You have recently moved to a different house, and you want to give the news to an English-speaking friend who lives in another country. Write a letter to this English-speaking friend. In your letter: - explain why you have moved - describe the new house - invite your friend to come and visit
Sample Response
Dear Peter, I haven’t heard from you in a while, and I hope that you are doing well with your life. I just wanted to let you know that I've moved to a new house. And the reason, for which, I've moved to a new house is that I was feeling suffocated in my old house due to many high rising buildings which were erected around my house, essentially covering it from all directions. I think that I've moved to a nice house because there are plenty of empty spaces around it. Besides, my new house is bigger than the previous one, and it has such a great structure that it receives enough natural light and air from all directions as long as they are available. However, the best thing about my new house is that it is close enough to the shopping centres and public transportation facilities, and yet far enough at the same time from the noises of a busy city. Anyway, I think you'll really like my new house, so come and visit me sometime! Warm wishes, Rahul
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use natural greeting phrase Original: doing well with your life Suggested revision: doing well Why it matters: 'Doing well' is the natural concise expression in a friendly opening.
- 2. Use uncountable space Original: plenty of empty spaces Suggested revision: plenty of open space Why it matters: The area around a house is described with the uncountable phrase 'open space'.
- 3. Use clear comparison Original: the previous one Suggested revision: my old one Why it matters: This identifies the house being compared more directly.
- 4. Add another advantage Original: However, the best thing about my new house is that Suggested revision: Another advantage of my new house is that Why it matters: The sentence continues the positive description rather than introducing a contrast.
- 5. Use natural transport phrase Original: public transportation facilities Suggested revision: public transport links Why it matters: 'Public transport links' is the standard expression for nearby transport access.
- 6. Use uncountable noise Original: noises of a busy city Suggested revision: noise of the busy city Why it matters: 'Noise' is uncountable when referring generally to urban sound.
- 7. Make the invitation warmer Original: come and visit me sometime Suggested revision: please come and stay with me when you can Why it matters: This directly invites the friend to stay, as required by the task.
- 8. Sentence rewrite Original: And the reason, for which, I've moved to a new house is that I was feeling suffocated in my old house due to many high rising buildings which were erected around my house, essentially covering it from all directions. Suggested revision: I moved because the many high-rise buildings constructed around my old house made it feel enclosed on all sides. Why it matters: The rewrite removes incorrect punctuation and repetition while clearly explaining the reason for moving.
- 9. Sentence rewrite Original: Besides, my new house is bigger than the previous one, and it has such a great structure that it receives enough natural light and air from all directions as long as they are available. Suggested revision: Besides, my new house is bigger than my old one, and its open design lets in plenty of natural light and fresh air. Why it matters: This replaces the unnatural structure and removes the illogical condition about light and air being available.
- 10. Separate the letter purposes Suggested revision: Use distinct paragraphs for the reason for moving, the new house's features and location, and the invitation. Why it matters: Functional paragraphs would make the friendly letter easier to follow.
Suggested Rewrites
- doing well with your life doing well
- plenty of empty spaces plenty of open space
- the previous one my old one
- However, the best thing about my new house is that Another advantage of my new house is that
- public transportation facilities public transport links
- noises of a busy city noise of the busy city
Why this response received Band 7.0
The letter clearly covers the reason for moving, the appealing features of the new home, and a friendly invitation, with good supporting detail throughout. Its main weakness is presentation and sentence control: the entire response forms one block, while several long structures and collocations sound awkward. Divide the content into purposeful paragraphs and simplify the most heavily embedded sentences so the friendly message reads more naturally and fluently.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The purpose is clear, all three bullet points are addressed with relevant detail, and the friendly register suits the recipient.
Develop the invitation with a suggested date or activity to make this final bullet point as specific as the house description.
Coherence and Cohesion
The ideas follow a sensible sequence, but the lack of paragraphing and several long, heavily linked sentences weaken readability.
Use separate paragraphs for the move, the new house, and the invitation, with shorter transitions between ideas.
Lexical Resource
The response shows sufficient range for the topic, though several collocations such as high rising buildings and noises of a busy city are unnatural.
Use more natural combinations such as high-rise buildings, open space, and city noise.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Complex structures are attempted throughout, but awkward relative clauses, unnecessary commas, and overloaded sentences reduce control.
Simplify the sentence explaining the move and remove intrusive commas around the relative clause to improve accuracy.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You have recently moved to a different house, and you want to give the news to an English-speaking friend who lives in another country. Write a letter to this English-speaking friend. In your letter:
- explain why you have moved
- describe the new house
- invite your friend to come and visit
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.