Teaching Students about Email

It's easy to think that emailing etiquette should just come naturally.  But it doesn't.  Our children learned to text before they learned to email.  They learned to say what they needed to say quickly and with lots of text abbreviations.  Sure, I use lol and u quite often.  There is one difference in how I use text lingo though.  I think about my audience.  If I am texting someone that I know is an avid texter, I abbreviate a lot of my words.  However, if I am texting someone who rarely texts or texting my boss or someone I feel is a professional, I type out all of my words. Students need to think about that when they are emailing their teachers or other school staff.  Type out all of your words.  Use the spell checker.  Read your email back to yourself after you type it to make sure that it makes sense.

Another difference between texting and emailing is frequency.  I am just as guilty as our students about texting almost any thought I have. We can't do that with email.  Let me clarify this point though.  We LOVE for students to email us with class-related questions or to check on assignments when absent.  Please don't stop doing that.  Just keep emails to a minimum so your teachers are not spending hours just reading emails.  

Here's a good hint for students:  Use the subject line on emails.  It will help the teacher know if the email needs to be read right away or if it can wait until the teacher has time to look at it more closely.  For example, when asking for homework, simply make your subject something like, "What did I miss?"  If you found something that you think the teacher would like to use in class, try "Fun resource for class." Make the subject line something that tells the reader what the email is about.

Last but not least, do not forget the importance of face-to-face contact.  Emails, just like texts, can be easily misread.  You may mean it to be funny, but the reader may think you are being rude or harsh.  Use smiley faces and other emoticons to show emotion.  Or just ask when a good time is to meet face to face.  Text and email do not allow the reader to see facial expressions or other body language.  Tone of voice is undetectable in print.  

All of this said, email.  It is a great tool for communication.  Just be sure to think about how the person on the other end will interpret your words.