Professionalism in Emails
Hello, childcare professionals. In today’s world we often default to ‘slang language’ or ‘text talk’. In a matter of seconds we can ask and answer questions with our peers. Email appears to be a common place for this kind of language, and although it may be great to use when sending that hilarious video to your friend, it does not typically have a place in a professional setting. As students and educators we are required to send emails often as a main form of communication. It is important that we follow some general rules when sending and responding to emails of the professional sense to ensure clarity to the reader. Below is an excellent example of an email from one of our current CDA students, Lynne. As you can see, this student has included all major parts of an email and you can feel her enthusiasm for this profession. See if you can locate some of the key items of an email on your own!
- A meaningful description in the subject
- An introduction
- A body: that includes clear and concise detail of what the writer wants to communicate
- A signature
- Overall professional tone and written language
Names have been abbreviated.
Dear Administration,
I want to say how excited I am to be a part of this program. My name is Lynne P., and I have been in the teaching profession for about 13 years now. I started with special education (teacher assistant} for about 10 years. Now, for the past 3 years have worked with typical children, again with assistant teaching.
About a week ago I was given the opportunity to be Head Teacher, in the 3 year old class, for this wonderful preschool I work for now. I had a scheduled vacation and am just getting back into the swing of things. I am excited and thrilled to have been chosen for this position by the owner/director A.C.
I’m just a bit intimidated, but I have the confidence! I am looking forward to hearing from you and working with your team. Lets do this!
Kind Regards,
Lynne P.
Making these elements a constant part of your email writing will showcase not only your professionalism but also provide the reader with a clear idea of your purpose in writing the email. They will be able to reply with a response more easily knowing what you are asking of them.
By Instructor Ellyn