Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-14

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 Carlo,

It was great catching up with you! I am writing because you ask me to give you some advice on your incoming camping this holiday.

I am thinking of letting you borrow some of my camping essentials, such as tent, and camping chair. You will enjoy your camping holiday because those are the essentials that you need, instead of buying a new one.

However, there are possible disadvantages that you might encounter during camping. One of it is the noise from your sorroundings, so it will probably give you a hard time to sleep. Also, it is really dehydrating because there are only limited sources of water, i suggest you bring an extra tumbler to store some water.

I would like us to go camping this summer with Julian and Miko, they are missing you so much and we will be happy if you could go with us.

Just enjoy your first camping and don't overthink it. LOL!

Yours sincerely,

Angelo

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address all three points: you give a reason your friend may enjoy the trip, mention drawbacks, and clearly say you would like to go with them. The offer to lend camping equipment is relevant, but it does not fully explain why your friend would enjoy the experience itself; develop benefits such as spending time outdoors or sharing activities. The disadvantages are more specific, particularly noise affecting sleep and limited water, though the advice about a tumbler could be explained more clearly. Your invitation to join Julian and Miko makes your position clear. To strengthen the letter, expand the reasons for enjoying camping and make the advice more directly connected to the possible problems.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The letter has a clear overall arrangement: an opening, a paragraph about equipment, a paragraph on disadvantages, and a closing invitation. Linking words such as “However” and “Also” help signal the shift to drawbacks and add a second point. The progression is generally easy to follow, although the first body paragraph focuses more on borrowing equipment than on why camping would be enjoyable, so the connection to the task is not always clear. Some references could also be more precise: “those” refers to the tent and chair, but the sentence then calls them essentials the friend needs. Keep each paragraph focused on one purpose and use clearer links between the advice and its reasons.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a suitable range of everyday language for a friendly letter, including “catching up,” “camping essentials,” “possible disadvantages,” and “hard time to sleep.” These choices make the message understandable and generally appropriate in tone. However, some expressions are imprecise or unnatural, such as “incoming camping this holiday” and “it is really dehydrating,” which make the intended meaning less clear. There are also spelling errors in “sorroundings” and “i suggest.” Aim for more natural collocations and accurate spelling, for example, describe the trip as an upcoming camping holiday and say that finding enough drinking water may be difficult. This would make your vocabulary more precise without changing the friendly style.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use both simple sentences and some longer structures, including the sentence beginning “However, there are possible disadvantages…” and the invitation that includes your friends’ feelings. The main ideas remain understandable, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, “you ask me” should use a past form to match the context, and “One of it” needs a plural construction such as “One of them.” Articles and number also need attention in “such as tent” and “a new one,” while the long sentence beginning “I would like us to go camping” would be clearer with stronger punctuation. Practise checking verb tense, singular and plural forms, and sentence boundaries; greater accuracy in these areas would improve control.

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

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