WRITING PRACTICE TEST 1-30 - LETTERS LUYỆN THI VSTEP

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 1
You recently received an email from your English-speaking friend, Pat, inviting you to visit and stay
with his family. Read part of Pat’s email below.
You said you’d like to come and stay for a while in the summer, so I’m writing to ask if
you’d like to visit in July.
By the way, it’s my brother Tim’s 18th birthday on 10 th July so try to be here then, because
there’ll be a big special party to go to. Lots of our friends and relatives will be there!
I’m on holiday in July too, so perhaps we could go camping for a few days as well?
If you’re coming, let me know if there’s anything else you’d particularly like to do. Then I
can make some plans.
Write an email responding to Pat. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 2
You have received a letter from your English-speaking friend, Sam, asking you about a festival in
your country. Read part of Sam’s email below.
I’m studying different festivals from around the world for a project I’m doing. Can you tell me
which is the most important festival in your region and when it happens?
Also I’d be very grateful for any information you could give me about the festival itself.
If you think it is worth it, perhaps I could come and see what it’s like. What do you think?
If I come, will you be free? I'd like to see you again and perhaps we could visit the festival
together.
Write a letter responding to Sam. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 3
You have received the following letter from your English-speaking friend, Sam, asking you about
how to get to your apartment from the airport. Read part of Sam’s email below.
Thanks for inviting me to stay with you when I visit your country next month. I'm not sure how to get to
your apartment from the airport. Could you write back giving me some basic instructions? What would
be the best method of transport for me? I'd prefer one that isn't too expensive!
Just one other thing - what will the weather be like when I get there? (Just so I'll know what clothes to
pack!

Write a letter responding to Sam. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 4


Some English friends, Peter and Sue Hall, have written to you for advice. Their 20-year-old son,
Tom, wants to get a job teaching English in your country. This is part of a letter you have received
from them:
Tom’s doing a teacher-training course at the moment, as you know, but he thinks he ought to
learn something of the language before he comes, which seems like a good idea. He’s bought a
“Teach Yourself” book on the language, but we were wondering if you had any other
suggestions which would help him. It’s quite a while since he studied a language at school, so
he’d also be really grateful for some general tips on learning a language.
Write a letter to Tom giving advice and any helpful suggestions that you can. You should write at
least 120 words. You are not allowed to include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 5
You recently helped organise a college ski trip and you have received this email from a parent of
one of the students who went. Here is a part of the email.
I understand you were one of the organisers of our son's ski trip. I have to say my husband and I
were extremely dissatisfied with the arrangements. My son has informed us that the ski slopes
were poor, the lessons were fewer than promised and the accommodation was inadequate.
Can you please give us a satisfactory explanation?
Yours sincerely,
Nora White
Write a letter responding to White. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 6
You have just received a letter from your English penfriend, accepting your invitation to come and
stay with you just after Christmas. Read part of his letter below.

Thanks very much for the invitation to stay with your family for a few days after Christmas – of course
I’d love to come!
I’ve already found out about flights, and I could arrive at 12.30 midday on the 27 th December. As you
know, I’ve never been abroad during the Christmas holidays so I have no idea what to expect. What
kinds of things do you normally do then? And what’s the weather like there at that time of year? Let me
know if there are any special clothes I should bring with me.

Write a letter responding to him. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 7


You are studying English in London and you’ve just received a letter from your friend, Ken, who is
a sailing instructor on the south coast. Read part of his letter below.
And I’m really enjoying the job.
By the way, we’re going to run weekend sailing courses for complete beginners. Why don’t you come
down to Hamble and do one? You’ve always said you wanted to . learn to sail, so this would be an ideal
opportunity. And after only a few weekends you could get your certificate.
We start the first one next month – let me know if you’re interested.

Write a letter responding to him. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 8
Your English friend Tom came to visit you recently and he has just sent you an email and some
photographs. Read part of his email below.
Thanks for taking me to the airport. I hope your journey home wasn’t too long.
I really enjoyed staying with you. Here are the photos I took. Which one do you like best?
When I got home, I realized I left my watch behind. It’s green and gold. You haven’t found it, have you?
I think we’ll have a great time together when you come here in September. We could either spend the

whole time in my family’s flat in the city or stay on my uncle’s farm in the countryside. Which would you
like to do?

