CELPIP WRITING SAMPLES
CELPIP Writing samples with answers: study the decisions, not sentences to memorize.
Use sample answers to notice purpose, organization, detail and tone. Then close the sample and write your own response to a fresh prompt. Copying a fixed template is much less useful than understanding why each sentence is there.
Task 1 sample: Writing an Email
Original practice prompt: You live in an apartment building. Renovation work in the unit above you has continued late into the evening for several days. Write an email to the building manager. Explain the problem, describe how it is affecting your household, and request a solution.
Dear Ms. Patel,
I am writing about the repeated late-night noise from the renovation work in the unit above mine. During the past week, drilling and hammering have continued until almost 11 p.m., and the noise has made it difficult for my family to sleep. This has been especially difficult on weekdays because we need to wake before 6 a.m.
I understand that repairs sometimes take longer than expected, but I would appreciate it if the building could limit noisy work to reasonable daytime hours. My daughter starts school early, and I also work morning shifts, so the current schedule is affecting both of us.
Could you please speak with the contractor and confirm the hours when loud construction is permitted? If evening work is unavoidable, advance notice to nearby residents would help us plan around it.
Thank you for looking into this matter. I would be grateful for an update on the new work schedule.
Kind regards,
Alex Chen
Approximate word count: 160 words.
What to learn from this Task 1 response
- Purpose appears immediately: the reader knows the email concerns late-night renovation noise.
- Details are functional: the time, school schedule and morning shifts explain why the issue matters instead of adding filler.
- Tone stays controlled: the writer is firm enough to ask for action without becoming aggressive.
- The request is specific: the manager is asked to speak with the contractor, confirm permitted hours and provide notice if evening work is unavoidable.
Task 2 sample: Responding to Survey Questions
Original practice prompt: A neighbourhood garden can fund either a shared tool shed or weekend gardening workshops. Residents without outdoor space should benefit, and the programme must include people with limited mobility. Choose one option and explain why it is better.
I would choose the weekend gardening workshops rather than the shared tool shed.
First, workshops would benefit residents who do not have their own outdoor space. A tool shed is useful mainly to people who already have somewhere to garden, while a workshop can teach apartment residents how to grow herbs, vegetables, or flowers in containers and shared areas. Participants would leave with skills they can use even on a balcony or windowsill.
Second, workshops can be designed to include residents with limited mobility. The organizers could use raised planters, seated demonstrations, lightweight tools, and accessible tables so that people can participate without needing to kneel or walk across uneven ground. This would make the program more social and inclusive.
A shared shed may reduce the cost of buying tools, but the workshops would reach a wider group and help neighbours learn together. For these reasons, I think weekend workshops would provide the greater community benefit.
Approximate word count: 156 words.
What to learn from this Task 2 response
- The position is explicit: the first sentence makes the choice clear.
- The two reasons are distinct: one focuses on people without outdoor space; the other focuses on accessibility.
- Support is concrete: container gardening, raised planters, seated demonstrations and lightweight tools turn abstract benefits into usable examples.
- The alternative is acknowledged briefly: the response recognizes one benefit of the tool shed without allowing the counterargument to take over.
Review samples through the four Writing dimensions
CELPIP publishes four Writing performance dimensions: Content/Coherence, Vocabulary, Readability and Task Fulfillment. When you study a sample, ask a question from each dimension instead of deciding only whether the English “sounds good.”
| Dimension | Question to ask |
|---|---|
| Content/Coherence | Are the ideas relevant, organized and developed with useful support? |
| Vocabulary | Are words precise, varied and natural for this situation? |
| Readability | Do paragraphing, grammar, transitions, spelling and punctuation make the response easy to read? |
| Task Fulfillment | Did the writer complete every instruction with suitable tone and an appropriate amount of detail? |
How to use sample answers without becoming dependent on templates
- Read only the prompt and make your own plan first.
- Compare your plan with the sample’s purpose, paragraph jobs and supporting details.
- Close the sample and write a response to a different prompt under time pressure.
- Review your own response using the four dimensions.
- Rewrite one weak paragraph instead of memorizing the sample.
For current timing and scoring guidance, verify the official CELPIP Test Format & Scoring page and current official Writing preparation materials.