Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-07-24

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 7.0)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I hope this letter finds you well.

My name is Sam Mistry and I am writing to let you about the book that influenced me most for an article 'The book that influenced me most'. I have read many books but this book called 'Atomic Habits' has influenced me the most. The book is about how we can develop good habits and get rid of bad habits by changing tiny and atomic change in our daily life.

Before reading this book, I had a lot bad habit and, I was not able to develop new habits. However, after reading few chapters I started to make changes in my life and eventually it helped me to improve.

Like myself, everyone in this society is facing problems to develop new habits or to get rid of old habits and I am confident that this book will influence them a lot. Therefore, I would like you to include this book to magazine.

Yours faithfully,

Sam Mistry

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

You have addressed all three bullet points required by the task. You identified the book, explained its influence on your personal habits, and provided a clear opinion on its potential impact on others. The tone is appropriate for a letter to an editor. However, the development of your ideas is somewhat brief. For instance, while you mention that the book helped you improve, providing a specific example of a habit you changed would have made your argument more persuasive and fully developed. Overall, you have fulfilled the requirements of the task effectively.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The letter is logically organized with a clear introduction, body, and conclusion. Each paragraph focuses on a specific aspect of the prompt, which helps the reader follow your ideas easily. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'However', 'Therefore', and 'Like myself' to link your sentences and paragraphs. While the flow is generally smooth, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat repetitive and simple. To reach a higher band, try to incorporate a wider variety of linking words and ensure that the transition between your personal experience and the general recommendation is more seamless.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'develop', 'atomic', and 'confident'. However, there are some minor inaccuracies and awkward phrasings, such as 'let you about' (should be 'tell you about') and 'include this book to magazine' (should be 'include this book in the magazine'). The vocabulary is functional but lacks the precision and variety required for a higher band. To improve, focus on using more sophisticated collocations and ensuring that your word choices are grammatically accurate in context.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While your meaning is always clear, there are several grammatical errors throughout the text. For example, 'I had a lot bad habit' should be 'I had a lot of bad habits', and 'after reading few chapters' requires an article ('a few chapters'). Additionally, there are minor punctuation issues, such as the unnecessary comma after 'habit and'. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles.

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