ICSE Class 9 E-mail Writing: Format, Model E-mails and Common Errors

What E-mail Writing is about

Weightage: Question 3(ii): the e-mail carries 5 of the 80 marks of Paper 1 in the board pattern, alongside the 5-mark notice on the same situation. Both are compulsory.Source: CISCE ICSE 2028 English syllabus (Paper 1, Question 3); CISCE ICSE 2027 Specimen Question Paper and Draft Marking Scheme, English Paper 1

Key concepts

The parts of a CISCE e-mail

In order:
1. Receiver's e-mail ID: a realistic address for the actual person, no spaces.
2. Subject: a short phrase naming the purpose and the event.
3. Salutation: 'Dear Sir,' / 'Dear Madam,'.
4. Opening sentence: the invitation or purpose at once.
5. Details: event, date, time, venue and participants, exactly as in your notice.
6. Closing: a polite request for confirmation.
7. 'Thank you.' / 'Thanking you,' (optional), 'Yours faithfully,' and your full name (a designation such as 'Secretary, Literary Club' may follow).

Worked example

Which parts are missing from: 'Dear Sir, Please come to our school on 12th December. Thanks, Aryan.'

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. Check ID, subject, opening, details, closing, subscription.

Answer: No e-mail ID; no subject; the opening does not name the event or the role; time, venue and participants are missing; no request for confirmation; 'Thanks' is not a subscription ('Yours faithfully,'); the full name is missing.

The e-mail ID and subject line

Invent a plausible ID for the person invited (e.g. 'rajat.sharma.author@gmail.com'). Examiners have reported placeholder IDs such as 'famousperson@gmail.com', the Principal's or the writer's own ID, and IDs with spaces. The subject should state purpose + event in a few words: 'Invitation to judge the Inter School Debate'. Avoid a blank subject or a phrase copied awkwardly from the question.

Worked example

Write an ID and subject for an e-mail inviting a chess grandmaster, Ms Kavya Rao, to inaugurate your school's chess tournament.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. ID built from the person's name.
2. Subject: purpose + event.

Answer: kavya.rao.chess@gmail.com
Invitation to inaugurate the Inter School Chess Tournament

Opening with the purpose

The first sentence says who is writing (on behalf of which club or school) and what is being asked. Examiners have noticed e-mails that save the invitation for the closing sentence. Compare: 'On behalf of the Science Club of Holy Child School, I cordially invite you to be the chief guest at our Annual Science Exhibition.'

Worked example

Rewrite the opening: 'Our school is a very old school founded in 1952 and we have many clubs. We are holding an event.'

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. Drop the history.
2. State the role and event at once.

Answer: 'On behalf of the Literary Club of St. Anne's School, I invite you to judge our Inter School Story Writing Competition.'

Same details as the notice

The syllabus says the e-mail is on 'the same content as the notice', and the scheme marks 'All details of the notice'. Copy the event name, date, time, venue and participants exactly. If the notice says 14th August from 10.00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. in the Main Auditorium, the e-mail must not say 15th August or 'the school hall'. The 2025 examiners found date, time and venue the details most often missing.

Worked example

Your notice reads: 'on 9th November 2027 / from 11.00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. / at the Multipurpose Hall, Army Public School / Pupils of Classes VI to IX'. Write the details sentence of the e-mail.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. Event, date, time, venue, participants in one or two sentences.

Answer: 'The competition will be held on 9th November 2027 from 11.00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. in the Multipurpose Hall of our school, Army Public School, and pupils of Classes VI to IX will take part.'

Formal, warm and brief

An e-mail to a guest is courteous but not flowery. Avoid 'Respected Sir/Ma'am', text-message spellings ('pls', 'u'), emojis and exclamation marks. Three short paragraphs (invitation, details, closing request) of about 60-90 words in all are enough.

Worked example

Make this closing formal: 'Pls reply asap!! Thx.'

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

1. Full words; polite request; formal close.

Answer: 'We would be grateful if you could kindly confirm your availability at the earliest. Thank you. / Yours faithfully,'

E-mail Writing in real life

Each concept, met in an everyday situation. Read the situation, answer the question in your own words, then compare with the model answer. The one-line hook is what to remember.

Topics in this chapter

• Writing the Invitation E-mail: ID, Subject and Details (ICSE Class 9)

How the school exam asks E-mail Writing

The question patterns to expect, and the method that works for each.

Tricks to remember E-mail Writing

Short memory aids. Say each one aloud once, then use it on a question the same day.

• I-S-S-O-D-C-Y

  ID, Subject, Salutation, Opening, Details, Closing, Yours faithfully: 'I Sent Six Owls Delivering Cards Yesterday'.

  Use it when: The order of the e-mail's parts.

• Notice → e-mail copy check

  Put a tick on the notice's date, time and venue lines as you copy them into the e-mail.

  Use it when: Ensures no detail is left out.

• Formal like a letter

  Salutation and subscription are the formal letter's: 'Dear Sir' and 'Yours faithfully'.

  Use it when: Avoids 'Respected' and 'Thanks'.

E-mail Writing: exam-level solved questions

Ordered from exam level to HOTS. Cover the solution, write your own, then compare step by step.

Where the marks are

How a typical answer is marked: the value points the examiner looks for and the marks each earns.

