Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-07

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You let a friend stay at your apartment while you were away on a trip. When you returned home, you discovered that a valuable possession was broken.

Write a letter to your friend. In your letter
• describe the broken possession.
• explain why it is important to you.
• explain what you would like your friend to do.

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear _________,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear john,

I hope u are doing well, The purpose of writing this letter is that when i came back from my trip, I found my glass painting which was displayed in my bedroom was found broken on the ground when i entered the house that painting was of my pet dog scobby which was made by me and my sister after his death. That painting was emotionally connected with my feeling and it was very valuable for me Because that was the only last memory i had of my dog. Now this painting is broken and i can’t fix this, I need a favour from u please write a letter to my sister and explain how that happen because she is blaming me for this and she has blocked my number. I hope u will understand my situation and talk to my sister about the matter.

With regards,

Nitin kakiyalia

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses all three bullet points: the broken item is described, its importance is explained, and the requested action is clear. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat limited. The tone is informal, which is appropriate for a letter to a friend, but the lack of paragraphing makes the letter feel like a single block of text rather than a structured piece of correspondence. To improve, you should expand on the description of the painting and provide a more natural transition between the explanation of the damage and the request for help.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The letter lacks paragraphing, which is a significant issue for coherence. The entire response is written as one long paragraph, making it difficult for the reader to follow the progression of ideas. While there is a logical flow from the discovery of the damage to the request for assistance, the lack of cohesive devices and clear paragraph breaks makes the text feel mechanical and rushed. Using transition words like 'Furthermore' or 'Consequently' and separating the introduction, body, and conclusion would significantly improve the structure.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. You rely on simple phrasing such as 'valuable possession' and 'emotionally connected'. There are also some errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'glass painting which was displayed... was found broken on the ground'. Additionally, the use of 'u' instead of 'you' is inappropriate for an IELTS task, even in an informal letter. To achieve a higher band, aim for more descriptive adjectives and avoid informal text-speak abbreviations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentences, but there are frequent grammatical errors. Issues include punctuation errors (e.g., comma splices like 'I hope u are doing well, The purpose...'), inconsistent capitalization (e.g., 'john', 'scobby'), and tense inconsistencies. The sentence structure is often repetitive, relying heavily on 'and' to connect clauses. To improve, focus on using correct punctuation, such as full stops to separate independent clauses, and ensure consistent capitalization for proper nouns and the start of sentences.

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

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