Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-25

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 6.0)

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing to inform you about the book which inspires me till now. It is a well known book named 'The autobiography of Yogi' written by Dev Shukla. The book is all about living life in a spiritual way by achieving mindfulness. The author has described some examples of people across the globe who has achieved almost impossible goals.

The book has made huge impact on my way of living. I have started to encorporate meditation and exercise in my routine. Consequently, It is beneficial for my personal and professional life as I feel fresh and motivated every morning.

It is absolutely suggested to read this book if a person wants to give up on their sedentary life.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The letter addresses all three bullet points: describing the book, explaining its influence, and discussing its potential impact on others. However, the response is significantly under the 150-word minimum requirement, which limits the development of your ideas. While you mention that the book is about 'living life in a spiritual way,' this could be expanded with more specific details or examples to better engage the reader. Because the response is 29 words short of the required length, the development of your points is insufficient to reach a higher band score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organized into three short paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the progression of your ideas. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'Consequently' and 'It is,' which help link sentences together. However, the overall structure feels somewhat mechanical due to the brevity of the response. To improve, you should aim to use a wider variety of linking words and ensure that your paragraphs are more balanced in length. The transition between the description of the book and its personal impact is clear, but the final paragraph feels abrupt.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'mindfulness,' 'sedentary,' and 'incorporate' (noting the spelling error 'encorporate'). While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning, it lacks the sophistication or precision required for higher bands. There are some minor spelling errors, such as 'encorporate' instead of 'incorporate.' To improve, try to incorporate more descriptive adjectives and collocations that sound more natural in a formal letter to an editor, rather than relying on simple sentence structures.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'I am writing to inform you...' and 'The book has made a huge impact on my way of living.' There are some grammatical errors, such as 'people across the globe who has achieved' (should be 'have achieved') and 'It is absolutely suggested' (which is slightly unnatural phrasing). While these errors do not impede communication, they indicate a need for more careful proofreading. Increasing the variety of complex structures and ensuring subject-verb agreement will help improve your score in this area.

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

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