Home > Advocacy Library >  Articles > 12 Rules for Writing GREAT Letters by Pamela Wright

You write letters to request information, request action, provide information or describe an event, decline a request, and express appreciation.

When you write letters to the school, you want to express concerns and educate your reader about your child’s problems.

You want your letters to create a good first impression. This article, 12 Rules for Writing Great Letters, will help you accomplish your objectives. 12 Rules is the companion article to The Art of Writing Letters.

1. Before you write a letter, you need answer these questions.

What? What do I want? What are my goals? 

Get three blank sheets of paper. 

On the second sheet write "WHAT? What are my goals in writing this letter?" 

On the third sheet write "Other Thoughts." 

2. Your First Letter is Always a Draft

You write letters to:

(3) decline a request 

(4) express appreciation

(5) create a paper trail 

If you anticipate resistance, you may begin by telling a story to get the reader's interest. Let’s see how Kathryn’s mother used the story telling method to begin an important letter to the school:

3. Allow for "cooling off" and revision time.

After you write the first draft, put your letter away for a few days. DO NOT SEND IT! 

Firing off a letter is one of the most common mistakes parents make. You must give "cooling off" and revision time. Later, parents say "But they said I had to respond right away . . ."

Ninety-nine percent of letters from the school system DO NOT
require you to respond immediately.

A "cooling-off period" allows you to look at your letter more objectively. If you send a letter without allowing for "cooling off" and revision time, you’ll probably damage your credibility and your position. Sometimes, this damage is impossible to repair. 

4. You negotiate with the school for special education services.

As you are learning, you negotiate with the school for special education services. If you are negotiating with the school for special services or with a car dealer for a car, the principles are the same. You never begin negotiations by telling the other side what your "bottom line" is. 

In negotiations with schools, parents often make the mistake of being too open. Parents think they have to share everything with the school - immediately. They hope that by sharing everything, they’ll be rewarded with the help their child needs. This doesn’t happen. 

You need to share the results of all evaluations and any other new information with the school, as soon as you receive it. However, you do not need to share your wish list or your bottom line. 

5. Never threaten. Never telegraph your punches!

You’ll remember that in the first chapter of this Tactics section, the parents wrote two letters. In their first letter, they made several threats. In their second letter, they made no threats, and told their story in a compelling way. If you make threats (i.e., "we’re going to call our lawyer"), you may experience temporary relief but you’ll pay a high price later. 

Fear of the Unknown
As a negotiator, one of the most powerful forces you have on your side is the "Fear of the Unknown." When you threaten, you are telling the other side what you plan to do. If you tell them what you plan to do, you have told them how to protect themselves. At that moment, you lose your advantage - which is the wonderful, powerful Fear of the Unknown. Never telegraph your punches – you will destroy their power and effectiveness. 

You went to the doctor to get the results of your annual physical, including your lab work. As your doctor, I come in and tell you that:

When you know what you’re facing, is your fear as intense? No. 

If you don’t fill in answers – if you don’t telegraph your punches - then the fear of the unknown will force the other side to attribute more power to you. Because they’ll be in the "fear of the unknown," they’ll wonder what you’re going to do – and they’ll imagine a worst case scenario.

6. Make several (unpleasant but necessary) assumptions.

Assume that you will not be able to resolve your dispute. Assume that you wil have to request a special education due process hearing. Assume that you will not be able to testify at the hearing, or tell your side of the story.

These are important assumptions. These assumptions are the keys to successful letter writing. Assume things will get worse. Assume that success in securing an appropriate program and services for your child depends on how well you describe the events that caused you to write to the school.

The letters you write now may sit in your child’s file for months or years. If things blow up later, these letters can be the most compelling evidence in your favor. Bob’s letter at the beginning of this chapter shows how letters can work against you

7. Make your problem unique.

If you are writing a letter about a specific problem (i.e., a teacher’s refusal to follow an IEP), present your situation as unique. You want the person who reads your letter to see your problem as different. You want them to think "Wow! We’ve never had this problem before!"

By presenting your problem as unique, you’re trying to avoid "We ALWAYS handle ABC situations this way. We ALWAYS have handled ABC situations this way. We ALWAYS will handle ABC situations this way. We can’t make exceptions for you."

If you present your situation as unique, it won’t be listed in the Bureaucrat’s Big Book of Rules and Procedures. Remember: bureaucracies are inflexible and rule-bound. By presenting your situation as unique, you can sometimes get people in the system to see things differently. If they see things differently, they may be able to handle things differently.

8. You ARE writing letters to a Stranger who has the power to resolve the problem. (You are NOT writing letters to the school alone.)

When you write a letter to the school, you are really writing a "Letter to the Stranger." Why?

You have to assume that someone outside the school system will decide this issue. This person will have no personal knowledge about or interest in you and your child. This person doesn't know or care what "program" your child is enrolled in.

The person may be the school board attorney who advises the school district to settle the case. The person is more likely to be a hearing officer, Administrative law judge, or a Judge in state or federal court.

When you write letters, keep this Stranger in your mind’s eye. Who is this Stranger? What does he look like? How does he think?

