Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-09

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 hope you are doing well. I am writing to request you to make a famous dish of my country in the upcoming event on October 26,2026.

As you know, our college is organising a cultural event for freshers at the end of this month. So, I would like to make a request that you can include a famous dish from my country.

The name of the dish is Saag. It is a very famous traditional dish and people love to eat this, any time of the year. It is made from spinach, flour, and other indian spices.

Due to its popularity in my culture I would like to include this for the event. Also, other cultures people love to enjoy Indian food so this dish will give them exposure of typical indian taste.

Thank you in advance for considering my request.

Kind regards,

Ekonkar Singh.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address the three requested points: you offer to prepare a dish, identify it as Saag, and give reasons for including it, including its popularity in your culture and appeal to people from other cultures. However, the offer is not fully clear because “I would like to make a request that you can include” sounds as though you are asking Luis to include the dish, rather than directly offering to make it. The description is also brief: naming spinach, flour and spices gives some information, but you could explain its taste, preparation or how it is served. The response is two words below the required minimum, and the ideas remain under-developed overall.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The letter has a recognisable structure, with an opening, separate paragraphs for the request and dish description, a reason for inclusion, and a polite closing. The sequence is generally understandable, and phrases such as “As you know” and “Also” help connect ideas. However, the progression is not always smooth: the reference to a college event for freshers is introduced without explaining its connection to the international food event, and the request is repeated in the second paragraph rather than developed. Some links are mechanical, particularly “So” and “Also.” Make the purpose of each paragraph clearer and use references that connect directly to the event and your offer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough relevant vocabulary to communicate the topic, including “traditional dish,” “popular,” “cultures,” and “exposure.” The food description and cultural reason are understandable. However, the range is limited and several phrases are imprecise or unnatural, such as “make a famous dish,” “people love to eat this,” and “typical indian taste.” These choices make the letter less fluent and precise, although the reader can follow the main message. Aim for more natural collocations and specific food-related language, and check capitalization of “Indian.” For example, describe the dish as being prepared with particular ingredients and explain what makes its flavour distinctive.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple sentences and more developed structures, including “Due to its popularity in my culture…” and the clause beginning “so this dish will give them…”. Most sentences communicate their meaning clearly, and errors rarely prevent understanding. Some grammatical and punctuation issues remain: “I am writing to request you to make” does not express your intended offer clearly, while “people love to eat this, any time of the year” has awkward punctuation and sentence structure. The date also needs spacing after the comma, and “other cultures people” needs a clearer grammatical construction, such as “people from other cultures.” Continue practising accurate sentence patterns while varying how you connect ideas.

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

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