Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-26

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 you letter because i recently wrote a article on 'The book that influenced me most'. and in response i want to tell you about the book Autobiography of a yogi which i read a month ago it is Autobiography of a yogi in which he told that how spirituality leads to mental stability.

when i got a chance to read this book it really helped me to understand myself more deeply and also helped me to understand the benefits of yoga and exercise in daily life that how these small changes in life can make a big difference in someone s life.

I believe that who so ever read this book will help him or her to understand her inner capabilities more deeply and also for those people who are not mentally stable and cannot focus on one thing this book will help them to overcome these problems.

thanks for your consideration.

yours Faithfully,

Hem Singh

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The letter addresses all three bullet points: describing the book, explaining its influence, and discussing its potential impact on others. However, the development of these ideas is quite limited. The description of the book is repetitive and lacks specific detail, and the explanation of how it influenced you is somewhat vague, focusing on general benefits rather than personal reflection. To reach a higher band, you should expand on your ideas with more specific examples or personal anecdotes. The tone is generally appropriate for a letter to an editor, though the structure is quite basic.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organized into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is very limited and sometimes mechanical. For example, the transition between the introduction and the body paragraphs is abrupt. There is a lack of variety in linking words, and some sentences feel disconnected. To improve, try using a wider range of cohesive devices such as 'consequently,' 'furthermore,' or 'in addition' to better connect your ideas and improve the flow of the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but remains quite basic and repetitive. You use simple phrases like 'big difference' and 'understand myself more deeply.' There is little attempt to use less common or more precise vocabulary. Additionally, there are some minor errors in word choice and phrasing, such as 'wrote a article' instead of 'wrote an article.' To improve, focus on incorporating more descriptive adjectives and varied verbs to express your thoughts more precisely and naturally.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The text contains frequent grammatical errors that occasionally hinder the flow. There are issues with article usage ('a article'), subject-verb agreement, and punctuation (e.g., 'someone s life'). The sentence structures are mostly simple or compound, with very few attempts at complex sentences. The lack of proper capitalization and punctuation, such as missing commas and incorrect sentence boundaries, is noticeable. To improve, focus on mastering basic sentence construction, including correct article usage and punctuation, before attempting more complex grammatical structures.

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

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