Visualize the Stranger as an older person who has worked hard all his life. He is conservative, fair, and moderately open minded. He knows that life is often difficult and unfair. He doesn’t have patience with whiners or complainers. He’s far more sympathetic to people who have a plan to solve their problems. He dresses casually. When he sits down to read your letter, he may sip a cup of tea and light his pipe. 

The Stranger doesn’t know you, your child, or your situation. Your letter gives you an opporunity to persuade the the Stranger to see the justice of your cause. When you describe the problem, you are also telling the Stranger what can be done to make things right.

Judges are Strangers. Most judges are not knowledgeable about special education issues or children with disabilities. When you write letters, you are also trying to educate and inform this decison-maker.

9. Write letters to the school as business letters.

When you write business letters, you state facts that support your position or request (your brain). You do not demand, threaten, ventilate anger or frustration (your emotions).

If you are writing an important letter to the school, you want it to be smooth, polished, and professional. Begin your letter chronologically and develop it chronologically. To see how this is done, go back and read the original "Letter to the Stranger" at the beginning of this section. The letter began like this:

10. NEVER make judgments.

"What a jerk you were! You didn't have enough guts to be straight-up with us!"

NO!

NEVER be judgmental. You want the Stranger to be interested, not defensive or anxious. Provide factual information, then let the Stranger draw conclusions. You want the Stranger to conclude "What a jerk!" on his own.  

11. Write your letter chronologically.

When you tell a story, you tell the story chronologically. Your objective is to write a letter than is interesting, and easy to follow.

Remember, when you write a letter to the school, this is your chance to "present your case" and tell your story. The Stranger won’t know the background or history unless you provide this information. You can provide background information very naturally and easily by starting at the beginning and writing the letter chronologically.  

For example: "On DATE, our son entered your program because . . . 

You can move the clock earlier if this helps you tell the story. "We realized that our daughter had serious problems when she was unable to communicate by her third birthday." 

Where should you begin? Begin where you want. You know when the story "began." Continue to tell your story. "When she started school . . ." 

When you tell the tory, use your facts. Select your facts carefully and keep your opinions to a minimum. As you tell the story, you are planting seeds in the memories of all Strangers who will read your letter later.

There is another reason to write your letter chronologically. If you jump from issue to issue, the reader will get confused, then frustrated. Readers have negative reactions to people who write letters that are hard to follow. The Stranger is likely to get annoyed and angry with you if he can’t figure out your point. If the Stranger gets frustrated, he will quit reading – and he’ll blame you for this frustration. You don’t want this to happen. 

12. Write letters that are clear and easy to understand.

Letters provide you with an opportunity to make your case and create a positive impression. The impression you make depends on how you present and express yourself. 

We don’t like to think that our writing skills need improving. Unless you are a professional writer or editor, you will need to improve your writing skills in four areas: clarity, brevity, interest, and accuracy. 

ALWAYS read your letters aloud. This is a valuable tip from professional editors.

ALWAYS have at least one outside person read your letters. Your "reader" should be someone who will tell you the truth, especially when you did not make things clear or you need to tone the letter down. 

Ask your "reader" to pretend that he or she is a Stranger. You want your reader to tell you if answered the three questions we listed at the beginning of this chapter:

Letter Writing Tips

Make It Clear

It’s incredibly easy to get side-tracked when writing letters, especially if you’re feeling upset or emotional. Remember: You are writing to make a point, clarify an event, make a request, and create a paper trail. Refer back to the sheets of paper you used during the brainstorming stage. Have you answered these three questions?

Make It Short

Say what you have to say. Be succinct. Most people don’t have the time to read long letters. If you repeat yourself, you’re wasting the reader’s time and your letter will generate a negative response. Keep your message short and to the point. 

There is one exception to this rule. If you are writing a letter to request a due process hearing, then the letter needs to be a comprehensive "Letter to the Stranger." This letter should tell story, from the beginning, using visual imagery. 

Make It Alive

Speak directly to the reader. Use the same words and figures of speech you use in your day-to-day speech. Think about the Stranger as a real person. Visualize the Stranger and imagine yourself talking with him about your problems. This is the person you are writing to. You’re not firing a letter off to the person who chaired the IEP meeting and didn’t have the courage to tell you that the school had just suspended your child, as you see in the example below. 

Use words like "you," "we," "us," "our" to make your letter more personal. Everyone who reads the letter will feel that the message is directed at them. 

Make it RIGHT

Letters filled with errors are distracting. Readers get so distracted by misspelled words and poor grammar that they miss the point. If you send a letter that’s filled with mistakes, your real message is that you are sloppy and careless. If you prepare your letter on a computer, it will be easier to read. The Stranger will thank you for little touches like this. 

Your goal is to eliminate all spelling, grammatical, and formatting errors from your letters. The problem? We don’t notice our own errors! The solution? Always have at least one other person proof-read your letters. Try to locate more than one proof-reader. Buy a book about "How to Write Business Letters."

Letter writing is an art. A well written letter is a pleasure to read. It’s also very hard work.

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Pete Wright represented Shannon Carter before the U. S. Supreme Court in Florence County School District Four v. Shannon Carter  where he received a unanimous decision in Shannon’s favor.

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Revised: 02/21/07