

I have one question

I want to know how I can get 5 in IELTS I want easy way pleas help me

I got in

listening 4.0
reading 2.0
writing 3.5
speaking 4.0
overall band score 3.5

and my college want 5 point

how i can get it I want the easy way ??

because my IELTS exam in 2/12/2009 and I have just 1 month to study the IELTS no time !!

I hope you are able to help me and I look forward to hearing from you soon.

yours sincerely,
Maha

Sunday, November 22nd 2009

sorry I wrote the date wrong, the IELTS Exam will be 9 January 2010

thanks

Sunday, November 22nd 2009

    Sorry for the delay in replying. The best way , if possible, is to join a good IELTS preparation class, as you can be given valuable feedback on your strengths and weaknesses.

    There are also many IELTS exam preparation guidebooks available which can give you lots of practice which will help you. Don’t just do practice tests, but also do skill building exercises.

    Try to get hold of a good IELTS teacher who can guide you specifically.
    Have you checked my IELTS website?

    My very best wishes to you.

    Saturday, January 2nd 2010Reply to this comment

Dear Rebecca

I am really happy after getting all this basic information about writting a latter to someone, i would like to say you thanks a lot. I am giving IELTS exam at next following saturday, i have been doing lot of preparation for that.
I have just seen your video on youtube , n i love it. You gave us very accurate detail about each topic in very easy format, so any kind of student can learn easily.I appriciate all your effort to make this for us.
If I had got your website before few weeks, I would have been felt more easier then now. I have left just 1 week now , so i need to get top up my preparation . I have still doubt about some preposition like of,for & from. If you can make such kind of video about it, it would be greatfull for me.
Once again , Thanks a lot to you & your other fellos.

Best Wishes

Kabir Nigam

Thursday, November 26th 2009

Dear miss Rebecca.
I am duy from viet nam, and I am verry happy because I want to learn the ielts .general I found this geat website . I understand all the word I feel it’s easy for me and I am quickly learn and understand that you very much . fist time I am go to test on 12/12/2009 .
I hope you are able to help me . and i look forward to hearing from you soon .
yours sicerely .
duy

Saturday, December 5th 2009

    Sorry for the delay in replying.

    I hope your exam went well. The IELTS is a difficult exam, so don’t feel bad if you don’t get your desired score the first time.

    Please access the many useful exam preparation guidebooks which can be very useful in building your skills.

    My very best wishes to you, Duy.

    Saturday, January 2nd 2010Reply to this comment

HI REBECCA
I WRITE JUST TO SAY I LIKE YOU AND YOUR LESSONS SO MUCH
THANKS ALOT
SHERIF
ESL UAE

Friday, December 11th 2009

thanks for your advices, i found these resorces very helful, but i need you do me a favour, i am having problem in develop a essay could you upload a video about this plz. i would be glad if you do

Tuesday, February 9th 2010

It’s indeed a very good lesson. Thank you very much.

Thursday, February 18th 2010

Dear Rebecca,

Good day!
First I would like to say THANK YOU very much for giving us some advices regarding how to begin and ending a letter. Secondly, I really appreciate ALL the efforts of the teachers of ESL. You guys are really really a BIG HELP for us especially for the beginners who would love to express their feelings through english language.

Shall I say I am so lucky to found this site. You did a great job! And I hope you could provide a lot of informations or lectures which is very useful for beginners.

With my prayers,
Rhei

Sunday, February 28th 2010

where i can take the quiz? help me

Sunday, March 7th 2010

Dear Ms. ESL

First I would like to thanks for how to start and finished the letter , my IELTS General
Training Exam is on 20th March 2010. I will get surely good score after teach this clue.

Best Regards,

lalit

Tuesday, March 9th 2010

Dear Rebecca,

Thank you very much for your kind assistance. It is very useful information for preparation to IELTS. Might just try to listen audios in diverse environment – i.e. talks in buses, university corridors, outdoor etc. (listening part of IELTS), which is the most difficult for ESL learners (I’d bet even for a natives). Would be also very useful practice! Talking this way ’cause I’m kinda your colleague (worked for ECC English school as ESL teacher). Hope to join you in Canada once!

Good luck and thank you again!

Boris

Sunday, March 14th 2010

dear rebecca
thank you very much for your kind assistance. i love you and your lesson. you are best teacher.

Tuesday, April 20th 2010

Dear Rebecca,

Thanks for teaching me how to start and finish a letter.
Though I made a careless miss, I won’t make a mistake from now on.

