Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-28

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 5.0)

Dear bhullar,

I hope you are doing well,I am writing a letter to you because i want to sell my bicycle.You been looking one if you are intrusted to by this one.

I am selling it because i am rearily geta chance to ride it.I am so tyred abaut it.I use my car for longer trips.

As for cycle its a steek,mate black with speed gears witch make it great in all areas like in city or offroadings.The tyres re still new and breaks works clearly.

I immediately thought of you because you mentioned that you start cycling on weekends to get more acctive.This model was lightwait and strong.Its a bit larger,it will per

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The letter attempts to cover all three bullet points: it briefly mentions why the bicycle is no longer used, describes its appearance and features, and explains why the friend might want it. However, the response is cut off mid-sentence at the end ("Its a bit larger,it will per"), leaving the final point under-developed. Furthermore, the response falls significantly short of the 150-word minimum, containing only 114 words. Due to this under-length penalty and incomplete task fulfilment, the performance aligns with Band 5.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The letter uses an informal greeting and attempts an overall structure, but paragraphing is minimal and erratic, leading to a disjointed feel. Cohesive devices are either missing or misused (for example, "As for cycle its a steek..." and "witch make it"). The logical progression of ideas is hindered by abrupt transitions and incomplete sentences, particularly towards the end where the text breaks off. Referencing between sentences is sometimes unclear. Overall, the organization displays features of Band 5, where coherence suffers from inadequate and repetitive cohesive devices.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is basic and limited ("sell my bicycle", "longer trips", "lightwait and strong"). There are noticeable spelling and word-choice errors throughout the text, such as "rearily geta chance" (rarely get a chance), "tyred abaut" (tired about), "steek,mate black" (sleek, matte black), and "breaks" instead of "brakes". These errors, combined with a restricted range of vocabulary, restrict the score to Band 5.0, as the lexical choices are minimally adequate but contain errors that occasionally distract the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The grammar demonstrates a limited range of structures, mostly relying on simple sentences combined with faulty complex attempts. There are frequent punctuation errors, such as missing spaces after commas ("well,I am") and comma splices. Grammatical and spelling inaccuracies are widespread, including verb form errors ("you been looking") and relative pronoun misuse ("witch make it"). Although the core message remains partially understandable, the high frequency of errors across basic structures limits the score to Band 5.0.

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