Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-12

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 Simran,

I hope you are doing well!

I am writing this letter to you, as we haven't met for so long, and when I received your letter, I felt overwhelmed. I have seen near my house that new swimming classes are going to open soon. I am also planning to join there, but just because of the busy schedule and shyness of going there alone are hindering me.

Moreover, with this sport you can learn more in a lucrative manner, as this has been on your bucket list for so long. Also, learning swimming classes would be considered an extra activity apart from our busy schedule. We both can join the evening batch at 7 pm, which can be suitable and manage our timetable.

Learning to swim can be helpful in numerous aspects, such as when we go to beaches, we can do extra adventures. It can also help us to stay fit in our lifestyle, so I would suggest this would be a good option for you to join this sport.

Kind Regards,

Charu

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

You have successfully addressed all three bullet points in the prompt. You recommended swimming, explained how to learn it (joining the evening batch), and suggested learning it together. The tone is appropriate for an email to a friend. However, the development of ideas is slightly limited. For instance, the explanation of how to learn the sport is a bit vague; you mention joining a class but do not provide details on the process or requirements. To reach a higher band, ensure that your ideas are fully extended with more specific details or examples to provide a more comprehensive response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The email is logically organized with a clear introduction, body, and conclusion. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Moreover', 'Also', and 'such as', which help the flow of ideas. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical or slightly unnatural, such as 'I am writing this letter to you, as we haven't met for so long'. Additionally, the paragraphing is acceptable, but the connection between the second and third paragraphs could be smoother to improve the overall progression of your argument. Using a wider variety of linking words would enhance the cohesion of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You have an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, allowing you to convey your message clearly. You use some relevant terms like 'bucket list', 'extra activity', and 'timetable'. However, there are some instances of awkward word choice, such as 'learn more in a lucrative manner', which does not fit the context of learning a sport. 'Lucrative' refers to making money, which is likely not what you intended. Improving your precision in word choice and avoiding misused vocabulary will help you achieve a higher score in this criterion.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While your meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text. For example, 'I have seen near my house that new swimming classes are going to open soon' is slightly awkward, and 'shyness of going there alone are hindering me' contains a subject-verb agreement error. Additionally, 'learning swimming classes' is grammatically incorrect; you should say 'taking swimming lessons'. While these errors do not impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score.

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

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