Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-31

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 or Madam, I am writing this letter to you about the article that your company posted in the national newspaper is that the city center or downtown in our country all look same to each other which I believe is not true because every city have their own uniqueness, the one thing should be similar which is the skyscrapers like every city have the big buildings, but the town where I live is quite different from the others because it is near the lake so people can see the riverside view, moreover it is also a border city which connects the two countries. Usually on weekends my friend gives the tour of the city and I would like to invite you for the small tour of this beautiful city and how the people, the market and the nature of this city makes it more beautiful and amazing in their own way, and I would looking forward for your response.

Thankyou

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address all three points: you partly agree that cities share large buildings, describe your town’s lakeside setting and border-city location, and invite the writer on a tour. Your position that the article is “not true” is clear, and the local details are relevant. However, the agreement with the article is only briefly explained, and the differences could be developed with specific examples of what visitors would see or experience. The tour offer is present, but “Usually on weekends my friend gives the tour” makes your own invitation less direct. Make the points more fully developed and state clearly that you would personally guide the writer.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The ideas follow a broadly sensible order: you respond to the article, describe your town, and then make the tour offer. Linking expressions such as “because” and “moreover” help show relationships between ideas. However, the whole letter is presented as one very long sentence, so the reader has little help distinguishing the three required points. Some links also feel mechanical, and the reference in “the one thing should be similar” is not fully clear. Use separate paragraphs for your response, the town’s distinctive features, and the invitation, with full stops to mark complete ideas and a clear closing.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “skyscrapers,” “riverside view,” “border city,” and “guided tour” (though you call it a “small tour”). These choices communicate the main ideas, and “uniqueness” shows an attempt to express a more specific concept. However, several phrases are imprecise or repetitive, such as “all look same to each other,” “big buildings,” and “beautiful and amazing.” The wording “your company posted” is also not the most natural way to refer to a newspaper article. Aim for more precise collocations and a slightly more formal register appropriate for a letter to an editor.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts to connect ideas in longer sentences using “because,” “which,” and “moreover,” but the sentence structures are not controlled consistently. For example, “every city have” needs subject–verb agreement, while “the one thing should be similar” is missing a grammatical link. The final clause, “I would looking forward,” also has an incorrect verb form. The long run-on sentence makes these problems harder to follow, and punctuation is limited. Practise building complete sentences with a clear subject and verb, and use full stops to separate ideas. More accurate control of these forms would make your meaning easier to read.

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

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