A friend you met last year has invited you to visit them in their country. You have never been there before and need some information before you leave. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter: - request advice about a gift for his/her family - ask about activities and clothing - find out about the food
Sample Response
Dear Robert,
Hi there, I hope you’re enjoying your college year. Thanks very much for asking me to come and visit you in Singapore. As you know, I haven’t travelled to Asia before, so I though I’d write and ask you a few questions.
I want to bring a present with me and I wondered what would be appropriate. Perhaps you could let me know what your mum’s hobbies are and then I could come up with an idea based on one of them.
Also, what sort of clothes should I bring? I know it’s pretty warm where you live but do I need jumpers or a coat? what sort of activities are we likely to do while I’m there and should I bring things like swimming gear or trainers.
Lastly, I hate to be nuisance but I hope you remember that I’m vegetarian. I do eat fish and eggs but I don’t eat red meat and chicken at all. Is that going to be a problem?
Look forward to hearing from you.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Avoid duplicate greeting Original: Hi there, Suggested revision: Delete Why it matters: The named salutation already opens the informal letter, so this second greeting is redundant.
- 2. Fix verb spelling Original: though Suggested revision: thought Why it matters: The past-tense verb thought requires a final t.
- 3. Separate main clauses Original: warm where you live but Suggested revision: warm where you live, but Why it matters: A comma is needed before but when it joins two independent clauses.
- 4. Capitalize new question Original: what Suggested revision: What Why it matters: A new sentence must begin with a capital letter.
- 5. Use question mark Original: trainers. Suggested revision: trainers? Why it matters: This direct question should end with a question mark.
- 6. Add article Original: be nuisance Suggested revision: be a nuisance Why it matters: The singular countable noun nuisance requires an article.
- 7. Use negative conjunction Original: and Suggested revision: or Why it matters: Or is the natural conjunction when listing alternatives after a negative verb.
- 8. Add sentence subject Original: Look forward to hearing from you Suggested revision: I look forward to hearing from you Why it matters: A complete declarative sentence requires the subject I.
- 9. Broaden gift request Suggested revision: Ask whether a shared family gift would be suitable or request information about other family members as well. Why it matters: The request currently bases the family gift only on the mother’s hobbies.
- 10. Ask about food Suggested revision: Add a direct question about which fish, egg, or vegetarian dishes will be available. Why it matters: The paragraph explains dietary restrictions but only asks generally whether they will be a problem.
Suggested Rewrites
- Hi there, Delete
- though thought
- warm where you live but warm where you live, but
- what What
- trainers. trainers?
- be nuisance be a nuisance
Why this response received Band 8.0
The letter has a natural, friendly tone and handles every bullet point directly, using focused paragraphs and relevant questions about the gift, clothing, activities, and dietary needs. Its main limitations are a handful of proofreading errors and the relatively narrow exploration of local food beyond vegetarian requirements. Prioritise correcting small sentence-level slips and asking one more specific question about what food will be available.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The purpose is fully achieved in a consistently friendly tone, with all requested information covered clearly and relevantly.
Strengthen the food enquiry by asking about typical dishes or suitable vegetarian options in addition to stating dietary needs.
Coherence and Cohesion
The letter progresses smoothly, with each paragraph focused on a distinct request and cohesive devices used effectively.
Refine the transition into the activities question so the sequence within that paragraph feels completely seamless.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is flexible, natural, and appropriate for an informal letter, with only isolated imprecision.
Proofread word choice and fixed expressions carefully, including the missing article in “be a nuisance.”
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of sentence forms is handled accurately overall, with only occasional punctuation, capitalisation, and typing errors.
Correct minor slips such as “though” for “thought” and capitalise the question beginning with “what.”
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
A friend you met last year has invited you to visit them in their country. You have never been there before and need some information before you leave. Write a letter to your friend. In your letter:
- request advice about a gift for his/her family
- ask about activities and clothing
- find out about the food
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.