Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · IELTS General Essentials · 2026-10-11

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 Smith,

I am writing to share a concern about the new neighbours. They played loud music at night, which really affects me.

As you know, I am a student, and my exams are coming up, so it's really difficult for me to concentrate on my studies at that time because I like to study at night. Not only that, but it also disturbs my sleep. I want a quiet environment for both my studies and sleep.

I would greatly appreciate it if you could keep the noise to a minimum, especially after 10.00 am. Alternatively, using headphones during late-night hours would help resolve the issue.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation. I hope we can maintain a friendly relationship as neighbours.

Kind regards,

amanpreet kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the central problem—loud music at night—and explain two relevant effects: difficulty concentrating because you study at night, and disturbed sleep. You also make a clear request to reduce the noise and suggest headphones. However, the explanation and requested action are brief, so some parts of the task are less fully developed than others. The response is also below the required 150 words, which limits the opportunity to explain the impact or make the request more specific. For example, clarify how often the music continues and ask politely for it to stop by a particular evening time. Also check the addressee: “Dear Smith” sounds as though you are writing to one person, while the letter refers to neighbours in the plural.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The letter follows a sensible order: it introduces the concern, explains its effects, makes a request, and closes courteously. Linking phrases such as “Not only that” and “Alternatively” help connect the points, and the paragraph breaks make the message easy to follow. This coherent arrangement meets the lower-band expectations well and shows some effective progression. To make the organisation more fully developed, separate the explanation of the problem from its effects and the proposed solution, and add a little more detail within each section. The transition from “Dear Smith” to “new neighbours” is also not entirely clear about who is being addressed, so make the recipient consistent throughout.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

Your vocabulary is adequate for this everyday formal letter, and phrases such as “keep the noise to a minimum,” “resolve the issue,” and “maintain a friendly relationship” communicate your meaning appropriately. You also use a polite register. The range is somewhat repetitive, however, with “night” and “studies” carrying much of the message, and a few choices are imprecise: “after 10.00 am” does not fit the context of late-night noise, while “They played” may suggest a past event rather than an ongoing problem. More precise expressions would make the complaint clearer and more natural. For instance, use “after 10 p.m.” and describe the music as continuing late into the night.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, and several sentences are controlled accurately, including “As you know, I am a student, and my exams are coming up” and the polite conditional “I would greatly appreciate it if you could…”. The meaning remains clear throughout. Some tense and sentence-pattern choices need attention: “They played loud music at night” shifts to the past even though the problem appears ongoing, and “because I like to study at night” is understandable but could be integrated more smoothly with the explanation. The sentence beginning “Not only that” is also slightly awkward in its construction. Use a consistent present tense for a continuing issue and practise varied, well-formed clauses to improve control.

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

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