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The sequence includes pre-writing group mind-mapping, class discussion of formal vs informal register, drafting based on authentic apartment materials, coded correction of major grammar errors with instructor feedback, and a home rewrite with holistic grading for content, vocabulary, and grammar, followed by reflective writing considerations.",{"@graph":14,"@context":77},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/","Template",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/letters/","Letters",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/writing-activity-informal-letter-description/275506/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/writing-activity-informal-letter-description/275506.png","ImageObject",442,249,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Theodora","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-01","2026-09-15",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",14,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69,73],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"What is the main writing task for the students?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"Students write an informal letter to a friend describing a newly acquired apartment, including the building, the apartment layout, and how it is furnished.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"How do pre-writing activities prepare students for the letter?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"Students work in groups to create a mind map about an apartment or house, using adjectives, furniture/room vocabulary, and spatial positioning phrases. A class discussion reviews differences between formal and informal letters in Russian.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"How is grammar feedback handled during drafting?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"Drafts are returned with coded corrections for major grammar errors, where each code represents an error type (e.g., number, case). Students then use these cues to edit rather than only reading correct answers.",{"name":74,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":75},"What does the rewrite focus on and how is it graded?",{"text":76,"@type":64},"Students rewrite at home and submit the revised version next class. The rewrite receives a holistic grade covering content, vocabulary, and grammar.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":79,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":81,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":83,"site_id":7},275506,1789487928,{"code":4,"msg":86,"data":87},"success",[88,93,98,102,107,112,117,121,126],{"id":89,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":90,"show_sort_weight":91,"slug":92},11,"Presentations",90,"presentations",{"id":94,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":95,"show_sort_weight":96,"slug":97},12,"Resumes",80,"resumes",{"id":55,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":99,"show_sort_weight":100,"slug":101},"Invoices",70,"invoices",{"id":103,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":104,"show_sort_weight":105,"slug":106},15,"Posters",60,"posters",{"id":108,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":109,"show_sort_weight":110,"slug":111},16,"Social Media",50,"social-media",{"id":113,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":114,"show_sort_weight":115,"slug":116},17,"Forms",40,"forms",{"id":118,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":119,"slug":120},18,30,"letters",{"id":122,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":123,"show_sort_weight":124,"slug":125},21,"Paper Templates",5,"papers-templates",{"id":127,"doc_module":22,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":128,"show_sort_weight":4,"slug":129},158,"General","general-158",{"code":4,"msg":86,"data":131},{"doc_id":83,"user_id":132,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":22,"category_id":118,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":55,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":33,"language":139,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":84,"read_time":26},687197207919,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/a000253d6f5f7c60be?x-image-process=image/resize,m_fixed,w_180,h_180&k=1779446848396160552","Writing Activity  \nOverview:  \nLearner Audience & Level: High-intermediate to advanced UT students of Russian, 5th semester  \nActivity Type: Writing as a main skill (2-step product)  \nActivity Goals: To practice description in the format of an informal letter  \nSub-skills needed: vocabulary (house, home, positioning in space), grammar (past tense, perfective  \naspect), informal register, personal letter format Activity:  \n• Pre-writing Activities  \nStudents work in groups of 2-3 people. The assignment is to create a mind map of concepts related to an apartment or a house (furniture, rooms, appliances) . Ask the students to use adjectives that would go with nouns (e.g.: spacious kitchen, large windows, wooden floors) . Ask students to include words and phrases describing the positioning of objects with respect to each other (e.g.: to the right of, in the middle) - (10 min) .  \nNote: A lot of examples of creative mind maps can be found here [[http://images.google.com/images?](http://images.google.com/images?)[ ](http://images.google.com/images?)client=safari&rls=en&q=Mind+Map&oe=UTF-8&um=1&ie=UTF- 8&ei=JfsKSpHyE5eqtgfqtKHFAg&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&resnum=4&ct=title  ] . The teacher can print a couple of them to encourage students to be more creative with their mind maps.  \nThe teacher asks students about the difference between formal and informal letters in Russian. At this leve,l students are expected to know something about it already. The discussion serves as a reminder of register in Russian. It can also include small punctuation differences between Russian and English letters, which students often overlook. - (10 min) .  \n• During Writing Activity (30 min + at home)  \nStudents are given assignment sheets. On the first page, there is a picture of an apartment complex with a small description of apartments available there. The picture and the description are both taken from Internet, which provides authenticity. The description has been shortened a little and contains only the most relevant and accessible information. On the second page, there is a plan of one of the apartments. The rooms are furnished.  \nA student assignment is to write a letter to a friend describing a new apartment that he/she has just acquired. The letter has to include the description of the building, the apartment and the way it has been furnished. Students can be asked to start with describing a building and its location in class and continue working on the description of the apartment at home.  \nThe students turn in their drafts first. Although grammar is not the focal point of this activity, the major grammar errors are corrected using codes. For instance, 1 stands for number, 3-for case, etc. The codes can be developed by the instructor and used throughout the semester. On a separate sheet, the instructor writes his/her feedback about the content and vocabulary used and gives some suggestions about how to improve it. The drafts are not graded.  \n• Post-writing/Re-writing Activities  \nAfter the students got their draft back, they rewrite it at home and turn the rewrites in the next class. Rewrites are assigned holistic grade for content, vocabulary and grammar.  \nReflective Statement on Writing  \nThe pre-writing activity serves as a warm-up for the during-writing activity. The students activate the vocabulary that they will use for their writing. Wamp-up activity is an important step that is sometimes missing in a foreign language classroom. Any kind of activity needs to be a set (!) .  \nThe during-writing activity incorporates the idea of giving students a real-life assignment. Writing letters is something that they need to be able to do. And once they know that they can write a letter to a friend in a foreign language, they might as well try to do it outside of a classroom. The ability to describe things is also a useful skill that can be used in a variety of situations.  \nThe point of using codes for grammar errors is to make students reflect ","cbCaid9YiGJmfibm","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaid9YiGJmfibm","pdf",1547145,"English","# Pre-writing Activities\n## Building a mind map and language/register reminder\n# During Writing Activity\n## Draft writing with assignment sheets and coded feedback\n# Post-writing/Re-writing Activities\n## Home rewrite and holistic grading","[{\"question\":\"What is the main writing task for the students?\",\"answer\":\"Students write an informal letter to a friend describing a newly acquired apartment, including the building, the apartment layout, and how it is furnished.\"},{\"question\":\"How do pre-writing activities prepare students for the letter?\",\"answer\":\"Students work in groups to create a mind map about an apartment or house, using adjectives, furniture/room vocabulary, and spatial positioning phrases. A class discussion reviews differences between formal and informal letters in Russian.\"},{\"question\":\"How is grammar feedback handled during drafting?\",\"answer\":\"Drafts are returned with coded corrections for major grammar errors, where each code represents an error type (e.g., number, case). Students then use these cues to edit rather than only reading correct answers.\"},{\"question\":\"What does the rewrite focus on and how is it graded?\",\"answer\":\"Students rewrite at home and submit the revised version next class. The rewrite receives a holistic grade covering content, vocabulary, and grammar.\"}]","Writing Activity - Informal Letter Description | PDF"]