CELPIP Writing Task 1: Complete Email Format Guide

What Is CELPIP Writing Task 1?

CELPIP Writing Task 1 asks you to write an email of approximately 150–200 words in response to a given scenario. You are told who to write to, what relationship you have with that person, and what you need to communicate. You have 27 minutes to complete this task.

The scenario might ask you to write to a friend, a landlord, a coworker, a manager, or a community member. Your email needs to achieve a specific communicative goal — making a complaint, offering an apology, requesting information, or explaining a situation.

Understanding the format before exam day is one of the highest-leverage things you can do. Candidates who misread the situation or use the wrong tone often lose points on Task Achievement before a single sentence is evaluated for grammar or vocabulary.

How Task 1 Is Scored

Your email is evaluated on four criteria, each scored from 1 to 12 (CLB scale):

1. Task Achievement — Did you address everything the prompt asked? Did you stay on topic? Is the tone appropriate (formal vs. informal)?

2. Vocabulary Range — Do you use a variety of words accurately? Repeated, generic, or misused vocabulary pulls this score down.

3. Grammar Accuracy — Are your sentences grammatically correct? Are verb tenses consistent and appropriate?

4. Coherence and Cohesion — Does your email flow logically? Do sentences connect naturally using transitions?

Your final band score is a weighted average. Task Achievement carries the most weight because an email that fails its purpose — even with flawless grammar — cannot score well.

The 5-Part Email Structure

Every strong Task 1 response follows this structure. Memorise it until it is automatic:

1. Greeting Use the appropriate level of formality. If writing to a friend: "Hi [Name]," — If writing to a manager: "Dear Mr./Ms. [Last Name]," — If writing to an unknown contact: "Dear Sir or Madam,"

2. Opening line (reason for writing) State your purpose immediately. Do not begin with "I am writing to inform you that…" — that phrase is overused and signals a lack of range. Try alternatives:

• "I wanted to reach out about…"
• "I'm getting in touch regarding…"
• "I hope you're doing well. I'm writing because…"

3. Body (2–3 sentences per point) Each bullet point or requirement in the prompt needs its own clear response. If the prompt says "explain why you cannot attend AND suggest an alternative," make sure both are present with adequate detail.

4. Closing remark Acknowledge the recipient and signal what you expect next:

• "Please let me know if you need any additional information."
• "I look forward to hearing from you."
• "Feel free to call me if you have questions."

5. Sign-off Match formality: "Best, [Name]" for informal. "Sincerely, [Name]" or "Regards, [Name]" for formal.

Tone: The Most Common Pitfall

Tone is the most frequent source of Task Achievement deductions. The prompt always signals the relationship. Read it carefully.

| Relationship | Register | Greeting | Sign-off | |---|---|---|---| | Close friend | Informal | "Hi Sarah," | "Talk soon," | | Acquaintance or neighbour | Semi-formal | "Hi Mr. Chen," | "Best," | | Employer or landlord | Formal | "Dear Ms. Patel," | "Sincerely," | | Unknown recipient | Formal | "Dear Sir or Madam," | "Yours faithfully," |

Writing a casual email to a landlord — or a stiff formal one to a friend — signals a misread of social context. Examiners treat this as a Task Achievement failure.

Vocabulary Range: Moving Beyond Basic Words

Candidates who score CLB 7 or below in this criterion often rely on high-frequency words. Here are simple swaps that demonstrate range:

| Basic | Higher-range alternative | |---|---| | say / tell | inform, mention, let you know | | sorry | apologise, regret | | good | beneficial, effective, suitable | | ask | inquire, request, seek clarification | | problem | concern, issue, complication | | very | particularly, considerably, quite | | help | assist, support, facilitate |

Do not force rare vocabulary where it sounds unnatural. The goal is appropriate range, not a thesaurus performance.

Grammar: The 3 Mistakes That Cost the Most Points

1. Tense inconsistency Pick a tense and stay consistent. If you are recounting something that happened, use past tense throughout. Switching from past to present and back confuses the reader.

2. Subject-verb agreement errors "The team are…" vs. "The team is…" — in Canadian English, collective nouns take singular verbs. "My family is coming" not "My family are coming."

