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 Sharon,
Hope you are doing well. Its long time I have not seen you. I got your letter that you want to learn a new sport. I would recommend you to learn basketball as it will be the best for you. I am also planning to start learning basketball, we both can go together to sports academy. You can learn it in sports academy located in downtown. The coach in that academy is best because I have searched about that academy. The prices for training over there are also affordable as compared to other academies. I think it will be a perfect sport for you as you are not getting enough time for outdoor activities or exercise. That coach is very famous he gives proper attention to every single person. Moreover you have taken some classes few years back so you already have some knowledge about it. We both can go together over there as you know I also need to go for some outdoor activity.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0
You have addressed all three bullet points of the task: recommending a sport (basketball), explaining how to learn it (joining the downtown academy), and suggesting learning together. The tone is appropriate for an email to a friend. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. For instance, while you mention the academy is 'best' and 'affordable', providing a specific reason or a personal anecdote about why basketball is a good fit for your friend would have made the response more engaging and fully developed. Overall, you have fulfilled the requirements of the prompt effectively.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The letter is generally easy to follow, and the ideas are logically sequenced. You use some cohesive devices like 'Moreover' and 'as', which help the flow. However, the response is written as a single block of text. To improve, you should use paragraphing to separate the different points (e.g., one paragraph for the recommendation and learning method, and another for the suggestion to join together). Additionally, some transitions feel a bit repetitive, such as the frequent use of 'that academy' or 'we both can go together'. Using a wider variety of linking words would improve the overall structure.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.0
Your vocabulary is adequate for the task and allows you to communicate your message clearly. You use some relevant terms like 'sports academy', 'outdoor activities', and 'training'. However, the range is somewhat limited and relies on basic phrasing. There are also minor issues with word choice, such as 'Its long time I have not seen you', which should be 'It has been a long time since I last saw you'. To reach a higher band, try to incorporate more descriptive adjectives and varied collocations to express your ideas with more precision.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0
You demonstrate a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are several grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include 'Its long time' (missing 'has been'), 'I got your letter that you want' (should be 'saying that you want'), and 'You can learn it in sports academy' (missing the article 'a'). Additionally, there are some punctuation issues, such as run-on sentences where two independent clauses are joined without proper conjunctions or punctuation. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and article usage will help improve your accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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