IELTS Semi-formal Letter: Inquiry letter to a neighbor regarding English lessons

The task

You are working in an English-speaking country. Recently, you have learned that a person who lives near your home can offer English lessons.

Write a letter to this person. In this letter. In your letter:

→tell him/her how you got to know about the lesson
→explain why you are interested in this lesson
→say when and where you want to have the lesson

Write at least 150 words. You do not need to write any addresses. Begin your letter: Dear ...,

Model answer

Band 8 sample letter

Band 8195 words. Names and details are invented; write your own.

Dear Mr. Henderson,

I hope you are having a pleasant week. I am writing to you because I recently noticed a notice posted on the community board at our local grocery store mentioning that you offer private English tuition for residents in our area.

Since moving to this neighbourhood for my new job, I have realised that my professional communication skills require refinement to better suit a corporate environment. While I am comfortable with basic daily interactions, I struggle with the nuanced vocabulary and formal report writing expected in my current role. I believe your expert guidance would be instrumental in helping me bridge this gap and gain more confidence in my workplace.

Regarding the logistics, I would prefer to have our sessions twice a week, ideally on Tuesday and Thursday evenings after 6:00 pm. As for the location, I am happy to travel to your home if that is convenient for you, or we could meet at the public library down the street. Please let me know if you have any availability during these times and what your hourly rate might be.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Best regards,

Alex Mercer

Write your own and get a band

Answer this prompt in a timed General Training writing test and get a band for task achievement, coherence, vocabulary and grammar, with the sentences to fix.

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Examiner's view

Why this scores well

A Band 8 response clearly addresses all three bullet points with a consistent, polite semi-formal tone and natural language flow. A common Band 6 mistake is failing to provide specific times or locations, resulting in an incomplete response to the prompt's requirements.

→Write to someone you know but not closely, such as a manager, landlord or neighbour, using their title and surname.
→Polite and friendly at once: a few contractions are fine, slang is not. Close with Yours sincerely or Kind regards.
→State the purpose in the first two sentences; small talk costs words you need for the bullets.

6 phrases

Useful phrases from the letter

tuition
the act of teaching or providing private instruction
realised
became fully aware of a specific fact
refinement
the process of improving something to be better
nuanced
characterized by subtle or fine shades of meaning
instrumental
serving as a crucial means for achieving something
logistics
the detailed coordination of a complex operation

Frequently asked questions

Is this letter formal or informal?+

Semi-formal. Write to someone you know but not closely, such as a manager, landlord or neighbour, using their title and surname.

How many words should an IELTS General Training letter be?+

At least 150 words, and 160 to 200 is the comfortable range. Spend about 20 minutes on it and leave 40 for Task 2, which carries twice the marks.

What does the examiner look for?+

Keep practising

More giving information letters

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