Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-05

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You are a member of an International Students' club. The club is organising an event to celebrate popular food from around the world.

Write a letter to the event organiser, Luis. In your letter

• offer to make a popular dish from your country
• describe what this dish is
• explain why it should be included in the event

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Luis,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear luis,

I am Priyanka and I have been the member of the international students group since Jan 2025. I am cherished that the club is organising an event to celebrate the dishes from different cultures and countries.

I am a chef in one of the famous Indian restaurants in Town and, would be happy to bring one of my dishes for this gathering. It is a south Indian speciality called masala dosa. Which is made of a filling of potatoes with added spices. Moreover, base is created with semi thick batter of corn flour. It can be a better choice for representing the South Indian community in India. People who are interested in learning about Kerala would be happy to taste their local food. I am looking forward to this opportunity to make this wonderful meal for everyone.

Yours sincerely,

Priyanka

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The letter addresses all three bullet points: you offer to make a dish, describe it, and explain its inclusion. However, the response is under the 150-word minimum, which significantly impacts the development of your ideas. The description of the dish is somewhat brief and lacks the depth required for a higher band. To improve, ensure you expand on your points—for example, by describing the sensory experience of the dish or providing more specific reasons why it would be a highlight for the event. Because the length requirement was not met, the task is not fully developed.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter has a basic structure with an opening and closing. However, the paragraphing is insufficient; the entire body of the letter is contained in one block, which makes it harder to follow. While there are some cohesive devices like 'Moreover' and 'It can be', the flow between sentences is occasionally disjointed. For instance, the transition between describing the dish and explaining its inclusion could be smoother. Using more varied linking words and breaking the text into distinct paragraphs for each bullet point would improve the logical progression.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, such as 'speciality' and 'gathering'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and phrasing, such as 'I am cherished' (which is incorrect in this context; 'delighted' or 'pleased' would be better) and 'base is created with'. The vocabulary is generally functional but lacks the precision and variety needed for a higher band. Expanding your range to include more descriptive adjectives and precise culinary terminology would help elevate your score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

There is a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are several grammatical errors. For example, 'I have been the member' should be 'a member', and 'Which is made of' is a sentence fragment. Additionally, there are punctuation and capitalization issues, such as 'Dear luis' (should be 'Luis') and 'south Indian' (should be 'South Indian'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to lower the score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and avoiding sentence fragments will improve your accuracy.

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

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