Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-03

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 6.5)

Dear Mr and Mrs Collins,

I hope you both are doing well. Thank you for the invitation. I am glad to know that you are organizing a surprise birthday party for Chris. I am sure he will definitely going to love this.

Chris always wants to feel special on his birthday. This plan will surely bring a smile to his face. Since, it's his eighteenth, it should be memorable as well.

But unfortunately, my exams got postponed and now they are in the same week. Hence, I won't be able to attend the party. Nevertheless, I am planning to come next month with my parents and if everything went well, we can plan a trip to Mexico. This will be a second surprise for him. I am sending a present for him, that will arrive a day before his birthday. Can you please give that him on my behalf.

Kindly let me know if you need any help for the party.

Regards,

Vaishali

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The letter addresses all three bullet points required by the prompt. You clearly explain why Chris will enjoy the party, provide a valid reason for your absence, and propose a concrete alternative plan to meet him. The tone is appropriate for a letter to a friend's parents. The ideas are relevant and sufficiently developed to meet the task requirements. To reach a higher band, ensure that all minor details, such as the request for them to give the gift to Chris, are phrased with complete grammatical accuracy to avoid any ambiguity.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized, with each paragraph focusing on a specific requirement of the task. The progression of ideas is clear, moving from the invitation acknowledgement to the reason for absence and the alternative plan. You use some cohesive devices like 'Nevertheless' and 'Hence' to link ideas. However, the transition between sentences could be smoother in places, and some paragraphing is slightly fragmented. Overall, the structure is easy to follow and serves the purpose of the letter well.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task. Phrases like 'on my behalf' and 'memorable' are used correctly. There are some minor issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'give that him' (should be 'give that to him'). While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your message clearly, it lacks the more sophisticated or idiomatic expressions that would characterize a higher band score. The language is functional and appropriate for the context of a personal letter.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text. For example, 'he will definitely going to love' is incorrect (should be 'he will definitely love' or 'he is definitely going to love'). Additionally, 'if everything went well' should be 'if everything goes well' to maintain correct tense consistency. While these errors do not impede communication, they are frequent enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and tense consistency will improve your accuracy.

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