Letter to Claire

 1) Read 

A letter came to you from someone named Claire:

Dear Student of Year 9,

I am in a tricky situation and really need your advice. I heard that you have learned lots of things about love during the last weeks so could you please help me and tell me what I should do?

I had been together with this guy named Jim for more than four months and when we split up he quickly got into a new relationship with Anne, one of my best friends. Anne and Jim had a short but intense relationship and during that time I wasn’t seeing Anne at all. This was partly because I was very disappointed with what Anne had done and partly because I was still sore about losing Jim.

One day Jim called me and asked me out. I couldn’t believe my ears but I still agreed to meet him. I had promised myself never to meet him again but I thought that it could be nice to at least be friends. After all, Jim was good company and we used to have a lot of fun together.

Even if I didn’t consider meeting with Jim to be a regular date, I spent hours putting on my best make-up, fixing my hair and trying on every sweater in my wardrobe.

When we met at the restaurant I noticed that Jim hadn’t bothered to change his clothes after training. He was wearing a sloppy sweater and his hair is all tousled. I was somewhat disappointed but also a bit relieved as this clearly indicated that he had no intentions other than seeing me for a friendly chat. This evening we had the best time ever. In fact, we got on far better than we did while in a relationship. Jim made jokes about Anne and I felt so much more relaxed with him than I did while we were a couple. I felt good about being with Jim as if we were just two good old friends. After all that happened between us this was almost too good to be true!

But suddenly our conversation stopped. Jim gazed deeply into my eyes and all of a sudden I felt very confused. I managed to get out of the situation by calling the waiter and asking for the bill. Jim let me pay for the pizzas, something that he would never have done while we were together.

Before parting, Jim asked me if I would like to go fishing with him… I said that I would have to think about it, but now I have no idea what to tell him! What should I answer?

Kind regards,

Claire, 16, Brisbane

2) Plan

Your task

You are going to write a reply to Claire’s letter. She is counting on you and you need to give her your best piece of advice on what she should do in this situation.

Some questions that might help you along the way are:

· Is Jim asking Claire for a date or does he want them to be friends?
· What could Claire say to Jim to explain the way she feels?
· What signs are there that Jim wants to be friends?
· What signs are there that Jim is still in love with her?
· Should they stop seeing each other? Why/Why not?

During today’s lesson, you are going to answer these questions, make a mind map and plan your writing. Think about what you are going to tell Claire and make a plan for it.

3) Talk 

Then, you are going to discuss your piece of advice with a partner in class. 

4) Writing 
On Thursday you will be writing your letters on Exam.net. Bring a charged chromebook, your notes and a good mood :) 

Hi Claire! My name is .... I got your letter and I heard you needed some advice...