What features are most important when writing a letter? (IB Paper 2 Italian)

When approaching this paper, it’s really worth making sure you’re comfortable with each text type and their formats, as this helps you avoid the nightmare of being given the perfect prompt for the paper but not having a clue how to write it in the form of that text type. Format is one of the marking criteria for this paper and when done correctly can be a guaranteed five marks, which has the potential to be that extra push up to the next grade boundary! A letter is a great text type as there are plenty of features which are relatively straightforward but can help to rack up those format marks, even the basics such as remembering to include the addresses of the sender and recipient, the date, and the subject of the letter if you’re writing a formal letter of complaint, for example. Your letter should have a clear structure, starting with your reason for writing (“ti sto scrivendo perche’…”) and ending with hopes to hear back from your recipient, depending on the subject of the letter. The most important aspect to consider when writing a letter is its register (whether the tone should be formal or informal). This will often be made clear from the prompt – if this is a letter to your headmaster, then the formal ‘Lei’ form should be used, but if it’s to a childhood bestie you can afford to be a bit more relaxed and even drop in some slang! [If the student were to have any more questions regarding the format of a letter, I would also show them an example of a formal letter and highlight individual features, as it may be easier to understand them in context!]