Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-29
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
It is important for children, young adults, working people and the retired to have at least one hobby.
What's your opinion about this?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 6.5)
Having a hobby is crucial at every stage of life. I firmly believe that everyone should have at least one hobby, no matter what their age is. I will discuss why a hobby is important further in the essay.
The first and foremost reason to have a hobby is that it helps people to relax their minds. It is one type of getaway from their current situation. For example, nowadays, students have lots of burden of studies, and they are constantly under pressure to perform well. In this tense situation, if they do something related to their hobby like playing sports, cycling in mountains or going swimming can reduce stress and help them to focus on their studies. Many researchers have proven that a clear mind can increase people's ability to concentrate.
Another reason to agree that having a hobby is that it can help people to be smarter and do better in their lives. For instance, if someone has a hobby of reading books, it can help them to gain knowledge about whether it is stocks, politics and many other sectors. People can meet new people from other cultures and see life from a different perspective if they have a hobby to go out and explore new places.
To sum up, hobbies play a crucial role at every stage of life. Having a hobby can help people to be a better peroson and grow well in their lives. From children to older people, hobbies are one thing which can make them feel alive.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5
The candidate addresses all parts of the prompt directly, presenting a clear position that hobbies are crucial for everyone at every stage of life, from children to the retired. The ideas are relevant and generally well-developed. For instance, the discussion on students experiencing stress and using hobbies like swimming or cycling provides a concrete illustration. However, the body paragraphs tend to generalize slightly rather than thoroughly exploring multiple age groups mentioned in the prompt, such as working people and the retired, which are only briefly touched upon in the conclusion. Nevertheless, the main task requirements are met with a clear overall position and supporting arguments, fitting the Band 6.5 to 7.0 profile well.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5
The response features a clear overall progression. The introduction outlines the writer's stance, followed by distinct body paragraphs that introduce specific reasons using cohesive markers such as 'The first and foremost reason' and 'Another reason'. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate ideas. However, referencing and cohesive devices occasionally feel slightly mechanical or repetitive, such as the frequent reliance on 'Having a hobby is...' structures. Furthermore, the final paragraph feels a bit abrupt. Overall, the organizational structure is logical and easy to follow, supporting a Band 6.5 evaluation.
Lexical Resource: Band 6.0
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting some less common phrases such as 'escape from their current situation', 'gain knowledge', and 'perspective'. There are occasional word choice and spelling inaccuracies, such as 'lots of burden of studies' instead of 'a heavy study burden' and a typo in the final paragraph ('peroson'). Despite these minor errors, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the intended meaning clearly without impeding communication, aligning well with the Band 6.0 descriptors.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0
The essay displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over grammar. Examples of complex structures include conditional and relative clauses, such as 'if they do something related to their hobby like playing sports... can reduce stress'. However, there are noticeable grammatical errors and awkward phrasing, such as 'Another reason to agree that having a hobby is that it can help...' which lacks structural parallelism, and minor prepositional slips. These errors do not impede communication, allowing the response to secure a solid Band 6.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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