In my post, ‘IELTS preparation – The IELTS Writing Test’, I talked about the importance of knowing the layout of letters and the difference between formal and informal letters for General Training IELTS Writing Task 1.

In this post, I’d like to give you an example of a formal letter.  See my post ‘IELTS Writing Task 1 – Informal Letters’ for an example of an informal letter.

Formal letters

• Please note that in IELTS Writing Task 1, it will not be necessary to write the address and date.  The instructions usually say Begin your letter ‘Dear…’

• Do not use short forms (We won’t, I’ll etc) in formal letters or essays. Many native English speakers use them in informal letters and this is considered acceptable.

• Notice the position of the address, date, greeting and sign-off phrase.

• You must include all the points that the question asks you to make.

I always recommend that my students purchase Adams & Austen IELTS books. These books contain so many useful practice exercises and sample questions for IELTS Writing.

Don’t forget that if you buy these books here, I will mark an IELTS Task 1 Writing and an IELTS Task 2 Writing from the book you have purchased.

Although I know that many teachers of English (including myself) teach letter layout, as an examiner I notice that there are many candidates who overlook it in their IELTS test.  Keep this example layout and my informal letter layout in mind.

Here’s to the best IELTS score possible!

In my post, ‘IELTS preparation – The IELTS Writing Test’, I talked about the importance of knowing the layout of letters and the difference between formal and informal letters for General Training IELTS Writing Task 1.

In this post, I’d like to give you an example of an informal letter.  See my post ‘IELTS Writing Task 1 – Formal Letters’ for an example of a formal letter.

Informal letters

• Please note that in IELTS Writing Task 1, it will not be necessary to write the address and date.  The instructions usually say Begin your letter ‘Dear…’

• Notice the position of the address, date, greeting and sign-off phrase.

• Many native English speakers use short forms (We won’t, I’ll etc) in informal letters and this is considered acceptable.  You need to make sure, however, that you do not use short forms in formal letters or essays.

• You must include all the points that the question asks you to make.

I always recommend that my students purchase Adams & Austen IELTS books. These books contain so many useful practice exercises and sample questions for IELTS Writing.

Don’t forget that if you buy these books here, I will mark an IELTS Task 1 Writing and an IELTS Task 2 Writing from the book you have purchased.

Although I know that many teachers of English (including myself) teach letter layout, as an examiner I notice that there are many candidates who overlook it in their IELTS test.  Keep this example layout and my formal letter layout in mind.

Here’s to the best IELTS score possible!

In this post, I’d like to give you some tips on how best to study for the IELTS Writing test.

First of all, I suggest you read my post Best IELTS preparation -The IELTS Reading test and make sure you follow my reading tips.  Reading and writing ‘go hand in hand’ and one of the best ways to improve your writing is to read a lot.  Secondly, I suggest you write in English as often as you can, for example:

• Keep a diary in English; you can use it for day-to-day things but also to write summaries of articles you have read or your opinions about them.
• Join chat rooms and forums on the internet.
• Write your daily ‘list of things to do’ and your shopping list etc in English

Planning and organization are extremely important in the IELTS Writing test so keep this in mind whenever you write.

Task 1

Academic

In IELTS Academic Writing Task1, you have to describe information from a graph, chart, diagram or table.

You can find this information in books, magazines and on the internet etc.  You can then imagine it s an IELTS Task 1 and describe it in English.  If you aren’t living in an English speaking country and find it difficult to find English newspapers and magazines, you can still practice.  Simply find the graphical information in your own language but write your description in English.

Don’t forget you are only recommended to spend 20 minutes on this task and that it carries less weight than Task 2.

I always recommend that my students purchase Adams & Austen IELTS books. These books contain so many useful practice exercises and sample questions for IELTS Writing.

General Training

In IELTS General Training Writing Task 1, you have to write a letter.  You are usually expected to request information or explain a situation.  You should practise writing this type of letter to different people; friends, teachers, your landlord, organisations etc.

Make sure that you have familiarised yourself with the following:

• How a letter is set out

• How to address the person you are writing to; you don’t start a letter ‘Hi dude’ to a future employer or ‘Dear Sir’ to your best friend.

• The difference between formal and informal letters and when to use them.

