Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-10-12

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 4.0)

Dear friend

I want you to know that i want to visit you again in the city because last time i visited you it is a short time period. This time i want go to amusement park , eating dinner with you at your favourite restaurant and go to the arcade the one you always talk about. Lets having fun in the club that one we visited last time because you said you see a girl that you get your attention so you need to get her name this time. And you said you treat me in the korean restaurant and eat samgyeopsal because you said that the meat there is so tender at juicy and also the side dish of that korean restaurant. I am so excited to see you this month so prepared your self because this is so long vacation for us. See you soon my friend. Thank you

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

The letter is relevant to visiting your friend and includes several possible activities, such as going to an amusement park, a restaurant, an arcade and a club. It also conveys enthusiasm about seeing your friend. However, the main purpose is not clearly explained: “I want you to know that i want to visit you again” suggests a social visit rather than explaining that you are travelling for business. The request for recommendations is also missing; you list activities you want to do but do not clearly ask what your friend recommends seeing or doing. The invitation is present but scattered among the plans rather than expressed as one clear proposal. Address each bullet directly and develop the business purpose and sightseeing question more explicitly.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 3.5

The ideas are connected to the visit and the sequence of activities gives the reader a general sense of your plans. However, the letter is presented as one long paragraph, and the ideas move abruptly from the amusement park to the club, then to the restaurant and your friend’s earlier comments. This makes the purpose, request for advice and invitation difficult to distinguish. Some links, such as “And you said,” repeat information without clearly advancing the letter. Use separate paragraphs for the trip purpose, your question about local attractions, and the invitation. Clearer sequencing and references would help the reader follow the plans without having to infer how each idea relates to the task.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use a range of everyday words connected with leisure and food, including “amusement park,” “arcade,” “club,” “Korean restaurant” and “samgyeopsal.” These details make the letter personal and give it a clear social context. However, the vocabulary is often repetitive or imprecise, and some combinations are unnatural, such as “short time period,” “get your attention” and “prepared your self.” The wording also does not include useful language for the business purpose or for asking about sightseeing recommendations. Aim for more natural collocations and a slightly wider range of expressions, while keeping the friendly tone. For example, you could refer to “local attractions” or ask which places your friend would recommend.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts to combine ideas in longer sentences, for example when describing the restaurant and the food, but these structures are often difficult to control. Errors include “i want go” instead of “I want to go,” “Lets having fun” instead of “Let’s have fun,” and “last time i visited you it is a short time period,” where the tense pattern is unclear. There are also problems with articles and sentence boundaries, particularly in the long sequence beginning “This time i want go.” These errors sometimes make the relationships between actions and events unclear. Practise accurate verb patterns and past-versus-present tense, and divide long sentences into shorter, correctly punctuated ones before attempting more complex structures.

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