Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-19

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 7.0)

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Collins,

I hope you are doing well. Thank you for inviting me to a surprise birthday party for Chris. I am extremely excited to meet all of you, but unfortunately, I will not be able to come for personal reasons.

Regarding the party, I am sure he will be absolutely delighted. He has always loved spending time with family and friends. So, having everyone at his celebration will make his birthday memorable and wonderful.

However, I could not be able to make this visit. Because I have a dentist appointment, which I took yesterday, due to extreme pain in my lower jaw. I tried to change my appointment time, but the doctor's unavailability means it's unchangeable.

Nevertheless, I would love to meet him another day. How about inviting him for dinner on Saturday? In this way, I can surprise him, and we can spend our personal quality time together. In addition, I will bring a customized birthday cake and a small gift to celebrate his post-birthday. Please let me know about this plan.

Once again, thank you for inviting me, and I hope Chris will love the surprise event.

Best regards,

Mamta

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

You address all three points clearly: you explain why Chris will enjoy seeing family and friends, give a specific reason for your absence, and suggest dinner on Saturday as an alternative. The dentist appointment and the offer to bring a cake and gift make the letter personal and relevant. Your purpose remains clear throughout, and the ideas are supported with useful details. Some explanation is still quite general, particularly why the gathering will be memorable; a more individual detail about Chris’s interests or past celebrations would make this point more fully developed. The alternative plan could also be made more definite by suggesting a time or asking whether Saturday suits the family.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter follows a clear progression from thanks and the party, to your reason for declining, and then to an alternative plan. Paragraphing helps separate these purposes, and linking expressions such as “However,” “Nevertheless,” and “In addition” make the relationships between ideas easy to follow. The closing returns appropriately to the invitation. At times, though, the transitions feel somewhat formulaic, and “However” introduces the absence after the party discussion even though the connection is not a contrast between those ideas. The sentence beginning “Because I have a dentist appointment” is also detached from the preceding sentence, interrupting the flow. Smoother links and more integrated sentence construction would make the progression more natural.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for a friendly, polite letter, including “absolutely delighted,” “memorable,” “unavailability,” and “customized birthday cake.” These choices help convey enthusiasm and explain the practical reason for missing the event. Some phrases, however, are not natural or precise in context: “personal quality time” is awkward, and “celebrate his post-birthday” does not express the intended idea idiomatically. “Unchangeable” is understandable but less natural for an appointment that cannot be moved. The repeated use of “surprise” and “birthday” also limits flexibility slightly. More natural collocations and a few precise alternatives would strengthen the range while keeping the warm tone.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You attempt a mix of simple and more complex structures, including “I am sure he will be absolutely delighted” and the sentence explaining that the doctor’s unavailability prevents a change. Most of the message remains understandable, but some grammatical errors are noticeable. “I could not be able to make this visit” combines incompatible forms; use “I will not be able to attend.” The fragment “Because I have a dentist appointment…” should be joined to the previous sentence, and “which I took yesterday” is an awkward relative clause for describing an appointment. The sentence “How about inviting him for dinner on Saturday?” is a clear, effective question structure. More consistent control of verb forms and complete sentence construction would improve accuracy.

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