Write a letter responding to him. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 9
You have just received a letter from your English penfriend, Mark, inviting you to come and stay
with him in the summer. Read part of his letter below.
I’m sorry I haven’t written sooner, but I’m busy helping my parents out on the farm.
It’s a great fun though I haven’t got used to getting up at six every morning to milk the cows. We often
have the radio on while we’re doing it, so it’s not too bad. Then, once we have had breakfast, we tend to
spend the rest of the day outside, either in the fields or looking after the sheep.
Do you remember Lady, our oldest sheepdog? Well, she has just had puppies! If you are free in the
summer, you could come and see them all and help with the harvest as well. Let me know if you can make
it – we’d love to see you again.

Write a letter responding to him. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 10


You have received a letter from your English-speaking friend, Renate, who is planning to visit you.
Read part of his letter below.
It was great to talk on the phone last week about my visit to your country. I’m sorry that you
won’t be home when I visit but it’s great that your brother can meet me at the airport and let me
stay at his house.
As I have only 10 days, where would you recommend I visit? And also what is the best way to
travel? Is it expensive to hire a car?
One other thing, I’d like to bring your brother a present. What do you think he’d like? Maybe
he’d like some of my country’s chocolate.

Write a letter responding to Renate. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 11
You are planning to visit your friend Robin in Canada. Robin has written to you. Read Robin’s
letter.
My friends and I are going to a sports camp in the mountains in July. We’d love you to join
us there.
We can play tennis, hockey, football, basketball and other sports. We can stay in rooms or
sleep in tents. Which would you prefer? We’ll cook together in the evenings. Is there
something special from your county that you could cook?
You could fly over to Canada a few days before the sports camp and stay with me here in
the city. What would you like to do before we go to the camp?
Write soon.
Robin
Write an email responding to Robin. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 12
You have received the following letter from your English-speaking friend, Natalie.
Thanks for inviting me to stay with you when I visit your country next month. I’m not
sure how to get to your apartment from the airport. Could you write back giving me
some simple directions? What’s the cheapest means of transport? What will the
weather be like when I get there? What kind of clothes should I take?
Write an email responding to Natalie. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 13


You are helping to organize a visit to an English Language Academy in Manchester. You have
received a letter from John Webster, the director of the Academy. Read the letter.

I am very glad to see that you are coming to our academy in July. I am sure you will all have a very
enjoyable time and that you will learn a lot of English.
You can either stay all together in a youth hostel, or individually with local families. Please tell me
which you would prefer.
Tell me something about your group so that I can organize interesting spare time activities. What
sort of things do they like doing?
Please ask if you need any further information.
Yours sincerely,
John Webster
Write an email responding to John Webster. You should write at least 120 words. You are not
allowed to include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 14
Your Scottish friend, Maggie, has sent you an email asking you to help her organize a special
surprise birthday party for her brother Rupert. Read Maggie’s email.
We must make sure that Rupert doesn't know we are planning this surprise. I'm not sure how
many people to invite but our house is definitely too small. Do you think we should book the
Royal hotel for the evening and have the party there? I've also been wondering what we could all
buy as a present. What do you think?
Could you come the day before the party to help with preparations? There's a lot to plan so I'd
really like your help. Can you suggest something else that will really make the party special?
All for now, best wishes,
Maggie
Write an email responding to Maggie. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 15
You recently helped organize a college ski trip and you have received an email from Ms. Janet a
parent of one of the students. Read part of her email below:
I understand you were one of the organizers of our son's ski trip. I have to say my husband and
I were extremely dissatisfied with the arrangements. You know my son and his classmates
were eager to join the trip at first. But when he came home, my son informed us that the

lessons were fewer than promised and the accommodation was inadequate. Can you please
give us a satisfactory explanation?
Write an email responding to Ms. Janet. You should write at least 120 words. You do not need to
include your name or addresses.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 16


You received an email from your English friend, Jane. She asked you for some information about
the way to keep fit. Read part of her email below.
I enjoy my job but I often sit at a computer all day. I don’t get much exercise so I often
feel tired. I consider going to the gym but I often work very late. Could you recommend
something else I should do to keep fit? Do I really need an instructor or I can do by
myself? Also, do I need to buy any equipment to do exercise? Does it cost much to buy
them?
I look forward to your reply.
Write an email responding to Jane. You should write at least 120 words. You mustn’t include your
name or addresses.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 17
You received an email from your English friend, Lily. She asked you for some information about
traditional festivals in your country. Read part of her email below.
I have just watched such a fantastic program about traditional festivals in the world. There are
not many festivals like these in my country. Are there many traditional festivals in your country?
Which is the most popular one? Could you tell me about it? In what time of the year does it
happen? What do people often do in this occasion? Is it widely known by international tourists?
Do young people in your country still enjoy it?
I look forward to your reply.
Write an email responding to Lily. You should write at least 120 words. You do not need to include
your name or addresses.