Where students lose marks in E-mail Writing

The slips examiners see most often, and what to write instead.

• ✗Mistake: Placeholder or wrong e-mail ID

  Pupils write 'famousperson@gmail.com', their own ID or their Principal's, or leave spaces.

  Wrong working

  famous author@gmail

  Right working

  meera.krishnan.author@gmail.com

  ✓Do this: Build the ID from the invited person's name; no spaces; include the domain.

  Usually costs: The ID element.

• ✗Mistake: No subject, or a sentence as subject

  Pupils forget it or paste the question.

  ✓Do this: Purpose + event in under ten words.

  Usually costs: The subject element.

• ✗Mistake: Invitation buried at the end

  Pupils begin with greetings or school history.

  ✓Do this: First sentence: on behalf of whom, inviting whom, to do what, at which event.

  Usually costs: The opening-sentence element.

• ✗Mistake: Details missing or different from the notice

  Pupils write the e-mail without looking back at the notice.

  ✓Do this: Tick off event, date, time, venue and participants from your notice before you finish.

  Usually costs: Expression marks.

• ✗Mistake: Informal salutation or close

  Habits from chatting: 'Respected Ma'am', 'Thanks', 'Regards, Sneha'.

  ✓Do this: 'Dear Sir/Madam,' ... 'Yours faithfully,' + full name.

  Usually costs: Salutation and subscription elements.

Practice questions on E-mail Writing

Write each answer on paper first. Open the hint only if you are stuck, and the answer only when you have finished.

1. Q1 · 5 marks · Short answerExam level

   Write an e-mail inviting a famous cricketer to be the chief guest at your school's Annual Sports Meet (date, time and venue as in your notice).

   Hint

   Invitation first; copy the notice details.

   Answer

   Value points: realistic ID; subject 'Invitation to the Annual Sports Meet as Chief Guest'; 'Dear Sir,'; invitation in the first sentence on behalf of the school/sports club; date, time, venue, participants; request for confirmation; 'Thank you.' 'Yours faithfully,' full name and designation.

2. Q2 · 5 marks · Short answerExam level

   Write an e-mail to a children's author inviting her to judge an Inter House Story Writing Competition.

   Hint

   Subject: purpose and event, without copying a whole sentence.

   Answer

   Value points: ID from the author's name; subject ('Invitation to judge the Inter House Story Writing Competition'); 'Dear Madam,'; invitation with role; event, date, time, venue, participating classes; why her presence matters (one line); request for confirmation; formal close.

3. Q3 · 5 marks · Short answerHarder exam level

   Write an e-mail to a local doctor requesting him to conduct the Health Check-up Camp announced in your notice.

   Hint

   It is a request rather than an invitation to judge: say what you would like him to do.

   Answer

   Value points: ID; subject ('Request to conduct the Health Check-up Camp for Class IX'); 'Dear Sir,'; request in the first sentence; date, time, venue and number of pupils; arrangements the school will make (room, assistants); request for confirmation; formal close.

4. Q4 · 2 marks · Short answerHarder exam level

   Why must the e-mail repeat the date, time and venue already given in the notice?

   Hint

   Think about who reads each one.

   Answer

   The notice is for pupils; the e-mail goes to an outsider who never sees the notice, so he or she needs every detail to accept and attend. The syllabus also says the e-mail is on 'the same content as the notice', and CISCE's scheme marks 'All details of the notice'.

5. Q5 · 5 marks · Short answerHarder exam level

   Write an e-mail inviting a wildlife photographer to inaugurate a photography exhibition on 'Birds of Our City'.

   Hint

   Mention why this guest suits this event.

   Answer

   Value points: ID; subject; 'Dear Sir/Madam,'; invitation to inaugurate; date, time, venue, participants; one line linking the guest's work to the theme; request for confirmation; 'Yours faithfully,' full name, role.

6. Q6 · 2 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency

   Rewrite this opening so that it would earn the opening-sentence mark: 'Good morning! Hope you are doing well. I am a student of Class IX and I like your books very much.'

   Hint

   Who is writing, on whose behalf, and what is being asked.

   Answer

   'On behalf of the Readers' Club of St. Joseph's School, I invite you to be the chief guest at our Annual Book Week on 10th December 2027.' The original is chatty and does not state the purpose.

Test your recall

Answer in your head or on paper first, then open the card. Pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than re-reading.

1. 1.What must the e-mail be about, according to the syllabus?Show answer

   The same content as the notice in Question 3(i).

2. 2.Which elements does CISCE's scheme check?Show answer

   E-mail ID, subject, salutation, opening sentence, closing sentence, subscription, and all details of the notice.

3. 3.Are 'To', 'From' and 'Date' labels required?Show answer

   No; CISCE's sample shows only the receiver's ID and the subject before the salutation.

4. 4.Where does the invitation go?Show answer

   In the opening sentence.

5. 5.What subscription is used?Show answer

   'Yours faithfully,' with the full name.

Quick revision checklist

The night before the exam: can you do each of these without looking?

• ☐Can you invent a realistic e-mail ID for any guest?
• ☐Can you write a subject with purpose and event in under ten words?
• ☐Can you open with the invitation in one sentence?
• ☐Can you copy all notice details into one or two sentences?
• ☐Can you close with a request for confirmation and a formal subscription?

E-mail Writing: frequently asked questions