Band 8.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 8.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-18

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 8.0)

Dear John,

Hope you are doing well. I thought about our discussion on which sport you should be learning and I have arrived at an option that would be perfect for you. I believe that soccer will be the most appropriate sport for you to take up and both of us can join it together.

You have been very fit since I have known you. I remember that you had participated in multiple running events quite regularly. Hence, you will be able to pick up soccer skills very quickly since you already have the stamina needed for the sport.

You could join our town's local soccer club where coaches often organize teaching lessons. You would also meet a lot of other players who could show you various moves and practice with you. This way, not only would you get better at soccer faster, but would also make new friends.

The club is currently forming a new team and actively recruiting players to join for the next season. I plan on joining the soccer club. We could sign up and learn the sport together. It would be great fun to be able to meet you often and play soccer together with you.

I hope you decide to join soccer this season. I look forward to hearing back from you.

Best wishes,

Ajay

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 8.0

The response fully satisfies all requirements of the General Training Task 1 prompt. First, you successfully recommend a specific, suitable sport ('soccer') to your friend John. Second, you clearly explain how he could learn the sport by joining 'our town's local soccer club where coaches often organize teaching lessons' and practicing with other players. Third, you naturally suggest learning the sport together by stating, 'I plan on joining the soccer club. We could sign up and learn the sport together.' The tone is entirely appropriate for an informal email to a friend, maintaining a friendly, enthusiastic, and supportive register throughout. All bullet points are thoroughly addressed and extended with relevant details, such as mentioning his running background.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 8.0

The email is exceptionally well-organized and easy to follow. Ideas are logically sequenced, moving smoothly from the initial recommendation to the justification based on his stamina, followed by practical learning steps, and finally the joint invitation. Paragraphing is used effectively and appropriately, with each paragraph serving a distinct communicative purpose (greeting, justification, learning method, joint proposal, sign-off). Cohesive devices are handled naturally without feeling mechanical or forced ('Hence', 'This way', 'not only... but would also'). Referencing is clear throughout, and the progression of ideas is completely natural for friendly correspondence.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.0

You demonstrate a sufficient and flexible range of vocabulary suited to an informal setting. Words and phrases such as 'appropriate', 'stamina', 'actively recruiting', and 'pick up... skills' show good lexical control and natural collocation. There are minor unnatural phrasings, such as 'join it together' instead of 'take it up together', but this does not impede communication. The spelling is accurate and the tone is spot on. To reach an even higher band, you could incorporate more idiomatic language or varied phrasal verbs, but the current lexical range is strong and fully meets the requirements for a natural, communicative email.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 8.0

The response features a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures, displaying a strong command of grammar and punctuation. Examples of complex structures include 'I remember that you had participated in multiple running events quite regularly' and 'This way, not only would you get better at soccer faster, but would also make new friends.' The majority of your sentences are error-free, with only minor slips, such as the slightly awkward phrasing 'decide to join soccer' instead of 'join a soccer team' or 'take up soccer'. Overall, punctuation is accurate, verb tenses are handled correctly, and grammatical control is consistently maintained throughout the letter.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.