Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS General Essentials · 2026-09-11

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

A family member is coming to stay with you. He/she will be arriving by train in the morning, but you won’t be home until the evening.

• explain arrangements you have made for them to have keys and get into the house

• tell your relative how to get from the train station to your house

• say when you will be home and suggest what you could do together that evening

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear Aunt,

I'm writing to you to inform that I'm very much glad that you are coming to stay with me but I won't be home until the evening.

I reached the home by 8 because there is an emergency meeting in the office. I have made a special arrangements for a dinner. As I came late in the evening, you can get the keys from Mrs julie, whose apartment is next to me. You can ring the bell and tell her that you are my aunt she gives you a key.

I think you don't have idea about how to reach my apartment, so you can book a taxi to a location of Gangabu, street 16 and house no 666 you can easily reached here. For the evening, I have ordered foods from nearest restaurant so that we can utilize our time by talking each other and watch your favourite movies.

Hope to see you soon.

Yours loving,

Radhika

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have addressed all three bullet points in the prompt: key arrangements, directions, and evening plans. However, the development of these points is somewhat limited. For instance, the directions are slightly confusing, and the tone is inconsistent. While you successfully communicated the necessary information, the response lacks the natural flow and detailed elaboration expected for a higher band. The letter structure is present, but the content feels a bit rushed. To improve, ensure that your instructions are clear and that you expand slightly more on the 'why' or 'how' of your arrangements to provide a more comprehensive and helpful response to your relative.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter is organized into logical sections, which helps the reader follow the information. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat mechanical and limited. For example, the transition between the key arrangements and the directions is abrupt. You rely on simple sentence structures, which makes the progression of ideas feel a bit disjointed. To improve, try using a wider variety of linking words and phrases (e.g., 'Furthermore', 'Consequently', 'Once you arrive') to connect your sentences and paragraphs more fluidly. Additionally, ensure that your paragraphing is consistent to clearly separate the different topics requested in the prompt.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to convey the necessary information. However, there are several instances of awkward phrasing and word choice, such as 'I'm very much glad' instead of 'I am very glad' or 'I am delighted', and 'utilize our time by talking each other' instead of 'spend time catching up'. There are also minor errors in word form, such as 'foods' instead of 'food'. To reach a higher band, focus on using more natural collocations and idiomatic expressions suitable for a friendly letter, and work on refining your word choices to sound more precise and fluent.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede the flow of reading. For example, 'I reached the home by 8' should be 'I will reach home by 8', and 'she gives you a key' should be 'she will give you a key'. There are also issues with tense consistency and article usage (e.g., 'the home', 'a key'). While the meaning is generally clear, these errors are noticeable. To improve, focus on mastering verb tense consistency, especially when discussing future arrangements, and pay closer attention to subject-verb agreement and article usage.

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

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