Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS General Essentials · 2026-10-13

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 6.5)

Dear sister,

I am very pleased to know that you are coming to my house after a long wait. Unfortunately,on that day I am not going to pick you from the train station as I have an important meeting with foreign clients. For your information, In order to access to the main door, you do not require a key as there is a password which I will disclose soon.When you entered the house, Please turn on the switch on the right side for the living room's lights.

Instead of hiring a taxi, Please use the local bus because it will only take ten minutes to my house and it is very comfortable and has plenty of room for your luggage.After this, there is only 5 minute walk and the condition of the walkway is very smooth.

I will come home around 5 o'clock and hope so we could go out for a dinner at a very famous restaurant of our city. Also, there is a big surprise for you I have arranged after struggling a lot to find which I would like to show you in the evening.Hope to see you soon and I am eagerly looking for that day.

If you need anything please tell me in advance so that I could arrange everything.

Yours loving sister,

Har

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The letter covers all three requested points: you explain that a password will provide entry, give a bus-and-walk route, and say you expect to be home at five with a suggestion for dinner and a surprise. These details make the message relevant and generally clear. The arrangements for access are the most specific, while the route is less fully explained: the reader is told to take a local bus but not which bus stop to use or where to get off. The evening plan is also somewhat general, since the restaurant is not identified. Adding one or two practical landmarks and developing the shared activity would make the information more complete and purposeful.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The information follows a sensible order, moving from your inability to meet your sister, to entry and travel arrangements, and then to the evening plan. Paragraph breaks help distinguish these topics, and the closing invitation suits the friendly purpose. Some links are less smooth or precise, however. “Instead of hiring a taxi” introduces the bus route clearly, but “After this” does not specify exactly what the five-minute walk follows. The long sentence about the surprise also makes the sequence of ideas harder to follow. Use clearer transitions and divide that sentence so each point—the time you will arrive, dinner, and the surprise—has its own emphasis.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range for a personal letter, including relevant expressions such as “access,” “local bus,” “luggage,” and “arranged.” The meaning is generally understandable, and the tone is warm. Some word choices and collocations are unnatural or imprecise, though: “pick you from the train station,” “the condition of the walkway is very smooth,” and “looking for that day” do not express the intended ideas naturally. “A very famous restaurant of our city” is also awkwardly phrased. Aim for familiar, accurate combinations rather than adding formal-sounding wording; for example, describe the walk as short and easy, and say you are looking forward to the visit.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

There is a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including the conditional “If you need anything…” and the explanation of why you cannot meet her. The main message remains clear despite some grammatical and punctuation errors. Examples include “access to the main door” after “require,” “When you entered” where a future form is needed, and “hope so we could go out,” which has an awkward clause structure. There are also inconsistent capital letters after commas and missing spaces after punctuation. Review verb forms in time clauses and the structure of verbs such as “hope,” then proofread punctuation and sentence boundaries. More consistently accurate complex sentences would strengthen control.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.