This is a detailed analysis of all 11 IELTS GT Writing Task 1 letter tasks published in official Cambridge IELTS exam practice books which clearly need to be informal letters. It starts with a summary of how the tasks are similar to and different from each other, then there is a table going through each task in detail. This is designed to help make exam practice reflect the real test, prioritise what to study, and search for suitable exam practice materials. Tasks where different levels of formality are possible will be dealt with in articles. Over 500 pages of photocopiable material for IELTS General and IELTS Academic preparation are available at https://www.usingenglish.com/e-books/ielts-writing/
Summary of official IELTS General Writing Task 1 letter tasks
Kinds of letter and who to
- 6 out of 11 tasks are definitely replies to letters
- All 11 clearly informal letters are to friends
- Especially recently, most of the informal letters include some kind of giving advice, with the only other repeated situation being giving updates on your life (x2).
Functions in the body of the letter
- In almost all tasks, the writer will need to explain/ describe/ give information (though there is not much language that can used in more than one of these situations, so that isn’t a very useful function to think about/ to teach)
- In 8 out of 11 letters, the writer needs to give a reason or reasons (and that is possible in almost all tasks)
- In 5 or 6 tasks, the writer needs to suggest/ advise/ recommend
- In 3 or 4 tasks, the writer needs to invite or respond to an invitation
- In 2 tasks, the writer needs to say something negative such as explaining negative points or giving bad news
- In 1 task, the writer needs to make a request
- In 1 task, the writer needs to arrange something such as a meeting someone
- In 1 task, the writer has to thank the reader (and thanking can also be used in many other tasks)
- In 1 task, the writer has to give good news
Things to cover in each bullet point
- 4 out of 11 tasks have two points or a plural in one of the three bullet points, meaning that there are more than three points to cover in the three body paragraphs
Recent trends in IELTS General Writing Task 1 letter tasks
- Replying to a letter has become more common recently
- Advice seems to have become more common recently
- Since 2020 (and in three out of four tests in 2019), all the tasks could (and usually should) be written in clearly formal style or clearly informal/ casual/ friendly style, with no need for medium-formality letters (meaning that the candidate can quickly decide on the right level of formality, and can use either formal written language or idiomatic language to impress the examiner)
Oddities
- There have been two tasks that ask for an “email” in the most recent official practice test books. However, all the official information from IELTS, IDP, etc only says “letter”, so this must be a mistake.
Year-by-year detailed analysis of official IELTS GT Writing Task 1 informal letters
The columns below show the test and the year it was published, if this letter is clearly a reply to another letter etc or not, who you must write to, the general sort of letter that is needed, how you are told to start it, what functional language phrases are needed in the body of the letter, and if more than three points need to be covered in the body. An exclamation mark in brackets (!) means a surprising point like things which are different in all the other tests.
| Year Book/ Test | Reply? | Who to | Situation/ Kind of letter | Open | Functions needed | Plurals or two points in one bullet? |
| 2022 17/1 | probably, but could be after a call etc | friend | email(!) advice on sports | Dear…, | advice, suggest, maybe invite | no |
| 2021 16/ 4 | yes | friend | email(!) advice on finding a place to live where you studied | Dear…, | describe, recommend, warn/ advise | mistakes |
| 2020 15/ 1 | yes | friend | advice on camping | Dear…, | explain/ reason(s), negative points, respond to invitation | possible dis- advantages
|
| 2020 15/ 3 | yes | friend | advice about studying your subject | Dear…, | describe, reason(s), advice | no |
| 2018 13/ 4 | yes | friend | answer about a job in your country | Dear…, | give info, reason(s), explain | no |
| 2016 11/ 1 | yes | friend | advice on what to do after school | Dear…, | reason(s), suggest | types of job |
| 2015 10/ A | no | friend | ask for help getting a job | Dear…, | explain/ describe, request | no |
| 2011 8/ A | no | friend | life update after moving home | Dear…, | reason(s), describe, invite | no |
| 2009 7/ A | no | friend | life update on your change of job | Dear…, | reason(s), describe, good news, bad news | no |
| 2009 7/ B | yes | friend | thanks for photos and invite | Dear…, | thanks, reasons, invite | for photos and holiday |
| 2005 4/ B | no | friend | try to sell furniture to them | Dear…, | reason(s), describe, suggest/ arrange | no |