Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-09

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 Maliha,

I hope you are doing well, I heared that you are eagerly want to learn a new sport. I think swimming is a best option for you.

There are many ways you can learn swimming very well like attend a class in which you are able to do from basics to advance. Moreover, for this sport you have to start practice about breathing, kicking and meny more.

Also, i think it is better if we both join together, as we can make strategy, have fun and motivate to each others. After practice session we will go nearby cafes and spend quality time not only this; but also explore meny shops.

king regards,

Akime.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

You have addressed all three bullet points of the prompt: recommending a sport, explaining how to learn it, and suggesting you learn it together. However, the response is significantly under the 150-word minimum requirement, which limits the development of your ideas. To improve, you should expand on your suggestions with more detail. For example, instead of just mentioning 'breathing and kicking,' you could describe why these are important or how a local club provides a supportive environment. Because the response is 35 words short, it fails to fully develop the ideas as required for a higher band score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The email is organised into short paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. You use some basic cohesive devices such as 'Moreover' and 'Also' to link your ideas. However, the flow is somewhat mechanical, and the transition between sentences could be smoother. The final paragraph is a bit disjointed, particularly the phrase 'not only this; but also explore meny shops,' which lacks clear logical connection to the previous sentence about swimming. Improving your use of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear, unified focus will help improve your score in this area.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is adequate for the task but remains quite basic. You use some relevant terms like 'swimming,' 'basics,' and 'motivate,' but there are several spelling errors, such as 'heared' (heard), 'meny' (many), and 'king regards' (kind regards). These errors are noticeable and detract from the professional tone of the email. To reach a higher band, try to incorporate more precise vocabulary related to sports and social activities, and ensure you proofread your work to correct simple spelling mistakes that could easily be avoided.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include 'you are eagerly want' (you eagerly want), 'swimming is a best option' (the best option), and 'motivate to each others' (motivate each other). These errors occur frequently and occasionally make the meaning slightly unclear. While the reader can understand your message, the lack of grammatical control is a significant issue. Focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles to improve your accuracy.

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

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