Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-14

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 or Madam,

I am writing this letter in regards to the upcoming publication for your magazine.

I'd like to share how the book Grey's Anatomy by Sara Sheldon has had a huge impact my life. The book is based on a true story of Dr Meredith Grey. The writer gives a detailed account on how despite facing challenging circumstances, she showed bravery and resilience towards achieving her goals. The way the book was written made if feel like I was reading a personal diary.

I read this book prior to starting my medical education. The insight into her journey, how she provided care with empathy was commendable. Additionally, she was always available for support and guidance for juniors no matter how exhausted she was. It gave me a view on how noble the medical profession is and motivated me to purse nursing studies.

From my perspective, this book is highly beneficial particularly for those in the healthcare industry or studying Biology. The real life scenarios presented in the book provide deep insight on how to tackle different medical situations. However, the book uses some medical terminologies that may be difficult for others to understand.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Amansa Nasid

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

You successfully covered all parts of the prompt in a clear and appropriate tone for a magazine letter. You described the book effectively in your second paragraph, explaining that it is 'based on a true story' and detailing the resilience of Dr Meredith Grey. You clearly explained how the book influenced you in the third paragraph, noting how it motivated you to 'purse nursing studies' and highlighted the nobility of the medical profession. Additionally, you addressed the third bullet point in your fourth paragraph by evaluating whether it would influence others, specifically noting its relevance for those in healthcare while pointing out that medical terminology might pose a challenge for general readers. Your ideas are well-developed and appropriate for General Training Task 1, demonstrating a very good understanding of the prompt requirements.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

Your letter is easy to follow with a clear logical organization and progression throughout. You made good use of paragraphing to separate distinct ideas, starting with an appropriate introductory greeting, moving to the description and personal impact of the book, analyzing its broader appeal, and finishing with a polite closing sign-off. Cohesive devices are used reasonably well, such as 'Additionally,' and 'From my perspective,', which help guide the reader smoothly through your thoughts. However, referencing and transitions could be slightly more varied and seamless to push into the higher band levels. Overall, the structure is coherent and fully supports the purpose of your letter.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrated a sufficient range of vocabulary with some attempts at less common items, such as 'resilience,' 'commendable,' and 'medical terminologies.' However, there are a few notable lexical errors and typos. For instance, you wrote 'impact my life' instead of 'impact on my life,' and you used 'if feel' instead of 'it feel' in the second paragraph. In the third paragraph, 'purse nursing studies' contains a spelling error for 'pursue.' Despite these occasional inaccuracies, your vocabulary is adequate for the task and allows you to convey your ideas clearly and effectively without impeding communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You demonstrated a reasonable mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as using subordinate clauses like 'how despite facing challenging circumstances, she showed bravery.' You maintained good control over basic structures and punctuation, and your meaning is consistently clear. However, there are some grammatical errors present, such as 'in regards to' (more formally 'with regard to'), the missing preposition in 'impact my life,' and the spelling/typographical mistake in 'made if feel.' Because these errors do not impede communication and you have successfully produced a mix of sentence forms with many error-free sentences, your grammar aligns well with the descriptors for Band 6.5.

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

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