Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-19

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

A friend of yours is thinking of going on a camping holiday for the first time this summer. He/She has asked for your advice. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter

• explain why you think your friend would enjoy a camping holiday
• describe some possible disadvantages
• say whether you would like to go camping with your friend this summer

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ................. ,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear harry ,

As i come to know , you are planning to go for a camping tour during this summer break . I really want to give you an advice please make sure to carry an umbrella with you . you also need fantastic quality shoes that must be less slepry or should have great grip while going high or low at trails , those trails are full of mud .

There are many drawbacks as well while we are going for such kind of trips like , one of the danger is anytime we can face with animals such as bear or any other which might attack you

Here i would like to add, this time i will not be able to go with you beacue, i had already palnned my holidays with my parents . They told me, you never enjoyed any vacation with us. so this time please forgive me , but if you have any kind issue while tracking you can contact me . i would be really greatful to help you .

your sincerly

sharry

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The candidate addresses all three bullet points required by the task. First, they explain why the friend might enjoy camping and offer a tip regarding weather protection and terrain. Second, they describe possible disadvantages, specifically mentioning the risk of encountering dangerous animals like bears. Third, they clearly state whether they can join the trip, explaining that they have already planned a holiday with their parents. The tone is appropriately informal for a letter to a friend. While some ideas, such as the advice on camping gear, are somewhat basic and could be expanded further, the overall requirements of the prompt are adequately met, corresponding well to the descriptors for Band 6.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter maintains a reasonably coherent overall arrangement and follows a logical letter structure, opening with a greeting and closing with a sign-off. However, paragraphing and referencing are sometimes faulty. The text is divided into four short blocks, but the first paragraph mixes multiple ideas (the purpose of the letter, umbrella advice, and hiking shoes) without clear internal transitions. Cohesive devices are basic and sometimes misused, such as the abrupt transitions between sentences ('you also need...', 'There are many drawbacks...'). Referencing is also occasionally unclear, as seen in the phrase 'such as bear or any other which might attack you'. These mechanical issues place the performance at Band 5.5.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, but range and precision are limited. The student relies on basic, everyday words and makes several noticeable spelling and word choice errors, such as 'slepry' instead of 'slippery', 'beacue' instead of 'because', and 'palnned' instead of 'planned'. Attempts at less common phrases are sometimes awkward, like 'camping tour' instead of 'camping trip', or 'tracking' when they likely meant 'trekking' or 'hiking'. While meaning is generally conveyed despite these slips, the errors and limited lexical variety reflect the characteristics of a Band 5.0 response.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control over grammar and punctuation is inconsistent. There are numerous punctuation and capitalization errors throughout the text, including lowercase starting letters for sentences ('As i come...', 'you also need...', 'Here i would like...'), missing apostrophes ('i had'), and run-on sentences. Grammatical inaccuracies such as 'As i come to know' and 'anytime we can face with animals' cause some difficulty for the reader and impede smooth reading. Because complex sentences are often faulty and errors are frequent, a Band 5.0 is appropriate.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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