Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-01

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 Collins,

I hope this letter finds you in a radiant health. I recently received the invitation for Chris’s 18th birthday party, I greatly remember he is super excited to celebrate it for the last two months.

Firstly, I would like to inform you about my unavailability on this specific day. I have already made my plans for one week hiking in Alberta. Secondly, I reserved my seat from the last year, I always wanted to capture the natural beauty of Rocky mountains. The beautiful Lake Louise, Lake Moral and Jasper are the focal points for this hike. Furthermore, at present I’m not qualified to get a refund.

Therefore, I have made plans to see Chris early next month on Civic day celebration. We will be travelling to eye catching Quebec City, where we have planned to visit trails, falls and will explore food from variety of countries.

I look forward to meet you next month. I have attached a birthday card and baseball cap for Chris, it would be great if you can pass it to Chris on his birthday.

Regards,

Alex.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

You have addressed all three bullet points in the prompt. You clearly explained why Chris would enjoy the party, provided a reason for your absence, and outlined a future plan to meet him. The tone is appropriate for a letter to a friend's parents. However, the first bullet point is slightly underdeveloped; while you mention he is excited, you could have elaborated more on why a surprise party specifically suits his personality or interests to fully satisfy the 'why' aspect of the prompt. Overall, the response is relevant and covers all requirements effectively.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The letter is logically organized with clear paragraphing. You use cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', 'Furthermore', and 'Therefore' to guide the reader through your points. While some of these transitions are a bit mechanical, they function well to maintain the flow of information. The progression of ideas is clear, moving from the apology to the explanation and finally the alternative plan. Referencing is generally clear, though the transition between the hiking details and the refund issue in the second paragraph could be smoother.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using phrases like 'radiant health', 'focal points', and 'eye catching'. There are some minor collocation issues, such as 'I greatly remember he is super excited' (which sounds unnatural) and 'reserved my seat from the last year'. Additionally, 'Lake Moral' is likely a misspelling of 'Lake Moraine'. Despite these minor inaccuracies, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly and appropriately for the context of a personal letter.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'I hope this letter finds you in a radiant health' (unnecessary article), 'I look forward to meet you' (should be 'meeting'), and comma splices in the first and last paragraphs. While these errors are noticeable, they do not impede communication. To reach a higher band, focus on verb patterns (e.g., 'look forward to -ing') and ensuring subject-verb agreement and correct article usage throughout your writing.

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