Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)

Dear Madam or Sir,

The book that you wrote is fabulous. Especially the Concept of the Book was very engaging.The Whole story gave the lesson. I enjoyed it very much. The Concept of this was base On how to Struggle and how Can you achieve your goals by Hardworking.The Story based on a girl hows She achieved her goals through working hard. In This book we came to know how the girl lefted her home for higher studies.And how she struggled to fulfill her university fee. Her struggle admired me so much.

After read this book I started struggle hard to fulfill my dreams. These book influenced me that nothing is impossible in this world.

However the persons whose loss their hope about life. After reading this book they will be motivate and they will start struggle to achieve their goals. Every person who read this book will be inspire and he will get hope.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response 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 vague, referring only to a 'girl' and 'hardworking' without specific details that would make the contribution engaging for a magazine. The explanation of influence is repetitive, and the final section regarding other people is somewhat underdeveloped. To reach a higher band, you should provide more specific examples or anecdotes from the book to illustrate your points more clearly and expand on your personal reflection.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The letter is organized into short, somewhat disjointed paragraphs. While there is a basic logical progression, the use of cohesive devices is very limited and often mechanical. For example, the transition 'However' is used incorrectly at the start of the final paragraph, as it does not signal a contrast with the previous statement. Furthermore, the lack of linking words between sentences makes the writing feel choppy. To improve, focus on using a wider variety of transition signals (e.g., 'consequently', 'furthermore', 'in addition') and ensure that your sentences flow naturally from one to the next.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is quite basic and repetitive, relying on simple words like 'good', 'hard', and 'struggle'. There are several instances of awkward phrasing and incorrect word choices, such as 'lefted her home' (should be 'left'), 'admired me' (should be 'inspired me'), and 'persons whose loss their hope' (should be 'people who have lost hope'). The range of vocabulary is insufficient to express complex ideas or nuances effectively. You should aim to incorporate more precise adjectives and verbs, and pay closer attention to word forms and collocations to improve clarity and sophistication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede communication. There are consistent issues with verb tenses ('The Story based on', 'After read this book'), subject-verb agreement, and sentence structure. Many sentences are fragmented or lack proper punctuation, such as 'The Whole story gave the lesson. I enjoyed it very much.' The range of structures is limited, consisting mostly of simple sentences. To improve, you need to focus on basic sentence construction, correct verb tense usage, and ensuring that your sentences are complete and grammatically sound before attempting more complex structures.

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