Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-07-25

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The parents of your Australian friend Chris have invited you to a surprise birthday party for him/her. Write a letter to Chris's parents. In your letter:

• say why you think Chris will enjoy the surprise party
• explain why you won't be able to attend the party
• give details of a plan to see Chris at a different time

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Mr and Mrs Collins,

Student answer (Band 7.0)

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Cain,

I hope you are doing well. Thanks for inviting me to a surprise birthday party for Chris birthday, which is a exiting news for me.

As he is turning 18, arranging a surprise party would be a great idea and Chris will surely enjoy this party. What I can suggest to make this occasion ever more special : select a football theme of decoration and customize the cake with Messi pictures, as you know he always admire him.

Unfortunately, I am unable to attend the part, but my final exam is also in the following week. For that I have to make some thesis , which is going to add up in my final results.

I will be there next month, as my vacations are starting from 25th of August. We an plan for dinner or a trip to zoo during my stay there.

I hope this will be the best party ever for you whole Cain family.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

You have addressed all three bullet points required by the prompt. You successfully explained why Chris would enjoy the party, provided a valid reason for your absence (exams), and suggested a clear plan to meet him later. The tone is generally appropriate for a letter to a friend's parents. However, the development of ideas is somewhat brief. For instance, while you suggest a football theme, expanding slightly on why this would specifically delight Chris would have added more depth. Overall, the response is relevant and fulfills the requirements of the task effectively.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each addressing a specific part of the prompt. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'Unfortunately', 'As', and 'However' to connect your ideas. While the flow is generally smooth, some transitions feel a bit mechanical, and there are minor issues with referencing, such as the slightly confusing phrasing in the third paragraph regarding your thesis. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different topics, which helps the reader follow your message easily. To reach a higher band, try to use a wider variety of linking words to connect sentences more fluidly.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for this task. You use some topic-specific language like 'surprise birthday party', 'decoration', and 'customize'. However, there are some noticeable errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'exiting news' (should be 'exciting'), 'make some thesis' (should be 'write my thesis'), and 'admire him' (should be 'admires him'). While these errors do not impede communication, they indicate a need for more precision. Expanding your vocabulary to include more natural collocations would improve your score in this criterion.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors throughout the text, such as 'Chris birthday' (should be 'Chris's birthday'), 'the part' (should be 'the party'), and 'We an plan' (should be 'We can plan'). Additionally, there are some punctuation and article errors, such as 'trip to zoo' (should be 'trip to the zoo'). While these errors are frequent, they rarely impede the reader's understanding of your message. To improve, focus on proofreading for subject-verb agreement and basic article usage.

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