Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-01

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 email to discuss a magazine, "The book that influenced me most," and how it will improve the quality of my life.

Firstly, I would like to inform you that this magazine is all about young people's future and how they can learn from popular people to improve their healthy lifestyle. Moreover, it also explains how they can live peacefully.

In addition, this book teaches me a lot of factors, such as how to focus on life and always spend time learning new and various skills which improve not only personality but also mental growth.

Finally, I like to thank you for starting this series, which specifically assists a lot to youner ones's growth, and I also request you to please do not discontinue this series. I also want to know when the next part of this magazine will come.

I hope to hear from you soon.

Kind Regards.

Smith.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response fails to address the core requirements of the prompt. The task asks for a letter about a specific book that influenced the writer. Instead, the student writes about a 'magazine' and discusses the benefits of reading this magazine series. By misinterpreting the task as a request to discuss a magazine rather than a book, the student has not fulfilled the primary instruction. Consequently, the description of the book and its influence are irrelevant to the prompt. While the letter format is followed, the content does not meet the task requirements.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organised into paragraphs, and there is a basic attempt to use cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Moreover', 'In addition', and 'Finally'. However, the progression of ideas is hindered by the fact that the content is off-topic. The logical flow is mechanical, and the connection between the paragraphs is weak because the central subject matter is confused. While the structure is clear enough to follow, the lack of relevant content makes the overall coherence feel disjointed.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is limited and repetitive. Phrases like 'improve the quality of my life', 'learn from popular people', and 'improve their healthy lifestyle' are somewhat generic and lack the precision required for higher bands. There are also errors in word choice, such as 'youner ones's growth', which is both a spelling error and an awkward construction. The range of vocabulary is sufficient for basic communication but lacks the flexibility and sophistication needed to move beyond a mid-level score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors. Examples include 'I like to thank you' (should be 'I would like to thank you'), 'assists a lot to youner ones's growth' (awkward phrasing and spelling), and 'when the next part of this magazine will come' (should be 'will be released'). While the meaning is generally understandable, these errors are noticeable and occur throughout the text, limiting the score.

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