Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-07

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,

I am writing this letter to apply for the job advertisement. The duties include living with a family and taking care of their six-year-old child.

With the help of this job I can fund my college studies and also spend time a with kids which I love to do. This job can help me build up my patience level with kids that I is very useful in my career.

Since I am pursuing my nursing program, I have to learn how to deal with children emotions. I like to play with kids cause they are very funny. I know how to cheer them up when they are angry or sad.

While I am in Australia , I would love to explore their culture and go to new places. Most of my time I would be spending my time in the college library.

kind regards,

Shoeb.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The letter addresses all three bullet points required by the prompt: explaining the motivation, detailing suitability, and describing free-time activities. However, the response is slightly under the 150-word minimum, which impacts the development of ideas. The points are covered, but they lack the depth and elaboration expected for a higher band. For instance, the explanation of suitability is somewhat generic. To improve, you should expand on your experience with children or your nursing studies to provide more concrete evidence of your capability. Because the length requirement was not met, the task achievement score is limited.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter is organized into logical paragraphs, each focusing on one of the required points. There is a clear opening and closing. However, the use of cohesive devices is quite limited and sometimes repetitive. For example, the transition between sentences is often abrupt, and the flow could be improved by using a wider variety of linking words (e.g., 'furthermore', 'consequently', 'in addition to'). The paragraphing is appropriate, but the overall progression of ideas feels a bit mechanical. Improving the variety of connectors would help the letter read more naturally.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task but lacks sophistication. You rely on simple phrasing such as 'funny' and 'cheer them up'. While these are understandable, they do not demonstrate the range required for a higher band. There are also some minor inaccuracies in word choice, such as 'deal with children emotions' (should be 'children's emotions'). To improve, try to incorporate more precise, topic-specific vocabulary related to childcare or professional development to show a wider range of lexical control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The letter contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text, such as 'that I is very useful' and 'spend time a with kids'. These errors, while not impeding communication, are noticeable. The punctuation is generally correct, but the sentence variety is limited. To achieve a higher score, you should focus on reducing these basic errors and attempting more complex sentence structures with greater accuracy, ensuring that subject-verb agreement and article usage are consistent.

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

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