Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-06

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You have a bicycle that you are no longer using. You would like to sell it to a friend.

Write a letter to your friend. In your letter
• explain why you are no longer using your bicycle.
• describe your bicycle.
• explain why you think your friend would like to have it.

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear _________,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear sam

I hope you are doing well.i have to tell you something. I am selling my bicycle. I just this bicycle last month. It is new model F6 with all new features in it like new tears, headlights. It is in your favourite colour that is black.i am selling this as i moving to a new country.I don’t need it there as bus services are very good. I think you should take as you are starting your college from next week and your college is far,also bus services are not too good here. By taking this bicycle alot of your time and money will be saved. I will wait for reply

Thank you

Your truly

Navi

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response addresses all three bullet points: explaining why you are selling the bike, describing it, and suggesting why your friend would like it. However, the response is significantly under the 150-word minimum requirement, which negatively impacts the development of ideas. While the content is relevant, the brevity prevents a full, natural development of the points. To improve, you should expand on the description of the bicycle and provide more detail regarding your upcoming move or the specific benefits for your friend. Because the length requirement was not met, the score is limited.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter follows a basic logical progression, moving from the purpose of the letter to the description and finally the recommendation. However, the lack of paragraphing makes the text feel cluttered. There is a limited use of cohesive devices; sentences are often short and choppy, and transitions between ideas are abrupt. For example, the jump from describing the bike to explaining the move is sudden. Using more linking words like 'furthermore', 'consequently', or 'as a result' would help the flow of the letter significantly.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally functional but quite basic. You use simple descriptors like 'new' and 'good' repeatedly. There are also some errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'new tears' (likely meaning tires) and 'take as you are starting'. The range of vocabulary is limited, which restricts your ability to express ideas with precision. To achieve a higher band, try to incorporate more descriptive adjectives and specific terminology related to bicycles or travel to make your writing more engaging and precise.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains frequent grammatical errors, including missing articles ('I just [bought] this bicycle'), incorrect verb tenses ('i moving'), and punctuation issues (lack of spaces after periods and lowercase 'i'). There is a lack of complex sentence structures; most sentences are simple and repetitive in their construction. While the meaning is generally clear, the high frequency of basic errors and the lack of structural variety prevent a higher score. Focusing on sentence combining and proofreading for basic punctuation and capitalization will improve your accuracy.

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

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