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Task 1 General · Informal letter · Family

Apologising for missing a friend's family event

An apology to a close friend, where the band 9 letter takes responsibility instead of explaining itself — a distinction the lower bands miss entirely.

The question

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task. Write at least 150 words. You do NOT need to write any addresses. Begin your letter as follows: Dear Rosa,

You were unable to attend an important family event that a close friend had invited you to. Write a letter to your friend Rosa.

  • Explain why you were not able to attend
  • Describe how you felt about missing it
  • Say what you would like to do to make up for it

A 150-word letter in a formal, semi-formal or personal register. This prompt is original, written in the standard format for teaching purposes — it is not taken from any past paper.

What separates the three answers

The band 6.5 letter explains, the 7.5 letter apologises, and the band 9 letter stops defending itself and offers something the friend would actually want.

The three answers

Band 6.5

170 words (the task asks for at least 150)

The answer works. It addresses the task, the reader follows it, and the meaning survives — but ideas stay general, linking is mechanical, wording repeats, and small errors are visible throughout.

The answer

Dear Rosa,

I am writing this letter to say sorry that I could not come to your father's retirement party last Saturday. I know how important this event was for you and your family and I feel really bad about it.

The reason why I could not come is that my son became ill4 on Friday night with a high fever. We took him to the doctor on Saturday morning and the doctor said we should keep him at home for the weekend. My husband was travelling for the work at that time, so there was nobody else who can stay with him.3

I felt very bad about missing the party. I was looking forward to it since many weeks.2

I would like to invite you and your parents for a dinner at my house next month to celebrate properly. Please tell me which weekend is convenient for you. I also bought a small present for your father which I will give you when we meet.

Yours sincerely, H. Duarte1

What an examiner notices

  1. 1. Lexical resource

    “Yours sincerely, H. Duarte”

    A formal sign-off closing a letter of apology to a close friend. The mismatch with 'Dear Rosa' is immediately noticeable.

  2. 2. Task achievement

    “I felt very bad about missing the party. I was looking forward to it since many weeks.”

    The entire second bullet, in two sentences, one of which repeats the phrase already used in paragraph one. This is the thinnest part of the letter.

  3. 3. Grammatical range and accuracy

    “My husband was travelling for the work at that time, so there was nobody else who can stay with him.”

    Two slips in one sentence: a superfluous article, and a present modal where the past is required. Neither blocks meaning, which is characteristic of the band.

  4. 4. Coherence and cohesion

    “The reason why I could not come is that my son became ill”

    Grammatically fine but heavy for a personal letter. A friend would simply say what happened.

One honest caveat

Band labels here describe what each piece of writing demonstrates against the four published assessment areas, paraphrased in plain language. They are teaching illustrations produced for this site, not official material, and no sample has been marked by a test provider. Real scripts are marked whole; two answers with the same label can still look quite different from each other, and nothing on this page can promise anyone a particular result.

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