Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-24

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 am writing this letter as I received your invitation of a surprise birthday party for Chris. I belive that it is a very good idea to throw a surprise party because chris will love it. He likes to do party and he will be thrilled to meet all his friends specially, when he is unaware of the party. I would love to attend the party and meet all my friends and pariculary Chris after a long time.

However, I think I will not be able to make it as I will not get a leave from my workplace as my company is planning start new project during that period. It will take around one week to travel to Australia and come back to my home-country, which may not be possible at the moment.

Although, I am planning to come to Austrailia during Diwali because I will get one week off from my work and I would love to spend quality time with him. I am deeply sorry for not attending your party and wish you all the best for your surprise.

Yours lovingly,

xyz

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

You have addressed all three bullet points required by the task. You explained why Chris would enjoy the party, provided a clear reason for your absence, and proposed a concrete alternative plan to meet him. The tone is appropriate for a letter to a friend's parents. However, the development of ideas is somewhat basic. For instance, while you mention Chris will be 'thrilled', expanding slightly on his personality or why he specifically loves surprises would have added more depth. Overall, the response is relevant and fulfills the requirements of the prompt effectively.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each corresponding to a specific part of the prompt. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'However', 'Although', and 'because' to link your ideas. While the flow is generally clear, some transitions feel a bit mechanical. The use of referencing is mostly accurate, though the structure of the opening paragraph is slightly repetitive. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different topics, which helps the reader follow your message easily. To reach a higher band, try to vary your linking words and ensure smoother transitions between sentences.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using words like 'thrilled', 'unaware', and 'quality time'. There are some minor errors in word choice and spelling, such as 'pariculary' (particularly) and 'collins' (should be capitalized). Additionally, 'likes to do party' is not a natural collocation; 'enjoys parties' or 'loves celebrating' would be more accurate. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, it lacks the precision and variety of less common lexical items that would characterize a higher band score. Focus on improving your control over collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as the conditional 'if' or 'when' clauses. There are several grammatical errors, including 'I received your invitation of a surprise birthday party' (should be 'to'), 'my company is planning start' (should be 'planning to start'), and 'come to Austrailia' (spelling). Punctuation is generally functional, but there are some issues with capitalization of proper nouns like 'collins' and 'Austrailia'. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focus on proofreading for subject-verb agreement and preposition usage.

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

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