Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-30

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 6.0)

Dear Mr and Mrs Ahuja,

I am extremely happy to hear about the surprise party which you are arranging for Chris. Unfortunately, I would not be able to attend this beautiful occassion due to some unforeseen circumstances.

It will be amazing surprise for Chris as he always used to dream about the surprise birthday party. I know this will be a little bit emotional moment for him as well. But, he will definitely love it.

I am very sorry to say no the invitation. Actually my grandma is very sick and hospitalised. I am staying in the hospital to look after her. I cannot leave her alone because my parents can't come as both of them are working.

As soon as my grandma comes back at home, I would love to come see Chris. I will try to get my documents ready and will apply for the Visa. I cannot give you exact date but I will try my best to come whenever possible.

I wish a very happy birthday to Chris and my sincere apologies for not attending the party.

Best wishes,

Navneet

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response successfully covers all the bullet points outlined in the prompt, earning a solid mid-level score. You successfully mention why Chris will enjoy the surprise party, explaining that he always used to dream about it. You also clearly explain why you cannot attend due to your grandma being sick and hospitalized, and you provide a plan to see Chris as soon as she returns home. However, some parts could be more fully developed to reach higher bands. For instance, the explanation of why you cannot attend and the future plans are somewhat brief. To improve, ensure you extend your ideas with more specific details, such as outlining a clearer timeframe or alternative celebration plan, rather than keeping the responses relatively simple.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

Your letter shows an overall logical organization with clear paragraph breaks separating the different points of the prompt, such as the initial reaction, the reason for absence, and the future meeting plan. However, the progression between ideas can sometimes feel a bit mechanical. For example, sentences like 'Actually my grandma is very sick' or 'As soon as my grandma comes back at home' lack smooth transitional phrases that tie the narrative together naturally. Additionally, referencing is occasionally repetitive or slightly unnatural, which holds the cohesion back. To move up, work on using a wider variety of cohesive devices and logical connectors to link your sentences and paragraphs more fluidly, ensuring the flow of information feels completely natural.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for a semi-formal letter, successfully attempting some less common phrases like 'unforeseen circumstances' and 'sincere apologies'. However, there are a few lexical and spelling inaccuracies that prevent a higher score, such as 'occassion' (spelled with a double s) and the slightly awkward phrasing 'say no the invitation' instead of 'decline the invitation'. Your vocabulary is generally sufficient to communicate your message clearly, but it sometimes relies on common or repetitive terms. To achieve a higher band, focus on expanding your use of precise collocations and ensure careful proofreading to eliminate minor spelling mistakes and slightly unnatural word choices.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writing demonstrates a reasonable mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as using 'As soon as...' and 'Although/Because' clauses. There are several error-free sentences, and your grammar and punctuation generally do not impede communication. However, a number of grammatical errors and awkward structures persist throughout the text. For example, 'I would not be able to attend' should ideally be 'I will not be able to attend' in this context, and 'back at home' contains an unnecessary preposition. To improve your grammatical range and accuracy, try incorporating a wider variety of complex grammatical structures while paying closer attention to auxiliary verbs, prepositions, and tense consistency.

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

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