Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-18

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You have rented a house by a lake for the summer.

Write a letter to a friend. In your letter
• describe the house.
• describe how you are spending your time there.
• invite your friend to come and visit.

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ____

Student answer (Band 5.5)

dear rahul

hope you are doing well, i am really very happy to let you know that i rented a house by a lake side as it was my dream. it is 3 bedroom house with beautiful backyard and a swimmypool. moreover, the rent payment is also very satisfied that i have planned to spend.

overall experience is fantastic because after coming from office, i sit in the backyard and enjoy the cup of coffee. the best thing i like that a house has a studio basement and i enjoy the netflix without any interference.

i know i cannot express every plus point of a house. So, i think you have to come next weekend. i will delay all my plans so that we can spend more and more time together.

i am looking forward from hearing you soon

your sincerly

khush

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The letter covers all three bullet points: describing the house, explaining how time is spent, and inviting the friend. However, the response is under the 150-word minimum, which negatively impacts the task achievement score. While the ideas are relevant, they are somewhat underdeveloped; for instance, the description of the house and the activities could have been expanded with more descriptive detail to fully satisfy the task requirements. The tone is appropriate for a letter to a friend, but the brevity prevents a more comprehensive development of the ideas.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organized into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the progression of ideas. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and limited. Phrases like 'moreover' and 'overall experience' are used, but the transitions between sentences could be smoother. The referencing is generally clear, but the overall flow is slightly disjointed due to the short, simple sentence structures. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring better logical flow between the description of the house and the invitation would enhance the coherence of the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks range and precision. There are some noticeable errors in word choice, such as 'swimmypool' (spelling error) and 'rent payment is also very satisfied' (incorrect collocation). The use of 'plus point' and 'interference' is functional but basic. To reach a higher band, you should aim to use more natural collocations and a wider variety of descriptive adjectives. For example, instead of 'very happy', you could use 'thrilled' or 'delighted'. The spelling errors and limited range of vocabulary restrict the score in this criterion.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response relies heavily on simple sentence structures. While there are some attempts at complex sentences, they often contain grammatical errors, such as 'i am looking forward from hearing you soon' (should be 'to hearing') and 'the best thing i like that a house has' (missing 'is'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, with missing capital letters for 'I' and the start of sentences. The frequent errors in basic grammar and sentence construction impede the overall quality of the writing. Increasing the variety of sentence structures and focusing on accurate verb forms and prepositions would significantly improve your score.

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

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