Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-02
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 hope you and Chris are doing well! I am writing this letter regarding Chris's surprise birthday party.
Firsly, I would like to thank you for inviting me for this party. I am positive Chris would love this celebration because he always likes surprises. Many times in college he mentioned that he would love if his parents ever give him a surprise grand party on his bithday. Finally, his dream is going to turn into reality.
I want to apologize for not attending his brithday party. I am going India with my parents next week to attend my cousin's wedding. My parents have already booked tickets for this trip which cannot be chnaged. Furthermore, This is first wedding in our family, therefor i cannot miss it.
I wil meet Crish next month for sure. I will invite him to my house and will have dinner together and celebarte his birthday again with small cake cutting ceremony. I hope he would love this plan.
Thank you so much for inviting me once again. Take care.
Your Faithfully,
Jasmeet Singh
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 7.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0
The response successfully addresses all parts of the task. You clearly explain why Chris will enjoy the surprise party by noting that he likes surprises and has long wished for a grand celebration. You also provide a clear reason for your absence by mentioning the trip to India for your cousin's wedding, and you outline a practical plan to see him next month for dinner and a small cake cutting ceremony. All three bullet points from the prompt are covered, and your ideas are extended and supported well throughout the letter. The tone is appropriate for writing to a friend's parents, and a clear purpose is maintained from beginning to end.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0
The letter demonstrates a clear logical organisation and progression throughout. Each paragraph serves a distinct purpose, moving smoothly from the opening greetings and thanks to the explanation of the surprise, the reason for absence, and finally the alternative plan. You use appropriate cohesive devices such as 'Furthermore' and 'Finally' to connect your ideas. While paragraphing is managed sufficiently and appropriately, referencing is generally clear, though minor mechanical elements in cohesion could be slightly more natural. Overall, the arrangement of information is coherent and easy to follow from start to finish.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
Your vocabulary is adequate for the task and allows you to communicate your message effectively. You make successful attempts at using less common vocabulary, such as 'surprise birthday party', 'celebration', and 'alternative plan'. However, there are some noticeable spelling and word-choice errors that prevent a higher score, such as 'Firsly' instead of 'Firstly', 'bithday' and 'brithday' instead of 'birthday', and 'chnaged' instead of 'changed'. There are also minor lexical awkwardness issues like 'give him a surprise grand party' and 'small cake cutting ceremony'. These errors do not impede communication, but eliminating them and refining your precision and collocation will improve your vocabulary rating.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0
You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating structures such as 'I am positive Chris would love this celebration because he always likes surprises' and 'I am going India with my parents next week to attend my cousin's wedding.' There are some errors in grammar and punctuation, such as missing prepositions ('going [to] India'), punctuation issues ('Furthermore, This is first wedding in our family, therefor i cannot miss it'), and capitalization slips ('i' instead of 'I'). However, these grammatical errors are relatively minor and rarely impede communication. To reach a higher level, you should aim for a greater proportion of error-free complex sentences and ensure tighter control over articles and punctuation.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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