As part of a student social survey project, you are organising a group to visit a historical exhibition in a small town. Write a letter asking for information about the exhibition. In your letter: - ask about the contents of the exhibition - ask for its opening and closing dates - ask whether any discounts are available

Same questionCompare 4 different answers (Band 7–8)

Sample Response

1

Dear Sir or Madam, I am organisingadministering a group of pupils to visit the historical exhibition in Shaftesbury, UK next month. This tour will be a part of our school activities to encourage young students to participate in social surveys and developgrow their interest in history. I would really appreciate it if you could sendforward me some information regarding the exhibition. First of all, when the exhibition will be held and what are the daily opening hours? Secondly, is the exhibition suitable for the fourth and fifth graders? Please notify me about the theme and objects on displayexhibited objects on display. This would help me explain more clearly to my studentshelp me better explain to my students the content during our trip. Finally, what are the other activities being held in connection with the exhibition? I am planning to bring over twenty students to the exhibition. Therefore, I would like to inquireSo I would like to inquire whether we are eligible for a group discount on admissioneligible for any discount on entrance tickets. If there is no general discount, could you please offer a student discountarrange one for students? Thank you in advance. I look forward to hearing from you soon. Yours faithfully, Sarah Johnson

Overall assessment

Why this response received Band 7.5

The letter fully addresses all three requests in a consistently polite formal tone, and the purpose is clear from the outset. Its main limitation is presentation: all content is compressed into one block, while a few awkward expressions and one malformed question reduce polish. Divide the requests into logical paragraphs and proofread question structure and collocations to make the response easier to follow and more natural.

Band score breakdown

IELTS Writing Criteria Scores

TA

Task Achievement

8.0
Scoring rule

The purpose is immediately clear, all three bullet points are covered directly, and the formal tone is consistently appropriate.

Next step

Develop the requested closing-date information a little more explicitly by asking for the precise final exhibition date.

CC

Coherence and Cohesion

6.5
Scoring rule

The requests progress logically and are easy to follow, but the entire letter is presented as one continuous paragraph.

Next step

Use separate paragraphs for the introduction, exhibition details, and ticket enquiry instead of relying mainly on sequencing expressions.

LR

Lexical Resource

7.0
Scoring rule

The letter uses a good range of relevant formal vocabulary, though several phrases such as administering a group and exhibited objects on display sound awkward or redundant.

Next step

Choose more natural collocations, such as organising a group and items on display, while removing unnecessary repetition.

GRA

Grammatical Range and Accuracy

7.5
Scoring rule

A varied range of sentence forms is handled accurately overall, with only a small number of non-impeding errors.

Next step

Correct the mixed question structure to when will the exhibition be held and what are the daily opening hours.

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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1

As part of a student social survey project, you are organising a group to visit a historical exhibition in a small town. Write a letter asking for information about the exhibition. In your letter:

- ask about the contents of the exhibition

- ask for its opening and closing dates

- ask whether any discounts are available

Your response

Words0
20:00

Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.