Formal Email to the Principal: Later School Start
The student council at your school has collected arguments for a later start: 8:45 instead of 8:00. You must write a formal email of 120–150 words to the principal, Frau Dr. Rohde. Your notes: a survey of 300 students found that 68% feel tired in the first lesson; the bus company says the current schedule cannot be changed before next year; some sports teams already practise at 7:15; teachers worry about lost lesson time; a sleep study suggests teenagers need 8–10 hours per night. The council wants a trial period, not an immediate permanent change. You must use at least two arguments and address one counterargument. Your email should sound respectful and evidence-based, not like a petition.
1. Outline the structure of the email in four moves and explain what each move must do to meet the formal register.
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Move 1: subject line and salutation - 'Subject: Proposal for a trial later start' and 'Dear Frau Dr. Rohde'. This signals formality and purpose immediately. Move 2: brief context and request - who writes, what the council proposes (a trial from 8:45), and why now. Move 3: evidence and counterargument - present the survey and sleep study, then concede the bus and sports constraints before answering them (e.g. trial on two days, or review after one term). Move 4: polite close and next step - offer a meeting and thank her. The register is achieved through titles, modal verbs ('we would like to propose'), no contractions, and a calm tone; formal does not mean long.
2. Write the opening two sentences of the email and justify your choices of address, modal verb, and framing.
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Draft: 'Dear Frau Dr. Rohde, I am writing on behalf of the student council to propose a one-term trial of a later school start at 8:45. We would like to present the evidence we have collected and ask whether you would be willing to discuss a trial period with us.' Justification: 'Dear Frau Dr. Rohde' uses her title and surname, which is appropriate in a German school context even in English. 'I am writing on behalf of' establishes legitimacy without overclaiming personal authority. 'We would like to propose' is a polite modal frame; 'propose a one-term trial' narrows the request so it sounds feasible rather than demanding. 'Would you be willing' invites a response instead of assuming agreement.
3. How should you handle the counterargument that buses cannot change before next year? Write two sentences that concede and answer it.
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Draft: 'We understand that the bus company cannot change its schedule before next year, and we do not want to create transport problems for students who depend on it. For that reason, we propose a limited trial on two mornings per week, with a review after one term, so the school can test the benefits without committing to a permanent change.' The move is concession first, then a scaled-down proposal. This is stronger than ignoring the objection because it shows the council has considered feasibility. It also protects the main claim: the trial can produce local evidence while the bus contract is still fixed.