Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-01

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 6.0)

Dear Sir or Madam ,

I am writing to contribute to your magazine's article, 'The book that influenced me most '.

The book that has had greatest impact on my life is The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.

The book tells the story of Santiago, a young shepherd who dreams of discovering a treasure near the Egyptian pyramids.

He decides to leave his comfortable life and travel in search of it. During his journey ,he meets different people and faces many difficulties, but these experiences teach him important lessons about courage, perseverance and following his dreams.

This book influenced me greatly because it changed the way i think about failure and challenges. Before reading it, I often gave up when things became difficult because I was afraid of making mistakes . However , Santiago's determination encouraged me to be more confident and patient. I began to see problems as opportunities to learn rather than reasons to quit. As a result, I have become more wiling to take risks and pursue my personal and academic goals.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

You have addressed all three bullet points in the prompt: describing the book, explaining its influence, and discussing its potential impact on others. However, the final bullet point—whether the book would be likely to influence other people—is missing from your response. To reach a higher band, you must ensure every part of the prompt is covered. The ideas you did include are relevant and clearly explained, particularly the personal impact of the book. To improve, ensure you dedicate a specific sentence or two to the final requirement of the task instructions.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized, with a clear introduction and body paragraphs that follow a natural progression. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'However', 'As a result', and 'Before reading it' to link your ideas effectively. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the introduction from the main content. To improve, you could incorporate a wider range of cohesive devices to create smoother transitions between sentences and ensure that the flow feels less mechanical. Overall, the message is easy to follow and the structure is coherent.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'perseverance', 'determination', and 'pursue'. There is a minor spelling error ('wiling' instead of 'willing') and a missing capital letter for the personal pronoun 'i'. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly, it remains somewhat basic. To achieve a higher score, try to incorporate more sophisticated collocations or less common lexical items that are appropriate for a formal letter to an editor, such as 'profound impact' or 'transformative experience'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as the conditional-like structure 'Before reading it, I often gave up when things became difficult'. Your control of grammar is generally good, and errors are infrequent and do not impede communication. However, there are some minor punctuation issues, such as unnecessary spaces before commas (e.g., 'journey ,he'). To improve, focus on proofreading for these small mechanical errors and try to vary your sentence length and complexity further to demonstrate greater grammatical flexibility.

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

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