Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-21

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 6.5)

Dear Sir,

I am writing this letter about the book which imposes a significant effect on me regarding how to improve communication skill. This book convey the real life experience about the person named john who faced struggle in his life to get a job but he got a plenty of rejection since he was very poor in communicating with other individuals. Moreover, he followed some strategies such as mirror talk, recording voice and listening clips which are helpful for him to improve his level and at the end of story, he got professional job in bank due to consistent practice.

However, the book imposes a vital influence on me since I used each and every technique described by john to improve my level and it works well for me to achieve a great popularity in my stand-up motivation show. In addition, this book would influence those people who are facing problem regarding to stage fear and motivate people to inculcate new ways of improving moral towards communication.

I hope you like my thoughts towards your book which helps me a lot to build my communication skills.

Kind regards,

Tony

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response addresses all three bullet points of the prompt. You clearly describe the book's narrative about John, explain how his techniques influenced your own public speaking, and suggest that it would be beneficial for others struggling with stage fright. The tone is appropriate for a magazine contribution. To reach a higher band, ensure that the book title is included (even if invented) to make the letter feel more authentic, and provide slightly more depth in the explanation of how the book's influence has manifested in your life beyond just mentioning a 'stand-up motivation show'.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized into clear paragraphs, each serving a specific purpose. You use cohesive devices such as 'Moreover', 'However', and 'In addition' to link your ideas. While the flow is generally good, some transitions feel slightly mechanical. For instance, the jump between the book's summary and your personal experience could be smoother. Additionally, ensure that referencing is precise; for example, in the final paragraph, you refer to 'your book', which is slightly confusing as the editor did not write the book you are reviewing. Improving the precision of these references would enhance the overall cohesion.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'inculcate', 'consistent practice', and 'professional job'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'imposes a significant effect' (should be 'had a significant effect') and 'achieve a great popularity' (should be 'achieve great popularity'). There is also a minor error in 'listening clips' (should be 'listening to audio clips'). While these errors do not impede communication, they prevent the response from reaching a higher band. Focus on using collocations more naturally.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is appropriate for this task. However, there are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text. Examples include tense inconsistencies ('This book convey' instead of 'conveys'), missing articles ('faced struggle' instead of 'faced a struggle'), and preposition errors ('problem regarding to' instead of 'problem with'). While these errors are noticeable, they rarely impede the reader's understanding. To improve, pay closer attention to subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles, as these are frequent slips in your writing.

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

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