Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-09

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You have just read an article in a national newspaper which claims that town centres in your country all look very similar to each other. You don't fully agree with this opinion.

Write a letter to the editor of the newspaper. In your letter

• say which points in the article you agree with
• explain ways in which your town centre is different from most other town centres
• offer to give a guided tour of your town to the writer of the article

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear Sir,

I am writing this letter to you after reading a national article, which states that all the city centres in my country are designed in the similar way. However their are noticeable differences among all of them instead of having some similarities. This is undeniable that most city centers are designed by same architect which leads to the identical shape and form of the buildings.

But if we have a close look at the positioning the buildings, these look quite distinguishing. The interior of my city center buildings is very different from the rest and quite modern. Moreover, our city center buildings are established according to the area. For example, the shopping centers are in the middle and health facilities exist at the ends of the center unlike other cities.

I would like to invite you to visit our town to have a tour of the town center and experience how it is different from the others.

Kind regards,

ABC.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all three bullet points of the prompt. You clearly state your disagreement with the article, provide specific examples of how your town differs (e.g., the positioning of health facilities), and include the required invitation for a tour. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention that your town centre is 'modern' and has a different layout, these points could be expanded with more descriptive detail to fully satisfy the 'well-developed' requirement of higher bands. The tone is appropriate for a letter to an editor, maintaining a formal and polite stance throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized with a clear introduction, body, and conclusion. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'However', 'Moreover', and 'For example' to link your ideas. While the progression is clear, the paragraphing is slightly underdeveloped; the body of the letter could be split into two distinct paragraphs—one for the points of agreement/disagreement and one for the specific features of your town—to improve the overall structure. Referencing is generally clear, though some transitions feel a bit mechanical.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'undeniable', 'identical', and 'distinguishing'. However, there are some minor inaccuracies in word choice and collocation. For instance, 'designed in the similar way' should be 'designed in a similar way', and 'positioning the buildings' would be more natural as 'positioning of the buildings'. The vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, but it lacks the precision and variety required for a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'their are' (should be 'there are') and 'designed by same architect' (missing the article 'the'). Additionally, 'these look quite distinguishing' is slightly awkward; 'distinctive' would be the correct adjective here. While these errors are noticeable, they do not impede communication. To improve, focus on article usage and subject-verb agreement, and try to incorporate a wider variety of complex sentence forms to demonstrate greater control.

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

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