Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-15

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 ira,

i hope you are fit and fine .I am very happy today that is why I wanted share something with you its about my bicycle,i want sell my bicycle which i am not using anymore, i was thinking to sell it to you.

i am not using this because i have already scooter which i recevied from my parents as a gift on my last birthday and my work place is very far from my home,i do not have time to use my bicycle.

my bicycle have few important feature,its look nice and it have blue color,and speed average is normal,it is new model of new series ,it have timing feature which can help you show the timing .

i can suggest you for buy this bicycle because i know you are doing prepration for police exam and your accadmy is far from your house so you need a bicycle

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response successfully covers all three bullet points required in the task instructions. The writer explains why the bicycle is no longer used, citing a new scooter and a distant workplace. The bicycle itself is described in terms of its colour, general condition, and features, and the writer provides a clear reason why the friend might want it for her police exam academy commute. The tone is appropriately informal for a letter to a friend. While some ideas like the bicycle features are slightly basic and under-developed, all parts of the prompt are addressed adequately. The length requirement is fully met, and the task purpose is successfully achieved.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter is divided into four short paragraphs, each corresponding to a different idea or bullet point, providing a coherent overall arrangement. However, the use of punctuation and cohesive devices is weak. The student relies heavily on comma splices to link clauses instead of using full stops, conjunctions, or appropriate transition markers. For example, sentences such as 'i want sell my bicycle which i am not using anymore, i was thinking to sell it to you' lack proper internal linking and structural separation. Paragraphing is present and follows the structural needs of the letter, but the overall mechanical control of cohesion prevents the text from reaching a higher band.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, covering everyday topics like transport, gifts, and studies. However, the range is quite limited, and there are several word choice and spelling errors, such as 'accadmy' instead of academy, 'prepration' instead of preparation, and 'recevied' instead of received. The student attempts a few less common expressions like 'speed average is normal', but awkward collocations and repetition of simple words like 'bicycle' and 'use' restrict the score. While meaning is communicated, the lexical limitations and spelling inaccuracies keep this within the Band 5.5 range.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as relative clauses using 'which'. However, grammatical control is weak throughout the response. There is a complete lack of capitalisation for the pronoun 'i' and at the beginning of sentences, and punctuation is largely neglected, resulting in run-on sentences and comma splices. Errors such as 'my bicycle have few important feature' (subject-verb agreement) and 'for buy this bicycle' (incorrect prepositional phrase) occur frequently. Although some simple structures are accurate and communication is not totally obscured, the density of basic grammatical and punctuation errors prevents a higher score.

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

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