The informal email/letter: An informal email or letter (die informelle E-Mail / der persönliche Brief) is a private message to one person you know well — a friend or a relative. You share news, ask how they are, and write in a warm, personal voice using du. In Paper 1 you choose it when the task asks you to write to a friend or family member. It's part of Unit 2: Text Types, so easy marks come from getting its conventions and register right (Criterion C), not just the message.
- die (informelle) E-Mail / der Brief
- the (informal) email / the letter
- die Anrede
- the greeting (Liebe/Lieber …)
- der Einstieg
- the opening (Wie geht es dir? …)
- der Hauptteil
- the body — your news, the longest part
- die Schlussformel
- the sign-off (Liebe Grüße, …)
- der Empfänger / die Empfängerin
- the recipient (one named person you know)
Spot it in the task: The task names one reader you know: "Schreibe deinem Freund / deiner Freundin…", "Schreibe eine E-Mail an deinen Brieffreund…" → an informal email/letter: written to one person, in a warm personal voice with du. If the reader is a company or an authority, it would be a formal letter instead (Sie).
Warm and personal — use 'du': An informal email/letter is close and friendly: address your reader with du (dich, dir, dein), ask about their life, and let your feelings show. You can use exclamations, little questions and warm phrases. Consistency matters — slipping into the formal Sie sounds cold and distant to a friend and costs you Criterion C. ⚠️ Note: in du-forms only du/dich/dir/dein stay lowercase, while the polite Sie/Ihnen/Ihr is always capitalised — so getting du right is also a quick Criterion A win.
Informal email — do this
- Liebe Lena, wie geht es dir?
- Ich freue mich riesig, dir das zu erzählen!
- Schreib mir bald, ja?
Avoid here (too formal)
- Sehr geehrte Frau Müller,
- Ich teile Ihnen hiermit mit, dass…
- Mit freundlichen Grüßen
Talk TO your friend: An informal email isn't a formal letter and isn't an essay. Use du throughout, ask how the reader is, and keep a warm, personal tone from the greeting to the sign-off.
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The five parts: Every informal email/letter follows the same shape. Hit all five parts and you've covered the conventions the examiner is looking for.
Informal email — 5 parts
1
Greeting (Anrede)
Warm greeting + comma; the next line starts lowercase. „Liebe Lena,“ / „Lieber Tom,“
2
Opening (Einstieg)
Ask how they are and say why you're writing. „Wie geht es dir? Ich schreibe dir, weil…“
3
Body (Hauptteil)
Your news or your message — the longest part, in a warm, personal voice. „Stell dir vor: Letzte Woche…“
4
Question to the reader
Turn it back to your friend so they reply. „Und wie läuft es bei dir? Erzähl mir, wie es dir geht!“
5
Sign-off (Schlussformel)
Warm close + your name. „Melde dich bald! Liebe Grüße, deine Mia“
Greeting → Opening → Body → Closing question → Sign-off
Don't skip the frame: Students lose easy Criterion C marks by forgetting the greeting or the sign-off — the frame that makes a text feel like a real letter. They take seconds and prove you know the text type — never leave them out. ⚠️ In German the line after the greeting comma starts lowercase („Liebe Lena, wie geht es dir?“).
A model, part by part: Here's a complete informal email built from the five parts above. Read it once for the message, then tap Übersetzung anzeigen to check the English or 🔊 to hear it.
Modell: die 5 Teile in Aktion
Die fertige E-Mail, Teil für Teil
- Liebe Lena,
- wie geht es dir? Ich hoffe, bei dir ist alles gut! Ich schreibe dir, weil ich dir eine tolle Neuigkeit erzählen möchte.
- Stell dir vor: Letzte Woche habe ich angefangen, in einem Chor zu singen! Am Anfang war ich ziemlich nervös, aber inzwischen macht es mir riesigen Spaß, und ich habe schon neue Freunde gefunden. Wir proben jeden Mittwoch und treten im Sommer sogar auf einem Stadtfest auf.
- Und wie läuft es bei dir in der neuen Schule? Hast du schon Anschluss gefunden? Erzähl mir unbedingt, wie es dir geht — ich denke oft an dich!
- Melde dich bald, ja? Ich freue mich riesig auf deine Antwort. Ganz liebe Grüße, deine Mia
Warum es punktet — why it scores: This short informal email earns marks on all three Paper 1 criteria — here's how:
A — Language /12
- Consistent du throughout (dir, dich, deine)
- Range: Präsens + Perfekt „habe … angefangen“, Imperativ „Erzähl mir“
- Connectors: „aber“, „inzwischen“, „weil“
B — Message /12
- Clear purpose: shares the news AND asks about the friend
- Ideas developed (the choir, the rehearsals, the festival)
C — Conceptual /6
- Letter conventions: greeting + sign-off frame
- Direct reader address: „wie geht es dir?“, „Erzähl mir…“
- A warm, personal tone throughout
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A toolkit you can reuse: Learn a few ready-made phrases for each part. They make your email sound natural and save time in the exam. Tap 🔊 to hear them.
Anrede & Einstieg (greeting + opening)
- Liebe … / Lieber … — Dear … (informal, + first name)
- Wie geht es dir? Ich hoffe, dir geht es gut! — How are you? I hope you're well!
- Ich schreibe dir, weil… — I'm writing to you because…
Hauptteil (your news)
- Stell dir vor: … — Picture this / Guess what: …
- Ich wollte dir unbedingt erzählen, dass… — I really wanted to tell you that…
- Das Beste daran ist, dass… — The best part is that…
Frage & Schluss (question + sign-off)
- Und wie läuft es bei dir? — And how are things with you?
- Melde dich bald! / Schreib mir bald! — Get in touch soon! / Write soon!
- Liebe Grüße, dein/deine … — Lots of love, your … (warm informal sign-off)
Use one from each: A greeting + opening, one or two phrases in the body, and a question + sign-off at the end is plenty — and instantly makes the text feel like the real informal-email text type. ⚠️ The standard warm German sign-offs are „Liebe Grüße“ or „Viele Grüße“ + your name; save „Mit freundlichen Grüßen“ for formal letters.