Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-26
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 glad to here about arranging a birthday party for my best friend. I would like to thank to both of you to invite me for being a part of this memorable event.
Until I know Chris, he love surprises since childhood. I surprised him couple of time and his feelings at that time was like he was on the cloud. By arranging a grand birthday party,he could also spend some qualitative time with his friends who are living abroad.
Unfortunately, my U.S. visa appointment is in the same week of his birthday party and I am not able to reschedule that again as it has long waiting period. Moreover, to attend this party, I need to take a break from my job, which may be difficult to get.
One promise from my side is me and my husband are planning to visit Australia in next 2 months. I have diwali vacation for 21 days so, during this days I will see Chris and we all will definitely enjoy this golden period.
I would like to apologize for not being there on his special occasion.
yours sincerely,
Margi
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0
The response covers all three bullet points required in the task instructions. You successfully explain why Chris will enjoy the surprise party by mentioning his lifelong love for surprises and the chance to see his international friends. You provide a clear explanation for why you cannot attend due to a U.S. visa appointment and work constraints, and you successfully offer a concrete alternative plan to visit Australia in the next two months during your vacation. The tone is appropriate for a semi-formal letter to friends of a friend. All parts of the prompt are addressed adequately, and ideas are sufficiently extended, meeting the requirements for a Band 6.5 or 7.0 descriptor.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5
The letter is organised into logical paragraphs, each serving a distinct purpose such as introducing the topic, explaining the absence, and proposing alternative plans. Cohesive devices are used adequately with markers like 'Unfortunately', 'Moreover', and 'One promise from my side'. However, referencing and transitions are sometimes a bit mechanical or slightly awkward, such as 'Until I know Chris, he love surprises' and 'during this days'. Paragraphing is used correctly overall, establishing a clear progression of ideas that allows the reader to follow the narrative easily.
Lexical Resource: Band 6.0
The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task, with some attempts at less common phrasing such as 'memorable event', 'qualitative time', and 'golden period'. However, there are several word choice and collocation inaccuracies throughout the text, including 'glad to here' instead of 'hear', 'thank to both of you to invite me', and 'qualitative time' instead of 'quality time'. Despite these lexical slips, communication is never impeded, and the range is sufficient to convey the intended meaning effectively.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0
You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, incorporating conditional and multi-clause sentences such as 'Until I know Chris, he love surprises since childhood' and 'Moreover, to attend this party, I need to take a break from my job, which may be difficult to get.' However, there are notable grammatical errors and tense inconsistencies, such as 'he love surprises' (subject-verb agreement), 'I surprised him couple of time' (pluralisation), and 'in next 2 months' (missing article). Punctuation and sentence boundaries are mostly functional, but the density of basic grammatical errors places this response firmly in the Band 6 category.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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