Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-09-17

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 Rohan,

Hi! I hope you are doing well. I am penning this lette bout my aprtment. what did you do in my apartment. all they things is untidy. I gave you my house tidy and clean and you does not give as it is condition.

first of all, befor I gave you the key of my house I told you. Tack care of my house did not broke any items. when I enterd my house and went to kitchen. I show my dining table glass broked. Even you did not told me about anything.

My parents will come on next week to stay with me. And that dinig table brought my father it is very expensive. If my father will ask me how it is happen. what will I will give a answer.

Now you should pay for this glass. I gave you my house to you free of charge. If you broke some small amount things I do not fours you to pay but cost I cannot afford.

Lots of love.

Kishan

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The candidate has successfully addressed all three bullet points required in the task instructions. The letter describes the broken possession, specifically the glass of the dining table, explains its importance because it was a gift from the father and parents are visiting next week, and clearly outlines the required action for the friend to pay for the damage. The tone is appropriate for addressing a friend about a serious issue, although it is quite blunt. All parts of the prompt are covered, and the ideas are developed sufficiently to meet the requirements of Band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter is organised into distinct paragraphs, each focusing on a different aspect of the situation, which provides a coherent overall arrangement. However, the progression between ideas feels somewhat abrupt and mechanical. There is a lack of smooth cohesive devices linking sentences and paragraphs together. Sentences like "first of all, befor I gave you the key of my house I told you" demonstrate faulty referencing and punctuation. Paragraphing is used, but the overall flow is occasionally disjointed, placing this text firmly at a Band 5.5 to 6.0 level.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is basic and repetitive, with noticeable errors in word choice and spelling that occasionally hinder clarity, such as 'lette' instead of letter, 'aprtment', 'broked', and 'fours' instead of force. While the candidate attempts to communicate relevant concepts like 'expensive' and 'free of charge', the range is limited and minimally adequate for the task. Spelling and morphological errors occur frequently throughout the response, which prevents the score from reaching a higher band. Therefore, a Band 5.0 is appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but it is heavily burdened by frequent grammatical errors. Examples include tense and agreement issues such as 'all they things is untidy', 'you does not give as it is condition', 'did not broke', and 'what will I will give a answer'. Punctuation is also weak, with periods used incorrectly in the middle of clauses. These frequent errors cause difficulty for the reader at times, placing the grammatical accuracy within the Band 5.0 descriptor.

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

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