Nobby

Sunday, April 25th 2010

Thank you a lot for your good video.
By the way are you close to a police department? It sometimes happens that there are the sound of sirens in your videos….. But anyway continue like this. I really enjoy and appreciate your work.

Would be nice if you could also make some special TOEIC preparation videos.

Monday, April 26th 2010

Hi Rebecca, I’m Sahir from Malaysia.

Thank you very much for your lesson.
It helps me to improve my daily English.

Friday, May 14th 2010

Dear Rebecca, I am from Bangladesh, I want to study in Canada it is my ambition of life. I will be take the IELTS test in next month in British council. But I do not know that how I will get be band? If I get 5-5.5 then is it possible to admission PGDMS course? please reply me also is it possible to admission in CANADA without IELTS? give to some colleges names.

with best regards
Rony

Friday, May 14th 2010

dear rebecca, having a great knowledge is too good .but, sharing with the people who do not have any idea is great work. i thank you from bottom of my heart. and one more thing i need tips about interview to a multi national companies.

Sunday, May 16th 2010

Dear Rebecca

I am jose form PA, USA, your classes are very interesting.
thank you, I had been learned a lot.
yours sincerely
Jose

Sunday, May 16th 2010

Hello Rebecca,I like your clsses very much.You are a good teacher.

Saturday, May 29th 2010

thank you very much about this excellent lesson . If you don’t mind I’d like to prepare a lesson about reported speech and I’ll be appreciated .
thanks again.

Sunday, May 30th 2010

IHAVE PLAN TO DO IELTS BUT INEED TO KNOW MY ENGLISH ISIT PERFECT OR NOT THANKS

Friday, June 4th 2010

Dear Rebeca
hi thanks very much about u r lessons u have good way to explain
yours sincerlly

Saturday, June 5th 2010

thanks our teatcher, video lesson is very usefull.Ihope to show more ,if you do not mind

Tuesday, June 8th 2010

Hi Rebecca, I´m from Chile, I´m 47. Fortunately I found your videos on the web, I must confess you that your explanations are very clear and apart of that you´re are very beautiful, and it´s a pleasure receive the lessons from you….regards.

Tuesday, June 8th 2010

Hi REBECCA,i m from pakistan.and my ielts exam is 26th june.plz give me tips as much u can give me.bcz my target band is 7.5.plz plzreply soon

Sunday, June 13th 2010

I wanna tell you how much I enjoy your lessons.
Thank you kindly!
All your lessons have helped me alot.

Sunday, June 13th 2010

Hi Miss Rebecca

I wanna ask you
If my IELTS result :

Listening 6.5
Reading 6.0
Writing 5.5
Speaking 4.5

How much would be my overall score?

Please reply me soon

Thank u :)

Saturday, June 19th 2010

Rebecca,
Meus parabéns! Você é uma excelente professora.
Abraços.

Saturday, June 19th 2010

Dear Sir/Madam,

Sunday, June 20th 2010

Thank you very much dear Rebecca for the useful informations. I think there is a mistak in English quiz,the name of manager is Brown!

Kind Regards,
Abdel

You’re writing to your bank manager, Tom Brown. How will you start and end your letter?
Dear Mr Smith, Yours faithfully
Dear Mr Smith, Your sincerely
Dear Mr Smith, Yours sincerely
Dear Mr Smith, Love

Thursday, July 15th 2010

Dear rebecca

Can you please help me with introduction in both letter and esay writing for general module.I would like to know is it possible that u could score my writing and give me feed back.I need at least 6.5 band score so i know how is i am doing.I would be very greatful for your reply.Thank you.

yours faithfully
Rick

Monday, July 26th 2010

this is excellent way to learn english and espacially IELTS.I want to learn some technices of IELTS reading and listening.overhaull its a wonderfull site.thanks

Monday, July 26th 2010

Dear Rebecca:
Currently,I am preparing the exam of TOEFL and it should have be done in next month. Writing is my weakness and especially the topic: music is a kind of culture and what does the music of your country reveal about the culture of your country? For me ,this essay is so difficult that I can not come up with any point out and please give me some necessary hint just like what you do in your vidio with “Big City” And it may be possible for me to ask you about the same requirement for a few topoics. I am a immigrant who lives in Canada.
Thank you dear teacher

Monday, August 9th 2010

Dear Rebecca,

Thanks for this information.You are a great teacher.

i am preparing for my IELTS exam. I visited to your website -it help a lot to improve my English .

I’d like to ask one question- when we can use the sentence like :-

Please be advised ….

Kind regards

Preeti

Sunday, August 22nd 2010

wow the quiz was super. excellent… am execpting more quizes

Friday, August 27th 2010
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