Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-05

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You live in a small apartment building. You are frequently bothered by noise from your upstairs neighbour's apartment.

Write a letter to your neighbour. In your letter
• describe the situation.
• explain why it is a problem for you.
• suggest a solution.

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear _________,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear Mr. Smith,

I hope you're doing well. I 'm writing this letter to raise my concern regards noise from your building every night.

To begin with, as you know i have two kids under 3 year old, and its juggernaut task to control them when they wake up from their sleep. One of the reason why its happening is loud music which your family members are played every night.

At the top of this, I'm a single mother and i worked during the night time when my kids slept , due to the noise from your residence generate trouble for me, since i have to deal with my kids while working.

I 'd appreciate you if you guys closed all windows and play little value when your family wants to enjoy music during dinner.

I hope you'll acknowledge my circumstance as soon possible.

Best Regards,

Sukh

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The letter covers all three bullet points: describing the noise, explaining the impact, and suggesting a solution. However, the response is slightly under the 150-word minimum requirement, which impacts the overall task completion. While the ideas are relevant, the development is somewhat limited. For instance, the explanation of why the noise is a problem is clear, but the tone is occasionally inconsistent. To improve, ensure you expand on your points slightly more to meet the word count and maintain a consistently polite, formal tone throughout the letter, as this is a request to a neighbour.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organised into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the progression of your argument. You use some basic cohesive devices like 'To begin with' and 'At the top of this' to link ideas. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical or unnatural, such as 'At the top of this', which is not a standard idiomatic expression. The referencing is generally clear, but the flow between sentences could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words to connect your points more fluidly.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey your message, such as 'residence', 'circumstance', and 'acknowledge'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'juggernaut task' (which is misused here) and 'play little value' (which is unclear). Additionally, there are minor grammatical errors in word form, such as 'regards' instead of 'regarding'. To reach a higher band, focus on using collocations more accurately and avoiding overly complex phrases that do not fit the context of a formal letter.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is good. However, there are frequent errors in grammar and punctuation that occasionally distract the reader. Examples include 'One of the reason' (should be 'reasons'), 'your family members are played' (should be 'are playing'), and 'i worked during the night time' (should be 'work'). Subject-verb agreement and verb tense consistency are areas that need attention. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to lower the score for this criterion.

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

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