Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-10

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 5.5)

Dear Mr and Mrs Collins,

I got your letter yestersday about the invitation of my friend chris birthday party where you think that I came to surprise him. It is great idea to held surprise party for him because he really like that kind of surprise. He will enjoy it even more when he see all his friend who came to join his presious day and give him present.

Unfortunatly I am not able to attend his birthday party beacuse of my personal issue as my grandfather is not well so we have to take him to hospital which is far away from my hometown. I want to attend my best friend party but my family wants me to be here.

I really appreciate your feelings towards me. I will definetly visit your home on special event in future where we can go with him and eat.

Your faithfully

Komalpreet Kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address all three required points: you explain that Chris likes surprises, give a reason for missing the party, and suggest meeting on another occasion. The family emergency is relevant and understandable, and your wish to celebrate with Chris later is clear. However, the first point is only briefly developed, and the alternative plan—“visit your home on special event in future”—does not specify when or what you would do together. The letter also has a few awkwardly expressed ideas, such as “where you think that I came to surprise him,” which makes the invitation context less clear. To strengthen the response, explain more specifically why Chris would value seeing friends together and propose a definite time or activity for your visit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The letter has a clear overall arrangement: you discuss the surprise, explain your absence, and then suggest a future visit. The paragraph breaks help distinguish these points, and the reason for not attending follows logically from the family situation. This meets the lower-band expectation of coherent organisation and shows some of the stronger progression associated with the next level. However, links between ideas are sometimes awkward or repetitive, particularly “because” in the opening and the transition into “I really appreciate your feelings towards me.” Some references, such as “where” in the first sentence, are not immediately clear. Use more natural transitions and make each paragraph’s purpose explicit, especially when moving from the apology to a concrete alternative plan.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough vocabulary to communicate the main message, including relevant expressions such as “surprise party,” “attend,” and “personal issue.” However, the range is limited, and several noticeable spelling, word-choice, and collocation errors make the letter less natural: “yestersday,” “presious,” “definetly,” and “held surprise party.” Phrases such as “on special event in future” and “eat” are also too vague or unnatural for this context. These choices do not prevent the reader from understanding your main points, but they show limited control of vocabulary and can cause some difficulty. Build a bank of natural phrases for invitations, apologies, and making plans, and check spelling carefully before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentences, for example, the sentence explaining that your grandfather is unwell and needs to go to hospital. The main message remains understandable, but some errors in verb forms, agreement, articles, and sentence construction reduce accuracy. Examples include “he really like,” “when he see,” and “all his friend,” where the verb or noun form does not agree with the subject or quantity. “It is great idea to held” also has an incorrect article and verb pattern. Practise checking subject–verb agreement and using the infinitive after “to” (for example, “to hold”). Breaking the longest sentence into two well-controlled sentences would also help you express the reason for your absence more clearly.

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

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