• Make sure that you write in the correct register.  You should also take care that you stick to the same register, for example ‘I would like to draw your attention to an incident that occurred during my stay at your hotel.  You’re never gonna believe this’.  The final sentence (apart from containing poor grammar) is clearly inappropriate in a formal letter.

Don’t forget you are only recommended to spend 20 minutes on this task and that it carries less weight than Task 2.

I always recommend that my students purchase Adams & Austen IELTS books. These books contain so many useful practice exercises and sample questions for IELTS Writing.

Task 2

IELTS Academic and General Training Writing Task 2 are quite similar in many ways.

The main difference is that Task 2 Academic requires a stronger approach to providing arguments, evidence and justifying opinions.  Despite being less demanding in these three areas, Task 2 General Training still requires you to respond appropriately to the question and write a coherent essay.

Here are my tips for both Academic and General Training Task 2:

• Practise, practise, practise.  .

I always recommend that my students purchase Adams & Austen IELTS books. These books contain so many useful practice exercises and sample questions for IELTS Writing.

Don’t forget that if you buy these books here, I will mark an IELTS Task 1 Writing and an IELTS Task 2 Writing from the book you have purchased.

• You are recommended to spend 40 minutes on this task and don’t forget it carries more weight than Task 1.  You should aim to spend this amount of time on task 2 questions also when you practise (the first few practice essays may take a little longer).  As an IELTS examiner, I have seen many examples of students running out of time; probably because they haven’t practised writing an essay in 40 minutes.

• Count your words so that you learn what 250 words ‘looks and feels like’.

Also read my post How can I do self-study practice IELTS Writing Tests? and follow the tips to get the greatest benefit from your IELTS Writing practice.

Here’s to the best IELTS score possible!

‘But what will I have to write a letter about?’ was the first question a new student asked me about IELTS Writing Task 1 recently. I’m sure there are many of you who are new to IELTS who are wondering the same thing.

The letter you are required to write in IELTS Task 1 often falls in to one of the following types:

a. You have to APOLOGISE to someone
b. You have to COMPLAIN about something
c. You must REQUEST information
d. You have to THANK someone
e. You have to APPLY FOR A JOB
f. You have to INVITE someone to do something.

Here are some examples of the letter types above:-

a. You are an international student and have borrowed a book from the local public library. You left the book on a bus and when you contacted the bus company, they could not find it.

Write a letter to the librarian explaining the situation and asking what you should do.

b. You are working in the UK for three months and have hired a car for the period. The air conditioner has stopped working. You phoned the car rental company a week ago but it has still not been repaired.

Write a letter to the manager of the car rental company. In your letter:
• Introduce yourself
• Explain the situation
• Say what action you would like the company to take.

c. You are a student who wants to apply to Meridian College. You are experiencing financial problems at the moment.

Write a letter to the Principal of the College explaining your situation and ask for information on scholarships or other means of financial help available.

d. Last month you had a holiday overseas where you stayed with some friends. They have just sent you some photos of your holiday.

Write a letter to your friends. In your letter:
• Thank them for the photos and for the holiday
• Explain why you didn’t write earlier
• Invite them to come and stay with you.

e. You want to apply for a job as a housekeeper for a private home. Write a letter to Mrs. Wilson describing your previous experience and explaining why you would be suitable for the job.

f. You are getting married. Write a letter to an English-speaking friend to invite him/her to the wedding.

In your letter:
• Describe the person you are going to marry
• Tell him/her what will happen on the wedding day
• Explain why it is important for him/her to be at the wedding.

The purpose of the letter you are writing will often determine the type of language you use. Equally important; you must decide if the letter is a formal letter or an informal letter; this will also determine the type of language you use.

In the next post, I will give you some language phrases and expressions to use in the different letter types. For now I would like to give you the four step procedure for writing letters that I give my students.

Step 1
Read and understand the task; understand the topic; the question and the requirements.

Step 2
Plan what you are going to write: greet; state the purpose; give/request information; request action; close and sign off.

Step 3
Write your answer on the answer sheet.
• Write a greeting
• State your purpose (why you are writing)
• Give/request information
• Request action
• Close
• Sign off.

Step 4
Check your writing; check the content; the language; and the presentation.

Understanding WHY you are writing the letter (your purpose) will help keep you on track and make sure you answer the question (marked in Task Achievement).

Don’t forget to check out some of the other posts on formal letters and informal letters on this site.

Here’s to the best IELTS score possible!