Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-08

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

Your English-speaking friend who lives in your town has asked for your advice about learning a new sport. Write an email to your friend. In your email:

• recommend a new sport that would be suitable for your friend to learn
• explain how your friend could learn this sport
• suggest that you both learn this sport together

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

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

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear Jan,

How are you? I hope you are doing well. I am writing to give you advice about what is the best new sport suitable for you.

I happy that you are remember me and ask me about some advice for you. One is the best sport for you is basketball. Because in our town in every corner have basketball court.

And also its easy to learn you can watch on TV or youtube how to do and tutorial how to play. Many of our neighbor are basketball player you can watch them how to play and also you are able to join them and have a friendly game.

I think one is the best to do and way the improve our skill is we play together. practice together and learn more. And also I planning to join in a compitation in our town and build a team you and me in one team. I hope this sauggestion will help us in the future and I am exited to see you.

Sencerely yours,

Kenneth

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You address all three parts of the task: you recommend basketball, explain that your friend could learn by watching tutorials and local players, and invite them to practise and join a team with you. The advice is relevant and the friendly purpose is clear. The explanation of how to learn is reasonably specific, while the reasons basketball suits Jan and the plan to learn together are less fully developed. For example, you mention courts around town but do not explain why basketball would suit Jan personally, and the shared plan could include a practical first step, such as attending a beginner session together. This covers the task well, with some ideas already extended, but fuller support would make the advice more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The email has a recognisable structure: an opening, paragraphs about the sport and ways to learn, a shared suggestion, and a sign-off. The ideas generally follow a sensible order, so the reader can understand your main message. However, links between ideas are sometimes mechanical or unclear. Repeated use of “and also” and “I think one is the best” makes the progression less smooth, while “One is the best sport for you” does not clearly connect to the preceding sentence. Organise the advice into clearer stages and use more precise references—for example, state the recommendation, then explain where and how to practise, before proposing a first session together. This would make the overall flow more natural.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic vocabulary to communicate the main advice, including “basketball court,” “tutorial,” “friendly game,” “practice,” and “team.” The tone is appropriately friendly for an email to a friend. However, the range is limited, and several word choices or collocations are noticeably inaccurate, such as “ask me about some advice,” “how to do,” and “build a team you and me in one team.” Spelling errors in “compitation,” “sauggestion,” “exited,” and “Sencerely” also reduce accuracy and polish. Aim to learn common phrases as complete units, such as “ask me for advice,” “learn the basic skills,” and “form a team.” More precise vocabulary would make your suggestions clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You communicate the main ideas using mostly simple sentences and make some attempts to connect clauses, for example, “you can watch them how to play and also you are able to join them.” However, the range of sentence structures is limited, and errors in verb forms, sentence construction, and agreement occur across the email. Examples include “I happy,” “you are remember me,” “in every corner have basketball court,” and “I planning to join.” These patterns sometimes make the reader pause to interpret the meaning. Practise complete sentence structures with a subject and correctly formed verb, such as “I’m happy that you remembered me” and “There is a basketball court on nearly every corner.” Using a few accurate complex sentences would also show greater control.

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

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