Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-08

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 Sir/ Madam

I am writing to express my trouble that I am facing from my neighbour's .

Firstly, You know that I am living in your building from last 2 years and I am live comfortably but from last one week I am facing disturbance from my neighbour's how live in upstairs.

Actually you know that I am a student and I already have lost of burden study and I have to get up early but my neighbour's play high volume music still the midnight which is why I face trouble to sleep on time ; as a result; I am getting late for my college which put negative impact on my studies.

I kindly reuest you please take the action as well as make the rule that people are not allowed to play music after the 10 pm. Apart from this, make some fine on those who will break this rule.

I hope you will understand my situation and take some action as soon as possible.

Your faithfully,

Sukhpreet Kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The letter addresses all three bullet points: the situation is described, the impact on your studies is explained, and a solution is proposed. However, the tone is inconsistent. You addressed the letter to 'Sir/Madam' (implying a landlord or building manager), but the prompt asks you to write to your 'neighbour'. This is a significant misinterpretation of the task instructions. While the content is relevant, the failure to address the correct recipient limits the effectiveness of the response. To improve, ensure you carefully identify the intended audience before writing.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organised into short paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or inaccurate. For example, the use of semicolons in 'as a result; I am getting late' is grammatically incorrect and disrupts the flow. Transitions between ideas are sometimes abrupt, and the referencing is occasionally unclear, such as the confusion between addressing a neighbour versus a landlord. Improving the use of linking words like 'consequently' or 'furthermore' would help the flow of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks precision and variety. There are several word-choice errors, such as 'express my trouble' (instead of 'express my concern') and 'make the rule' (instead of 'implement a rule'). You rely on basic phrasing, such as 'take the action' and 'make some fine'. To reach a higher band, you should aim to use more natural collocations and precise vocabulary related to the context of noise complaints and formal requests.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

There are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text that occasionally impede clarity. Examples include 'I am living in your building from last 2 years' (should be 'have been living for the last two years'), 'my neighbour's how live' (should be 'who lives'), and 'I already have lost of burden study' (should be 'a heavy study load'). Punctuation is also problematic, particularly the misuse of semicolons. While you attempt some complex structures, they are often faulty. Focusing on basic tense consistency and subject-verb agreement will significantly improve your accuracy.

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

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