Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-10-26

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

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 hope you are well. This is Trikshya, and I am writing this letter regarding an advertisement published by you a few days ago.

I am interested in the position. As I was looking for an accommodation for the past few weeks. Hence, I came across this position, which will not only a suitable place to live, but also I can be a good candidate for babysitting.

I have 1 year of experince working at a day-care. I used to work part-time at a private facility in my home country. Which makes me a suitable candidate for this role.

As I mentioned earlier about my ongoing studies. I will be studying during my spare time. Apart from this, I can also help in some extra household chores if required such as doing laundry, cleaning and cooking.

Please let me know if any further information is required. I am looking forward to receiving a positive response.

Best Regards,

Trikshya.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.5
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You address the three requested points: you explain that the role offers accommodation, mention a year of childcare experience, and say you would study and help with household chores in your free time. These details are relevant, but the reasons for wanting the job and your suitability are only briefly explained. For example, you do not say what you enjoy about caring for children or give a specific example of how your day-care experience prepares you to look after a six-year-old. The reference to ongoing studies is also unclear because the studies are not explained earlier. Develop these points with a little more personal detail so the parents can understand your motivation and strengths more fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The letter has a recognisable structure, with an opening, separate paragraphs for your interest and experience, and a polite closing. The sequence is generally understandable, and phrases such as “Apart from this” help connect ideas. However, some links are mechanical or unclear: “Hence” follows a sentence fragment, and “As I mentioned earlier about my ongoing studies” refers to information that has not actually appeared earlier. The paragraph about your free time also shifts quickly from studying to household chores, which are not clearly presented as leisure activities. Use complete, logically connected sentences and make references explicit to create smoother progression.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is sufficient to communicate the main points, including “position,” “day-care,” “part-time,” and “household chores.” The tone is mostly appropriate for a formal enquiry, and the reader can understand your purpose. However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or imprecise, such as “an accommodation,” “a suitable place to live,” and “a good candidate for babysitting.” There is also a spelling error in “experince.” These issues make the language less natural, even though they do not prevent understanding. Aim for more precise phrases related to childcare and employment, and check spelling before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, for example, “which will not only…” and “if required such as…,” but several structures are incomplete or faulty. “As I was looking for an accommodation for the past few weeks” is a dependent clause presented as a sentence, while “Which makes me a suitable candidate” is another fragment. The construction “will not only a suitable place to live, but also I can be” is not grammatically parallel. There are also problems with articles and tense choices, including “an accommodation” and “I was looking… for the past few weeks.” These errors sometimes interrupt the flow. Practise complete clauses and parallel structures, while retaining your attempts at complex sentences.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.