Formal complaint writing

Overview

Today students will plan, draft and improve a short formal complaint using clear paragraphs, polite language and simple organisational devices (for example, headings). They will practise evaluating their own writing and editing it to make it more effective.

Learning intentions

• Students will discuss and record ideas for a formal complaint about a real, appropriate situation.
• Students will plan writing by identifying purpose, audience and key information (what happened, what they want, by when).
• Students will draft a non-narrative complaint using simple organisation such as a heading and short paragraphs.
• Students will edit their own and a partner’s writing to improve clarity, politeness and basic sentence control.

Success criteria

• I can write a polite formal opening (e.g., “Dear…”, “I am writing to complain…”).
• I can include the problem and relevant details in short paragraphs.
• I can state what I want and a reasonable next step (e.g., refund/repair) clearly.
• I can check my writing for improvements (capital letters, full stops, and clearer wording).

Curriculum links

• Writing – composition: plan their writing by discussing writing similar to that which they are planning to write in order to learn its structure, vocabulary and grammar.
• Writing – composition: draft and write non-narrative material using simple organisational devices such as headings and sub-headings.
• Writing – composition: composing and rehearsing sentences orally, progressively building varied and rich vocabulary and an increasing range of sentence structures.
• Writing – composition: evaluate and edit by assessing the effectiveness of their own and others’ writing and suggesting improvements.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–5 min · Warm-up (role + purpose). Teacher shows 3 sentence stems on the board (“I am writing to…”, “The problem is…”, “I would like to…”) and models a polite tone; students repeat and choose the best stem for a given scenario.
2. 5–15 min · Model text (notice structure). Teacher reads a short adult-appropriate formal complaint example (about a service issue) and highlights parts: heading, opening, details, request, closing; students underline the sections and tell a partner what each part is for.
3. 15–25 min · Plan together (idea recording). Teacher gives a complaint prompt card (e.g., “Your bus ticket was overcharged” or “An item arrived damaged”) and provides a planning grid: What happened / When / Evidence or details / What you want / Deadline / Polite closing; students record ideas and rehearse 2–3 sentences orally before writing.
4. 25–35 min · Sentence rehearsal (ESL support). Teacher practices 4 “upgrade” moves: add politeness (“please”, “I would appreciate…”), add clarity (“This happened on…”), add request (“I would like a refund/repair”), and add time (“by 10 May”); students practise by orally rewriting 1 weak sentence into a stronger one using the board supports.
5. 35–48 min · Draft writing (organised complaint). Students write their own complaint draft using the required organisational devices: a heading, a polite opening, short paragraphs, and a clear request; teacher circulates for quick coaching on sentence endings (full stops), spelling of key words, and tone.
6. 48–55 min · Peer evaluation (effectiveness). Students swap work and use a simple checklist: “Is it polite?”, “Is the problem clear?”, “Is the request clear?”, “Does it have the right parts (heading/opening/details/request/closing)?”; partners give one helpful comment and one improvement suggestion.
7. 55–60 min · Edit + final check (make improvements). Students return to their draft and make 2 edits: one for clarity and one for correctness (capital letters, full stops, and spelling of common words); teacher collects one example per group for quick whole-class feedback.

Resources

• Short model formal complaint text (printed for display and a copy for each pair)
• Planning grid (problem/details/request/deadline/closing)
• Sentence stem cards for opening, details, request and closing
• Peer-check checklist sheet
• Prompt cards with age-appropriate adult complaints (service, order, ticket, appointment)
• Highlighters (2 colours: structure vs language)
• Pens/pencils and paper or writing booklets

Assessment

• Teacher listens during sentence rehearsal to check students can use formal polite stems and clear requests.
• During drafting, teacher uses quick notes to identify who needs support with paragraphing and punctuation.
• Exit check: students underline one sentence they improved and state why (e.g., “It is clearer” / “It is more polite”).

Differentiation

• Support: provide full sentence starters and a partially completed planning grid; allow students to use a word bank (complain, problem, order, refund, repair, appreciate, please, by).
• Support: offer an “organised template” with headings already printed so learners focus on content and sentence correctness.
• Extension: students add an extra detail sentence (e.g., reference to receipt/order number) and include a clear deadline and next step (“If I do not hear back, I will contact…”).
• EAL considerations: encourage oral rehearsal before writing; accept alternative spellings at A2 while targeting accuracy on full stops, capital letters at sentence starts, and the key formal phrases.