6. Email: your account, messages and attachments

Week 2 of 2

What you will be able to do

• Create a free email account with a sensible address, and sign in and out.
• Write, send, reply to and forward messages, and use To, Cc and Bcc correctly.
• Attach a file to an email and save attachments you receive.
• Keep your inbox under control: folders or labels, search, archive, and spam.
• Write a clear, polite email.

Why this matters

Your email address is your identity online: you need it to create almost every other account, to receive course messages and certificates, and to communicate at work. A professional address and clear emails make a good first impression.

1. Create an account

Free options: Gmail (Google, gmail.com) and Outlook (Microsoft, outlook.com). A Google account also gives you Google Drive, Docs and Meet (topics 8 and 9).

1. Go to accounts.google.com/signup (or outlook.com → Create free account).
2. Enter your real name, date of birth and a username.
3. Choose a strong password (topic 7) and add your phone number for recovery.

Choose a sensible address: firstname.lastname@gmail.com or firstnamelastname2026@gmail.com, not sweetboy4real@... or hotgirl123@.... You'll use it on applications and certificates for years.

2. Sending and receiving

3. Attachments

• To attach a file: select the paper clip (Attach files), find the file (topic 3) and select Open. Wait until it has finished uploading before you press Send.
• To save an attachment: hover over it and select the download arrow. It goes to Downloads.
• Big files (over about 25 MB) don't fit: share a link from Google Drive or OneDrive instead (topic 9).
• Only open attachments you expected, from people you know. Attachments are a common way to spread viruses (topic 7).

4. Keeping your inbox under control

• Search (the box at the top) finds any message by name, word or date.
• Archive removes a message from the inbox without deleting it; search still finds it.
• Labels (Gmail) or folders (Outlook) group messages: "Courses", "Bank", "Family".
• Spam (junk) is unwanted mail. Check the Spam folder if an expected email (such as a course confirmation) doesn't arrive, and mark real messages Not spam.

5. A clear, polite email

Subject: Request for the Computer and Internet Basics certificate

Dear Administrator,

I completed all eleven topics of Computer and Internet Basics on 20 November 2026,
but my certificate doesn't appear on the course page. Could you check it for me?
My username is adaobi.okafor.

Thank you,
Adaobi Okafor

A greeting, one clear purpose, the details someone needs to help you, a thank-you and your name. Read it once before sending. Avoid ALL CAPITALS: it reads like shouting.

Watch

How to Create Your First Email Account | Digital Literacy Basics

FalmouthCommunityTV · 2 min. Creating your first email account.

Get Started with Gmail

GetSetUp · 8 min. Using the Gmail inbox: reading, writing and organising email.

Try it

1. Create a free email account with a sensible address, if you don't already have one, and add a recovery phone number.
2. Send an email to yourself (or a classmate) with your my-learning-goals.txt file from topic 3 attached.
3. Reply to it, then forward it to another address you have. Find all three messages using search.
4. Create a label or folder called Courses and move the messages into it.

Check your understanding

1. When should you use Bcc instead of Cc?
2. What is the difference between Reply and Reply all?
3. An expected email hasn't arrived. Where do you look?
4. What makes a good subject line?