Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · IELTS General Essentials · 2026-09-14

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

New neighbours have recently moved into the house/flat next door to where you live. You have examinations soon, but your neighbours play music late at night which is affecting your studies and sleep.

• explain what the problem is
• why it is causing you difficulties
• what action you would like them to take

Student answer (Band 6.0)

Dear sir,

I am writing this letter about the disturbance you are creating for me by your loud music. I have exams coming next month, but your music is affecting both my sleep and study .

Your music is suposed to be heard only by you, esspecialy at late nights.I have been hearing your loud music every night.The songs you play have heavy bass. I still hear it even if I try to cover my ears with headphones and ear plugs.

It has become difficult to concentrate on my studies since you moved into next house. I have lots of syllabus to cover before my exams.

I would like you to listen with low volume at night so it would only be heard by you. If it is possible to use headphones at night, please do it.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The student has successfully covered all three bullet points required by the prompt: they explained the problem (loud music), why it is causing difficulties (affecting sleep and studies for upcoming exams), and what action they would like the neighbours to take (lower the volume or use headphones). The tone is generally appropriate for a letter of complaint, although it is slightly direct. However, the response has a significant limitation regarding length: it contains 137 words, which falls short of the mandatory 150-word minimum specified in the instructions. Consequently, this under-length penalty prevents the task achievement score from reaching higher bands. To improve, the student should expand slightly more on each point to comfortably exceed the word count threshold while maintaining relevance.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organised into brief paragraphs that address distinct parts of the task, such as introducing the problem, describing the physical impact, and stating the desired resolution. However, the paragraphing is somewhat fragmented, with several very short paragraphs. Cohesive devices are minimal, relying mostly on basic referencing (e.g., 'your music', 'it'). Although the overall progression of ideas is fairly clear and easy to follow, the lack of sophisticated linking words and the underdeveloped paragraph structure place this response firmly in the mid-range for coherence and cohesion. To achieve a higher band, the student should group sentences into more cohesive, well-developed paragraphs and use a wider variety of transitional phrases.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task, allowing the student to communicate their message clearly. However, there are noticeable spelling errors such as 'suposed' instead of 'supposed' and 'esspecialy' instead of 'especially'. The range of vocabulary is somewhat limited and repetitive, relying on everyday words like 'music', 'study', and 'hear'. While there is an attempt at less common phrases like 'heavy bass', the lexical resource lacks flexibility and precision. To improve, the student needs to learn correct spelling patterns for common words and incorporate a broader range of descriptive vocabulary and collocations suited to formal or semi-formal complaints.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as conditional clauses ('even if I try to cover my ears') and subordinate clauses ('since you moved into next house'). There are some grammatical errors, notably the missing article in 'into next house' (should be 'into the next house') and a slight prepositional mismatch in 'listen with low volume' (typically 'listen at a low volume'). Punctuation is also slightly flawed in places, such as missing spaces after periods. Nevertheless, these errors do not impede overall communication. The student has good control over basic structures, but needs to eliminate recurring slips and expand their repertoire of error-free complex sentences to reach a higher band.

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

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