A smart attempt at formal letter writing by Okasha Shams of class O' Levels 2nd year

Subject: spreading of garbage in and around our locality

Dear Editor,

I would like to bring to the authorities’ attention the worsening hygienic conditions of our locality. Being a resident of the Tarlai community, it is my moral responsibility to take care of my home and to keep it clean. Sadly, I have failed to fulfil my duties, as there is garbage all around my house; garbage near the road side; in the gutters blocking the sewerage; near ponds and lakes, contaminating them, spreading vile odors and filth atop many other environmental problems.

The toll is not only environmental but also societal, as the rates of our property have been declining, as has the fondness for our area in the eyes of outsiders, therefore, a solution is gravely needed. 

A campaign must be started to rid the streets of this filth. The community must come together and ask the government for support. But firstly, the community and all its members should work together to not spread this mess any further.

Yours truly,

Okasha Shams

Okasha Shams

An attempt on formal letter writing by Uzair Bhatti. The question given was: 'Write a letter to the editor of a daily on the topic “Role of Science and Technology.'

Write a letter to the editor of a daily on the topic “Role of Science and Technology.”

Dear Editor,

Through your esteemed paper, I would like to communicate that we, as Pakistanis, need to realize the fact that science and technology have brought about a tremendous revolution around.

For example, by 1990 not a single person could ever visualize provision of tons of material on a certain topic by just typing on a bar when www dot was formed. People used to write letters to their relatives and friends which would reach their target addresses in days, but now because of technology one can read the same message in just seconds. From travelling all summer to get to a destination the world has come to a phase when one can take a flight and reach one’s destination in just a couple of hours.

When we look around, the role of science and technology seems to have changed almost every single bit in our lives. Cooking, bathing, clothing, travelling, eating, reading – everything. Technology has a huge share in sources of entertainment as well. Even ways of protesting are now mostly dependent on effective use of technological tools. Hence, it goes without saying that sci-tech touch has become a foremost factor of why and how this world is changing.

What to emphasize here is the earlier we realize this reality the better. When compared with the world around, I find Pakistan far behind. We, therefore, need to bring in all such technological development here pretty fast to help our experts pace up their work, enabling us to stand confidently in front of other nations.

Yours truly,

Muhammad Uzair Bhatti  

Uzair Bhatti
Of Class O' Levels 2nd Year

"Letter to the Principal" is Muhammad Abu Bakar Mian's answer to the question on directed writing in the Grand Test held in February this year (2014). It was found an excellent piece of work. Other students from O' Level stream can have exposure into 'HOW TO DO' a formal letter by concentrating on both the content and quality of the text here..

Letter to the Principal

Dear Sir,

I am filled with great pride and honor having been selected for recommending this year’s “Student of the Year” award. This is a high task as one must be a good judge of character in nominating another student for the certificate. For better or for worse, I am quite the social butterfly and am well acquainted with almost everyone in our school. It is only after many hours of consideration that I have come to choose Muhammad Ali as my nominee for this award.

Muhammad Ali deserves being the student of the year more than anyone else for countless reasons. He serves as an excellent role model for not just his classmates, but those that he surrounds himself with outside of school. I can say it with confidence that if you ask anyone about him, you will hardly hear anything negative. Ali has worked hard all his life – which is something that is really starting to pay off as he nears graduation and is about to enter college.

My nominee’s academic record is spotless; Straight As is the name of the game here. Apart from this, Ali is heavily involved in extra-curricular activities taking place in and around the school. He led the school’s Lego Robotics team to victory this year, and helped secure first place in the district-wide debate competitions. While serving as our basketball team’s captain, he has also managed to find the time needed to be part of the Student Council. His role in the Student Council has been especially important since he has helped resolve much of the bullying problems that were present earlier.

I am not nominating Ali on the basis of his academic achievements and extra-curricular participation alone. It is my firm belief that more important than any of this is his gentle and very caring nature. While he is not afraid to speak out and challenge the status quo, he has also never delayed himself in helping other individuals as much as possible. This is something I can personally vouch for as he has spent a good portion of his free time tutoring a few of my friends and I in math and physics.

I hope I have done well in portraying Muhammad Ali as the perfect candidate that he is and I pray that your make the right decision.

Yours faithfully,

Muhammad Abubakar Mian

O’ Level Final Year

PakTurk International School

Islamabad