Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-25
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 6.5)
Dear Mr and Mrs Collins,
I writing this letter to inform you that I am not able to come on Chris's surprise birthday party.
1st September 2026 is a very big day for Chris. Every year we celebrate his birthday with our friends but this time as parents you're giving him a surprise birthday party. I can visulalise right now how much he will be happy after seeing that on his suprprise birthday party he can see his all friends, relatives are under one roof for wishing him.
However, on the 2nd September I already made a plan with my parents to visit my grandmother house. She is living a far away from my home and we are living one day before which is 1st September. If I do not have this plan I really want to join in his birthday party and see his reaction on his surprise birthday party.
When I comming back to town I will be meet him personally and I will organise a little family dinner at his favorite cafe "visa italia". I will let you know the dinner time and date.
Thank you for inviting me on his surprise birthday party but I will meet him on 1 week later with nice family dinner.
Best regards,
Krish
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
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 reason for your absence, and propose a concrete alternative plan to meet him. The tone is generally appropriate for a letter to a friend's parents, although it could be slightly more formal in places. The ideas are relevant and well-developed, ensuring the reader understands your situation and your desire to celebrate with Chris at a later date. You have successfully fulfilled the requirements of the task.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5
The letter is logically organized into distinct paragraphs, each serving a clear purpose. You use some cohesive devices, such as 'However' and 'When I comming back', to link your ideas. However, the flow is occasionally interrupted by minor errors in sentence structure and referencing. For instance, the transition between the reason for your absence and the alternative plan could be smoother. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear, and the paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the different points requested in the prompt.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.0
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using phrases like 'under one roof' and 'organise a little family dinner'. There are some minor errors in word choice and spelling, such as 'visulalise' instead of 'visualize' and 'comming' instead of 'coming'. Additionally, some phrasing is slightly unnatural, such as 'we are living one day before'. While these errors do not impede communication, they indicate a need for more precision in your word usage and attention to spelling to reach a higher band score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text. Examples include 'I writing this letter' (missing auxiliary verb), 'she is living a far away' (incorrect preposition/article usage), and 'I will be meet him' (incorrect verb form). While your meaning is always clear, these persistent errors in verb tense and sentence construction prevent the writing from being considered error-free. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and consistent tense usage will significantly improve your accuracy.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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