3. Missing articles "I need the information about parking" vs. "I need information about parking." Learning when to use "the," "a," or nothing is one of the clearest markers of English proficiency.

Coherence: Connecting Your Ideas

A coherent email feels like a conversation. The reader should never have to re-read a sentence to understand how it connects to the previous one. Use transition phrases deliberately:

• To add a point: Furthermore, In addition, Also, Besides
• To contrast: However, On the other hand, That said
• To explain: Because of this, As a result, This means that
• To conclude: Given this, Therefore, With that in mind

One transition word per paragraph is enough. Overusing them makes writing feel mechanical.

Model Response: A Complaint Email

Prompt: Your upstairs neighbour has been making loud noise late at night. Write an email to your building manager explaining the situation and requesting action.

Dear Mr. Hamilton,

I am writing to bring a noise concern to your attention. Over the past two weeks, my upstairs neighbour has been playing loud music and moving furniture between midnight and 2 a.m. on weekdays. This has made it very difficult for me to sleep, and I am finding it hard to function at work.

I understand that disputes between neighbours can be sensitive, and I have hesitated to raise this formally. However, the issue has continued despite my politely knocking on their door twice.

I would appreciate it if you could speak with them on my behalf or share the relevant section of our building's noise policy. I am happy to discuss this further at your convenience.

Sincerely, [Your Name]

Why this scores well:

• Formal tone appropriate to the landlord relationship
• All three prompt requirements covered: explain situation, provide detail, request action
• Vocabulary is varied but not forced
• Coherent structure with clear paragraphing

How to Use Your 27 Minutes Wisely

Time management is one of the underappreciated factors in Task 1 performance. Here is a recommended breakdown:

Minutes 1–2: Read and plan Read the prompt twice. Identify: Who are you writing to? What relationship do you have? What does the prompt ask you to include? Jot 3–5 keywords for your body content. Choose your greeting and sign-off.

Minutes 3–22: Write Work through your 5-part structure. Do not stop to perfect a sentence — keep moving. Aim for 150–175 words.

Minutes 23–27: Review Read your email once as if you are the recipient. Check:

• Did you address every part of the prompt?
• Is the tone consistent from opening to closing?
• Are there any obvious grammar errors (missing articles, tense inconsistency)?
• Is your word choice varied or did you repeat key words?

Most candidates who skip the review step leave fixable errors in their response. Four minutes of review can move a CLB 7 response to a CLB 8.

Practice Prompt Bank

Use these prompts for timed practice (27 minutes each):

Prompt 1 (semi-formal): Your neighbour borrowed your lawn mower three weeks ago and has not returned it. Write an email to your neighbour asking for it back. Mention when you need it and suggest how they can return it.

Prompt 2 (formal): You recently ordered a product online and received the wrong item. Write an email to the company's customer service department explaining the problem, describing what you ordered, and requesting a resolution.

Prompt 3 (informal): Your friend has invited you to their birthday dinner next Saturday, but you have a conflict and cannot attend. Write an email to your friend apologising, explaining the conflict, and suggesting an alternative way to celebrate.

Prompt 4 (formal): You are a new employee and noticed that the office supply room is consistently disorganised and running low on essential items. Write an email to your manager describing the situation and suggesting a solution.

For each practice response, review against all four criteria before marking it complete. Identify one thing to improve before your next attempt.

Common Exam Day Mistakes in Task 1

Even well-prepared candidates sometimes make avoidable errors on exam day. These are the most frequent:

Running out of time: Some candidates spend too long on the greeting or opening line and then rush the body. Stick to the time budget: 2 minutes planning, 20 minutes writing, 5 minutes review.

Writing too casually under pressure: Stress can make formal register slip. If the prompt calls for formal writing, stay vigilant about your greeting, vocabulary, and sign-off right through to the final line.

Forgetting the sign-off: It sounds minor, but a missing sign-off is an incomplete email format — it affects Task Achievement. Always end with a closing remark and a formal or informal sign-off as appropriate.

Not re-reading the prompt: If you write for 22 minutes and then realise you missed a key requirement, there is no time to fix it. Re-read the prompt after drafting — before reviewing language — to confirm every requirement was addressed.