Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-11-09

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

A magazine wants to include contributions from its readers for an article called 'The book that influenced me most'.

Write a letter to the editor of the magazine about the book that influenced you most. In your letter

- describe what this book was about
- explain how this book influenced you
- say whether this book would be likely to influence other people

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 inform my favorite and most infulenced book that I read recently, which I would like to recommand to add to your article. The book is 'Ashes and Fire' written by former Indian president APJ Abdul Kalam.

This is autobiography of Khalam has influenced me a lot by reading his personal life through the book. The chapters show the hardworks and effort of Khalam to achieve his dream. Moreover, I believe that the book has the ability for expressing the emotion of Khalam through his words.In addition, the simple words and sentance structure help the readers to understand the them very quickley.

I strongley believe that everyone has out extra efforts to achieve theri goals after reading the this book because Khalam signifancantly potray his life achevement through this book.

Thank you for asking me about my favorite book and i hope you will add this one in your list.

yours faith

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the book, describe it as an autobiography about Kalam’s life and efforts to achieve his dream, and explain that it encouraged you to work harder. You also address whether it could influence others, so the main parts of the task are present. However, the explanation of your personal influence remains general: you do not give a specific change in your own choices or behaviour. The claim that “everyone” will make extra efforts is also broad and is not supported with a reason or example. The book’s subject is mentioned, but its content could be described more clearly. Develop these points and make the recommendation to the editor more explicit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The letter has a clear overall arrangement: an opening recommendation, a paragraph about the book and its effect, a statement about its influence on others, and a closing. Linking expressions such as “Moreover” and “In addition” help connect related points, and the reader can follow the main message. This meets the lower-band expectation of coherent organisation and shows some control of progression. However, the links sometimes feel mechanical, and the second paragraph combines several ideas without clearly distinguishing the book’s content from its influence on you. The closing also feels abrupt, with the sign-off incomplete. Use clearer paragraph focus and more natural transitions, and finish with a complete conventional closing.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “autobiography,” “personal life,” “achieve his dream,” and “influenced.” This gives you enough language to communicate the basic recommendation. However, the range is limited and several noticeable spelling and word-choice errors make parts less clear, such as “infulenced,” “recommand,” “hardworks,” “sentance,” and “potray.” Some phrases are also unnatural, including “has the ability for expressing the emotion” and “has out extra efforts.” Aim for accurate, natural collocations such as “conveys his emotions” and “make extra efforts.” Proofreading spelling and choosing more precise expressions would make your message easier to read.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, for example the opening sentence with a relative clause and the sentence beginning “because.” The main ideas are generally understandable, but control is inconsistent, and errors in sentence construction and grammatical forms sometimes make the reader pause. Examples include “This is autobiography” (missing an article), “help the readers to understand the them” (incorrect structure), and “I strongley believe that everyone has out extra efforts” (faulty verb pattern). The final sign-off, “yours faith,” is also incomplete as a grammatical phrase. Practise accurate article use, verb patterns, and sentence boundaries, then check each sentence for a clear subject and correctly formed verb.

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