Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-14

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

Write a letter to the manager of the hotel. In your letter

• say where you think you left the papers
• explain why they are so important
• tell the manager what you want him/her to do

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear Sir,

I hope this letter finds you well.

I am writing this regarding my important documents which i left in your hotel yesterday night ,Because I had an important meeting there after I have done with my meeting with clients I was in a rush that is why I left my papers on the table which we had meeting it was in a Diner area .

As you are the manager and you have all the authorities to access in every corner of the hotel that is the reason I am requesting you to serach for the papers and contact me so , I can be there to pickup the papers.

The documents are very important for me because it is a business proposal for one of my important clients that my company recently making new relationship with AJAX international and we have meeting with them that is the reason i want that papers.

I hope you reply me soon

Yours sincerely,

Rob

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The candidate addresses all three bullet points required by the task prompt. First, the location of the papers is mentioned as the Diner area on a table where the meeting took place. Second, the importance of the papers is explained, noting they relate to a business proposal and a new relationship with AJAX international. Third, the desired action is clearly stated, requesting the manager to search for the papers and contact the writer. However, the development of these points is somewhat restricted by poor sentence control and repetition. While the communicative purpose is achieved, the ideas remain basic and lack extended elaboration. Therefore, this response aligns closely with the Band 6 descriptors.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter maintains a coherent overall arrangement with a standard greeting and sign-off, although the structure of the body paragraphs suffers from run-on sentences and a lack of proper punctuation. For instance, the second paragraph is a single overly long sentence connected by multiple coordinating conjunctions. Paragraphing is attempted, but the internal cohesion within paragraphs is faulty due to poor referencing and punctuation choices. Connectors like 'that is why' and 'that is the reason' are overused and repetitive, leading to a mechanical feel. Despite these cohesive shortcomings, the progression of ideas is generally clear to the reader, justifying a Band 5.5 score.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, successfully conveying the intended message. The candidate attempts some less common lexical items such as 'business proposal' and 'authorities', although there are noticeable inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'yesterday night' instead of 'last night', 'all the authorities to access in every corner' instead of 'authority to access every area', and 'making new relationship' instead of 'establishing a new relationship'. Spelling is generally acceptable, but the lexical range remains limited and repetitive, preventing the response from reaching Band 6.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The submission demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, but control over complex structures is weak. The text contains frequent grammatical errors, run-on sentences, and severe punctuation issues, such as missing capitalisation ('i', 'ajax'), comma splices, and unnecessary spaces before punctuation marks. For example, sentences like 'when I have done with my meeting with clients I was in a rush that is why I left my papers on the table which we had meeting it was in a Diner area .' highlight a lack of control over subordination and punctuation. These frequent errors occasionally cause difficulty for the reader, placing the grammar score solidly at Band 5.0.

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

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