Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-15

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 find you well. I am very excited to hear about the news of organising a surprise birthday party for Chris. I am very familiar with my friend nature and I know he always loves to do things full of thrill and adventure. Therefore, organising a surprise birthday party specially at his favourite beach is a fantastic idea. This is a best present for him as he would always likes to do something different and unique at his twenty-first birthday.

Unfortunately, I am very sad to inform you that I could not able to become a part of this celebration. I enrolled in a full-time course; therefore it is very difficult for me to take some days off and to make a visit to Australia. Moreover, my mother is also going under a small hip surgery this summer. As a result, she also need someone to provide her with care and assistance. Therefore, It is not possible for me to visit on Chris special day.

I know Chris will be very unhappy with me but I will send my best wishes to him. I hope he will appreciate the love and things you are doing for him to make his day wonderful and great. I am planning to visit Australia next year with my parents and I will make a promise with my friend that I will catch up with him at that time.

Best Wishes,

Harnoor

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

You have successfully addressed all three bullet points in the prompt. You explained why Chris would enjoy the party, provided a clear reason for your absence, and proposed a future meeting. The tone is appropriate for a letter to a friend's parents, maintaining a polite and friendly register throughout. The ideas are relevant and well-developed, ensuring the reader understands your situation and your intentions regarding Chris. To reach a higher band, ensure that your explanations are slightly more concise to avoid minor repetition, but overall, the task requirements are fully met.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized with clear paragraphing that separates the different requirements of the task. You use transition words such as 'Therefore', 'Moreover', and 'Unfortunately' to guide the reader through your ideas. However, some of the cohesive devices feel slightly mechanical or repetitive. For example, starting multiple sentences with 'Therefore' impacts the flow. To improve, try to vary your linking phrases and ensure that the progression between sentences is smoother. The referencing is generally clear, and the letter follows a logical structure from the opening to the closing.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using words like 'assistance', 'enrolled', and 'celebration' correctly. There are some minor inaccuracies in word choice, such as 'my friend nature' (should be 'my friend's nature') and 'going under a small hip surgery' (should be 'undergoing'). While these errors do not impede communication, they indicate a need for more precise control over collocations. To improve, focus on learning common word pairings and ensure that you are using the correct forms of nouns and verbs in context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is good. However, there are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text, such as 'I hope this letter find you well' (finds), 'he would always likes' (like), and 'she also need' (needs). Additionally, there is a missing possessive apostrophe in 'Chris special day'. While these errors are frequent, they do not prevent the reader from understanding your message. To achieve a higher score, focus on subject-verb agreement and proofreading for small punctuation errors like missing apostrophes.

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

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