Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-16

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 5.5)

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing this letter to express my concern regarding the article of all town centres of my city.

There are some similarities between all city centres area, with that i am totally agree such as all central area has shopping mall, amenties of drinking water and restrooms, and number of parking spots.Moreover, all town centre has facility of public transport so that people can easily come to visit it.

But i want to drag your attention on the some differences as well,for example, my city's downtown has skyscraper, island and a famous tallest cn tower also. Whereas another city centre areas does not have these things.Thus in terms of infrastructure and technology, every town is different than others.

if you want, you can make a wish to visit my city so that you will see everything in real life and you will realize the difference between each central area.

Yours sincerely

sukhwinder kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The candidate successfully covers all three bullet points required in the prompt. First, points of agreement with the newspaper article are acknowledged, mentioning features like shopping malls and parking spots. Second, the response explains specific ways in which the writer's town centre differs, referencing skyscrapers and a famous CN tower. Finally, the letter includes an offer for a guided tour of the town, albeit phrased slightly unconventionally as 'make a wish to visit my city'. While some ideas are brief and could be extended further, all parts of the task are adequately addressed with a clear tone and purpose throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter follows a recognizable layout with an appropriate salutation and sign-off, and it is divided into logical paragraphs that separate the different bullet points. Cohesive devices such as 'Moreover', 'But', and 'Thus' are used to connect ideas, although some transitions feel a bit mechanical or awkward, such as 'with that i am totally agree'. Referencing is generally clear, but paragraphing and overall logical progression could be smoother and more sophisticated to reach a higher band.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, with some attempts at less common items such as 'infrastructure', 'amenities', and 'skyscraper'. However, there are notable limitations and word choice inaccuracies, such as 'amenties of drinking water', 'make a wish to visit', and incorrect pluralization in phrases like 'all town centre has facility'. While communication is not impeded and the meaning remains clear, the frequent lexical errors and lack of precision prevent the response from achieving a higher score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over sentence structure. However, there are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, including missing plural forms ('all central area has', 'all town centre has'), punctuation errors, and awkward phrasing such as 'if you want, you can make a wish to visit my city'. Articles and prepositions are also occasionally misused. While these errors do not heavily impede communication, they occur regularly and restrict the grammar score.

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

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