Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-25

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 7.0)

Dear Sir or Madam,

Good day. I hope you are doing well. My name is Amy. I booked and stayed at your hotel last October three and checked out October seven. My room number was 556 on the fifth floor. I left some important papers. I would be grateful if you could help me connect to lost and found.

On Friday morning, I was sleeping well and woke up late. Rushing to attend a business meeting, I was unaware that I had left my business papers; they were in the long green envelope on the top right side of the TV stand. It is very important to me because it also contains my personal staff documents and their pay cheques. They were supposed to receive their salary yesterday, but an unexpected situation happened. I already informed my team, and they are willing to wait until Sunday this week.

I would really appreciate your help to return that papers back to me. Please email me back once you get uodate regarding this matter.

Sincerely yours,

Amy

[redacted phone]

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

You address all three points clearly: you identify the hotel room and the papers’ location (“on the top right side of the TV stand”), explain their importance by mentioning staff documents and pay cheques, and request help locating and returning them. These details make the purpose of the letter easy to understand. The explanation of the salary delay is relevant, although the reason the papers themselves are essential could be made more explicit. Your request would also be more complete if you specified practical steps, such as asking the manager to check the room and contact you to arrange delivery or collection. Overall, the task is fully addressed, with some details more developed than others.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter follows a clear sequence: you introduce your stay, describe when and where the papers were left, explain their significance, and finish with a request. Paragraphing helps separate these stages, and phrases such as “On Friday morning” and “I would really appreciate your help” guide the reader through the message. The progression is logical, though the opening combines several details before stating the main request, and the first paragraph’s appeal to “connect to lost and found” is not fully linked to the later request. A more direct opening and a final paragraph specifying the action you want would make the organisation more polished. Overall, cohesion is clear, with some room for smoother linking and focus.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for a formal request, including “business meeting,” “personal staff documents,” “pay cheques,” and “unexpected situation.” These details communicate the circumstances effectively. However, some choices are inaccurate or unnatural: “connect to lost and found” would be better expressed as “contact the lost-property department,” while “return that papers back to me” contains an awkward phrase and incorrect word form. “Get uodate” also includes a spelling error and would be more naturally phrased as “receive an update.” The meaning remains clear, but more precise collocations and careful proofreading would improve the naturalness and control of your vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use both simple and more developed sentence forms, including the time clause “Rushing to attend a business meeting, I was unaware…” and the explanation beginning “They were supposed to receive their salary yesterday.” Most sentences communicate the intended meaning, and the errors do not prevent understanding. Some grammatical problems remain, however: “I booked and stayed at your hotel last October three” has an unclear date construction, “I left some important papers” is not clearly connected to the following sentence, and “that papers” has incorrect demonstrative-noun agreement. The request “I would be grateful if you could help me…” shows a suitable conditional structure. To improve, check agreement, sentence connections, and the construction of dates and requests.

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

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