Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-30
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
You recently did a short cookery course. The cookery school has asked for your feedback on this course. Write a letter to the course director at the cookery school. In your letter
- describe what you enjoyed about the course
- say how much cooking you've done since the course
- suggest another cookery course you’d like the school to offer
You do NOT need to write any addresses.
Begin your letter as follows:
Dear Sir or Madam,
Student answer (Band 5.5)
To cookery class,
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing this letter to share my expierence in cookery course which was very helpful for me. I really enjoyed this course.
There were several things in class which I enjoyed in my class, even if it was regarding my team , teacher or the study. the main part I loved was trying different reciepes and implementing them in my daily life. I even started doing cooking at home , always looked forward to get chances for making something delicious. After completing my entire course my confidence level has went high, I believe this skill can make better career in my future.All my reviews about my course was beyond my expecvtations altough if I get any chance to reccomend something on my behalf it could be interactive culinary workshops with chefs for the children. which will be highly helpful for hands on experience and building confidence.
Yours Sincerely,
Arshdeep Kaur
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The response successfully covers all three bullet points outlined in the task instructions. You described what you enjoyed about the course, stating that 'the main part I loved was trying different reciepes'. You also mentioned how much cooking you have done since the course by noting that 'I even started doing cooking at home'. Finally, you provided a clear suggestion for a new course offering: 'interactive culinary workshops with chefs for the children.' Although the development of ideas is somewhat straightforward, all requirements of the prompt are addressed adequately, fulfilling the expectations for a Band 6.0 performance.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The letter exhibits a coherent overall arrangement, and the progression of ideas is generally clear. You used some basic cohesive devices and referencing, such as 'which was very helpful' and 'After completing my entire course'. However, paragraphing is somewhat problematic; the entire body of the letter is condensed into a single massive paragraph, which hinders smooth readability. Furthermore, the opening salutation is slightly confused by including both 'To cookery class,' and 'Dear Sir/Madam,'. While logical relationships between sentences exist, the lack of appropriate paragraph breaks keeps this criterion at a Band 5.5.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
Your vocabulary range is minimally adequate for the task. You attempted some less common items and thematic phrases, such as 'confidence level', 'career', and 'hands on experience'. However, there are several noticeable spelling errors—such as 'expierence', 'reciepes', 'expecvtations', 'altough', and 'reccomend'—as well as slight collocation inaccuracies like 'has went high' instead of 'has increased'. These lexical errors and spelling mistakes reflect Band 5.0 characteristics, where vocabulary is sufficient to convey the basic message despite noticeable inaccuracies that cause some distraction for the reader.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
You demonstrated a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating relative clauses ('course which was very helpful') and conditional structures ('if I get any chance'). However, there are frequent grammatical errors and punctuation issues throughout the text. Examples include 'has went high' (incorrect past participle), missing capitalisation and punctuation errors in longer sentences like 'children. which will be', and missing articles ('doing cooking at home' instead of 'cooking'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, their frequency prevents the writing from achieving a higher score, placing it firmly at Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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