Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Predictions Nov 2026 · 2026-11-13

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You have just returned to Canada after spending a week with your friend Maya at her home in Portugal. It was the first time you had visited her since she moved there last year, and she made you feel very welcome. You have not had a chance to write to her yet, but would like to get in touch soon.

Write a letter to your friend Maya. In your letter

• thank Maya for having you to stay and say what you enjoyed most about the visit
• tell her about your life at home since you returned
• invite her to stay with you and suggest a suitable time for her to come

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ...............,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear Maya,

I hope you are doing well. First of all, thank you for given me warm welcome when i visited you in portugal. I really enjoyed my free time with you.

I really enjoyed about the visit about we explored different culture and traditions. I really amazed by people who made solo trips by themselves and they were 60 plus. Most importantly, I gotten a chance for staying with you.

Firstly, I was tired and got a full rest. After a day, I need to return to my work schedule as well as have to attend university classes. Overall, I handle everything.

So, I would like to invite you to stay with me. With the help of yours I also explored another country. Therefore, I also want you to get a free time and spend your christmas holidays with me. I believe christmas is the best option and you should come in the winter holidays.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Thank you,

Yours lovingly,

Rajandeep Kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address all three points: you thank Maya, mention enjoying time together and seeing local culture, describe returning to work and university, and invite her for Christmas. The personal tone suits a letter to a friend. However, some details are less fully developed or unclear. For example, “I really enjoyed about the visit about we explored different culture and traditions” does not clearly explain what you enjoyed most, and the reference to solo travellers over 60 is not connected to your experience. Your update about home is brief, while the invitation would be more useful with a specific date or length of stay. Develop these details so Maya can picture the visit and respond to a clear plan.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The letter has a clear overall arrangement: it opens with thanks, moves to your visit and life at home, then makes an invitation and closes appropriately. Paragraph breaks help distinguish these purposes, and phrases such as “Overall” and “Therefore” show an effort to connect ideas. At times, however, the links feel mechanical or the references are unclear. “With the help of yours I also explored another country” does not clearly connect to the invitation, and “Firstly” is not followed by a clear sequence of points. Some ideas within paragraphs also jump abruptly. Use simpler, more precise transitions and make sure each sentence clearly follows from the one before it.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough vocabulary to communicate the main points and maintain a warm, personal tone, including phrases such as “warm welcome,” “work schedule,” and “Christmas holidays.” There are also attempts to express specific ideas, such as “solo trips” and “different culture and traditions.” However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward, which makes some sentences difficult to understand: “thank you for given me,” “I really enjoyed about the visit,” and “With the help of yours.” Repetition of “enjoyed” and “free time” also limits variety. Aim for natural combinations such as “thank you for welcoming me,” “what I enjoyed most was,” and “thanks to you, I got to explore Portugal.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You use a mixture of short statements and longer sentences, and the reader can generally follow the main message. Some basic sentence patterns are controlled, as in “I would like to invite you to stay with me.” However, errors in verb forms, articles, tense, and sentence construction occur in several places. For example, “thank you for given me” needs a gerund, “I gotten a chance for staying” has an incorrect verb form and structure, and “After a day, I need to return” shifts tense awkwardly when describing what happened after your return. Capitalisation and punctuation also need attention, including “i,” “portugal,” and “christmas.” Practise accurate past-tense narration and build longer sentences around one clear idea.

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