Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-11-03

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)

Dear sir,

I would really excited to tell you about the cookery course that i did from your school.There are lots of things i learned from this class.

I enjoyed all the parts that you explained in the course.Firstly,plan a rough idea of the dish that you will cook and then make a list of the ingretiants.

I made lots of dishes since i have done the course.Firstly i made a cake on my mothers birthday and all my family memebrs praised for that. Then i took a part in colony cooking comepitions where i made a dish that placed on first position.Now, I always help my mother at home in cooking..

You tought all the courses in the school. But, i suggest you that add some courses for childrens that they will make any dish by themselves. And also add competitions for the students that encourage them to learn more about cooking.

I would really appreciate you that you selected me to suggest for this.

Your sincerely,

Harmanpreet Kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address all three requested points: you describe what you enjoyed, give examples of cooking since the course, and suggest a course for children. The examples of making a birthday cake and entering a cooking competition make your follow-up activity clear. However, the enjoyment point is less fully developed: “all the parts that you explained” is general, and the following advice about planning a dish and listing ingredients does not clearly explain what you personally enjoyed. Your suggestion is relevant, but it would be stronger if you specified a particular children’s course, such as a beginner class focused on simple meals. The letter’s purpose is clear, though a more precise account of your experience would make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The letter has a clear overall arrangement, with separate paragraphs for your enjoyment, cooking since the course, and suggestions for future classes. This makes the main points easy to locate. You also use sequencing words such as “Firstly” and “Then” to show the order of events. At times, however, these links feel mechanical or do not fit the relationship between ideas: “Firstly” is repeated, and “But” introduces a suggestion without a clear contrast. The final paragraph also combines a children’s course with competitions, which would be clearer if these were presented as two distinct suggestions. Use a wider range of natural links and make sure each paragraph develops one main point.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

Your vocabulary is sufficient to communicate the main ideas, including “cookery course,” “dish,” “competitions,” and “encourage.” However, the range is limited, and several spelling and word-choice errors make the letter less polished. Examples include “ingretiants,” “memebrs,” “comepitions,” and “tought.” Some phrases are also unnatural, such as “placed on first position” and “appreciate you that you selected me to suggest for this.” Choose more precise expressions for cooking achievements and feedback, and check spelling carefully. A broader set of topic-specific words—such as “recipe,” “baking,” or “practical skills”—would help you describe the course and your experience more precisely.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple sentences and longer structures, and the sequence describing your cooking since the course is generally understandable. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly in verb forms, articles, and sentence construction. For example, “I would really excited” needs a form of “be,” while “the course that i did from your school” has an unclear grammatical pattern. In “I suggest you that add,” the verb pattern is incorrect; use “I suggest that you add” or “I suggest adding.” Capitalisation and punctuation also need attention, as in the lowercase “i” and the missing space after “school.” Practise accurate sentence patterns while retaining your attempts at longer sentences.

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

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