Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-11-13

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You have seen an advertisement in an Australian magazine for someone to live with a family for six months and look after their six-year-old child.

Write a letter to the parents. In your letter

• explain why you would like the job
• give details of why you would be a suitable person to employ
• say how you would spend your free time while you are in Australia

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

Hope this letter finds you in the best of your health. I have seen the advertisemnet in magazine, I would really love the opportunity to live with you and look after your six-year-old son. I would like this job very much because I think it would be a great opportunity for me to explore your culture and understand the habits of all the people that live in australia and get to know them better.

I would be the best suitable candidate for this job because I have Younger siblings and taking care of your child would not be that much of a hassle for me, I am great with kids and the kids actually love me, I adapt fast to new Atmosphere and I am not the kind that would be hard to take care of. I am very well-mannered.

I would mostly spend my free time there by taking a walk at the beach, if there is anyone near by. Thank you for considering

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address the three requested points: you explain that the job would let you explore Australian culture, mention experience with younger siblings and being good with children, and say you would walk on the beach in your free time. These are relevant reasons, but they are not developed enough to make your suitability convincing. For example, you do not give a specific example of caring for a child or explain what responsibilities you can handle. The free-time plan is also very brief and conditional (“if there is anyone near by”), so it gives little sense of how you would use your time in Australia. Add concrete details to each point and close the letter with a suitable sign-off.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a coherent overall arrangement: the first paragraph explains your interest, the second describes your suitability, and the final paragraph covers free time. This makes the main points easy to locate. However, the progression within paragraphs is sometimes weakened by long, loosely connected sentences. In the suitability paragraph, several claims are joined by commas rather than clearly separated or linked, making the relationships between them less clear. The final “Thank you for considering” also feels abrupt because it is attached to the free-time sentence and there is no closing formula. Use clearer sentence boundaries and a conventional closing to make the letter flow more smoothly.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “opportunity,” “explore your culture,” and “well-mannered.” However, the range is limited and several choices or forms are inaccurate or unnatural, which keeps the message from sounding consistently clear and appropriate. Examples include “best suitable candidate,” “not that much of a hassle,” and “the best of your health”; these expressions do not fit naturally in this formal application letter. There are also spelling and capitalization errors, such as “advertisemnet,” “australia,” and “Atmosphere.” Choose more precise, natural phrases and check spelling and capitalization carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt some longer sentence forms, but control is uneven, and errors sometimes make the reader work to follow the meaning. For example, “I have seen the advertisemnet in magazine, I would really love…” joins two independent clauses with a comma, while the long sentence beginning “I would be the best suitable candidate” contains several ideas without clear grammatical boundaries. The opening “Hope this letter finds…” also omits the subject, and “I would mostly spend my free time there by taking a walk” uses an awkward grammatical pattern. Aim for a clearer mix of short and complex sentences, with accurate articles, complete clauses, and punctuation that separates each idea.

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

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