Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-02

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You are planning a business trip to another city. You will have some free time to do some sightseeing while you are there.
 

Write a letter to a friend who lives in the city you will visit. In your letter:
• explain the purpose of the trip.
• ask about things to do and see in the city.
• invite your friend to do something with you during your visit.

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ____

Student answer (Band 6.0)

Dear Manish,

I hope you are doing well. I am writing this letter to inform you about my business trip from Vancouver to Niagara Falls.

Firstly, my purpose is to come to Niagara Falls to meet you and spend my free time for adventures and sightseeing near your place.

Secondly, I want some information about the scenarios in Niagara Falls, and can you explain the activities that I can see and enjoy?

Lastly, can you come with me for this trip, and we can visit Niagara Falls together? Otherwise, give me your address. Whenever I have time, we can meet at your place.

I hope to hear from you soon.

best regards,

Sweta.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers all three bullet points: the purpose of the trip, a request for sightseeing information, and an invitation to meet. However, the response is significantly under the 150-word minimum requirement, which negatively impacts the development of ideas. The content is quite brief and lacks the necessary elaboration expected in a formal or semi-formal letter. To improve, you should expand on the purpose of your business trip, provide more descriptive questions about the city, and offer more specific suggestions for your meeting with your friend to ensure the letter is fully developed and meets the length requirement.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter follows a logical structure with a clear opening and closing. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'Lastly' to sequence your points. While this makes the letter easy to follow, the paragraphing is somewhat mechanical and the overall flow is limited by the brevity of the text. To achieve a higher band, try to use a wider variety of linking words and phrases to connect your ideas more naturally within and between paragraphs, rather than relying on a simple list-like structure.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task but remains quite basic. Phrases like 'scenarios in Niagara Falls' are slightly unnatural; 'scenarios' is not the correct word choice here, as you likely meant 'attractions' or 'sights'. You successfully use some functional language, but there is a lack of less common or more precise vocabulary. To improve, focus on using more descriptive adjectives and specific nouns related to travel and tourism to demonstrate a wider range of lexical control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The letter contains a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures. There are a few grammatical inaccuracies, such as 'my purpose is to come to Niagara Falls to meet you and spend my free time for adventures', which is slightly awkward. Punctuation is generally correct, but the sentence variety is limited. To reach a higher band, aim to incorporate more complex sentence structures, such as conditional clauses or relative clauses, and ensure that your verb tenses and prepositions are used with greater precision.

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