Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-07-28

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 6.5)

Dear John,

How are you doing? I know since you have completed your studies you have plenty of time to spend on learning new activities. I believe that you should go for Basketball, it is a really good sport you will love it.

You are a tall guy and also have good targeting skills. I still remember when we were in school you use to run really fast so it will be a good choice. Infect this activity will help you to increase your stamina. Basketball is a fun activity it will help you to loose weight as well since you need to be active and fast.

I also want to join a club as you know I love to play basketball so, lets go together and join Basketball club. We will definitely enjoy it together.

Hope to see you in the club near my home on next weekend.

Love,

Avi

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

You have successfully addressed all three bullet points in the prompt: recommending a sport (basketball), explaining how to learn it, and suggesting that you both join together. The tone is appropriate for an email to a friend. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For example, while you mention that basketball will help with stamina and weight loss, the explanation of 'how' to learn it is quite brief, focusing mostly on joining a club. To reach a higher band, try to expand on the practical steps, such as mentioning finding a coach or watching tutorials, to provide more depth to your advice.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The email is logically organized, with a clear introduction, body, and conclusion. You use basic cohesive devices like 'also', 'since', and 'so' to link ideas. However, the paragraphing is a bit disjointed; the body of the email could be better structured by separating the recommendation from the practical advice. Additionally, some transitions feel a bit mechanical. To improve, try using a wider variety of linking words and ensure that each paragraph focuses on a single, well-developed theme to improve the overall flow of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

Your vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing you to communicate your ideas clearly. You use some relevant topic-specific vocabulary such as 'stamina', 'targeting skills', and 'activities'. However, there are some minor errors in word choice, such as 'Infect' (likely meant 'In fact') and 'loose' (should be 'lose'). To achieve a higher score, aim to incorporate more precise collocations and avoid common spelling errors. Using a slightly more varied range of descriptive adjectives would also help to make your writing more engaging.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors, such as 'you use to run' (should be 'used to'), 'on next weekend' (should be 'next weekend'), and run-on sentences like 'Basketball is a fun activity it will help you...'. These errors do not impede communication, but they do affect the overall accuracy. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of prepositions. Practicing the use of relative clauses could also help you create more sophisticated, error-free complex sentences.

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