IELTS General training writing task 1 is a letter writing task which is allotted 20 minutes of time and has 3 bands. Below are some of the Ielts General Training Writing Task 1 Guidelines to accomplish task-1 correctly and quickly-

• After reading the question you should understand the type of letter.
• You should memorise the format of each type of letter to know how to write it and what should be the tone of the letter.
• Memorise some of the standard words which are used for different type of letters. Also, remember the signature of each type of letter.
• Before you start writing the letter, make points to give it a proper structure. These short points can be noted down quickly on the question paper itself.
• Use short sentences to avoid grammatical mistakes.
• Make a note of approximate number of words in 1 or 2 lines once you start writing. This will help you calculate total number of lines you need to write. Task-1 is 150 words, so you should not exceed 160-170 words. This approximate calculation will keep you on track and you don’t need to calculate total words line by line.
• Keep 1-2 minutes for proofreading at the end to check spelling mistakes or any grammatical mistakes.
• Do not get out of track and keep focusing on the short points which you made earlier.
• Make use of connecting words to join previous to the current line. Example of connecting words are however, nevertheless, nonetheless, perhaps, albeit, also.

Type of letters for IELTS Writing Task-1–

1) Formal Letter

When you are writing to a person whom you don’t know personally is a formal letter.

Structure of a formal letter-

Beginning –

Dear Sir or Madam

Dear Sir/Madam

Body–

State the intention of the letter from the first line itself. Some examples are-

I am writing with regard to

I am writing in regard to

(In formal letter never use contractions like I’m, rather use complete words).

Ending–

Yours faithfully,

Full Name

2) Semi Formal Letter

When you know a person but have formal relationship.

Beginning–

Dear —

Body–

No contractions of words. Tone should be semi formal.

Example-

I am writing to let you know my decision..

I am writing to inform you regarding

I am writing to invite you

Ending–

Best Regards

Regards

3) Informal letter

When you are writing to a person you know, could be a friend.

Beginning–

Dear —

Body–

(You can use contractions to show it is informal tone).

Example-

I’m writing to invite you for my birthday party

I wanted to let you know that I got promoted

Ending–

Thanks

See you

All the best

Keep in touch

The above Ielts General Training Writing Task 1 Guidelines should be kept in mind while you start practising the letters. You can check the sample letter for IELTS Writing task-1 to get an idea about it.

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