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 18

You received an email from your English pen friend, Paul. He asked you about your TV in your
country. Read part of his email below.
One of my hobbies is watching TV. There are many fantastic programs for me to watch.
Sometimes I can spend my whole day watching TV. Could you tell me about TV in your country?
Are the programs interesting to you? What is your best favourite TV program? What is that
program about? How much TV do you watch every day? Do people in your country watch too
much TV these days?
I’m looking forward to hearing from you soon.
Write an email responding to Paul. You should write at least 120 words. You do not need to include
your name or addresses.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 19


You have recently applied for a job at a summer camp for children. You have just received a letter
from Ms. Johnston asking you for more information to support your application. Read part of the
letter from her below.
Your application has made a positive impression on us, but we need more
information in order to fully evaluate you as a candidate.
First of all, how old are you? Secondly, we would like to know what, you think,
makes you the ideal candidate for this job. Finally, we have two positions open,
one at Pebble Beach, and another at Spruce Mountain. Pebble Beach is our
busiest, most popular location, while Spruce Mountain is a beautiful wild area
near a national park. Which would you prefer?
Please send us this information as soon as possible, and feel free to ask if you
have any further questions.
Write a letter responding to Ms. Johnston. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed
to include your name.

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 20
You have applied for a job helping out at a summer camp for children, and you have just received a

letter from Mr. Jones asking you to come for an interview. Read part of the letter from him below.
Your application made a very good impression on us, and we would like to
invite you to come for an interview. We will be holding the interviews on the
first and second weekends in May. Are you available for either of these
weekends?
As you know, we are located in the Cairngorm Mountains. We will hold the
interviews there, and although we realize that this is a long journey for
interviewees, we think it is important for you to see our location and facilities
first hand. Of course, we will pay for your travel expenses.
Finally, we would like to know when you would be available to start work.
We look forward to meeting you, and please let us know if you have any
questions.
Write a letter responding to Mr. Jones. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.


WRITING PRACTICE TEST 21
You have received an email from a friend from an English-speaking country, Max, who recently
stayed with you. During his visit, he met your friends. Read part of the letter from him below:
I really enjoyed my time with you and it was great to meet all your friends. I’d love
to hear some news about them.
How are Tim and Eddie? Have they still got their band? I thought they were really
good. Have they played anywhere since I was there?
And what about Ruth? Did she get the job in the museum? I know she really wanted
it.
What are Richard and Anna doing? Have they gone travelling? I think they said they
were planning to do that.
I often think about you all and what a great time I had. Please keep me up to date on
everyone.
Write a letter responding to Max. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to

include your name.

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 22
You have received an email from a friend from an English-speaking country, Patrick, who wants to
find a summer job in your country. Read part of the letter from him below:
I’d love to spend the summer working in your country. I think I could learn a lot!
Do you think it would help me improve my knowledge of your language?
I have some experience of summer jobs in supermarkets and last year, I worked in a
restaurant all summer. What summer jobs might be available in your area?
I would not expect to earn a lot of money, of course, but do you think I’d earn
enough to pay for my expenses?
Finally, if I get a job, would it be possible to stay in your house?
Please write me soon.
Write a letter responding to Patrick. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.


WRITING PRACTICE TEST 23
You are helping to organize a concert at your college. The local English language newspaper is
sending a reporter, Jane Nolan, to the concert. You have received a letter from Jane Nolan. Read part
of the letter from her below:
I am pleased to say that I am able to come to your college concert on 6 th July. Our readers are
always interested in events like these. I would be grateful if you could give me a little more
information about the concert. What kind of music will be performed? I will need to take some
photos, so could you tell me when I will have the best opportunity to do this?
Also could you let me know who I should interview and why?
I look forward to hearing from you.
Write a letter responding to Mrs. Nolan. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 24
You have just received a letter from your English pen friend. Read part of his letter below.
Guess what? My parents have given me some money for passing my exam, so I can splash out
on something really special. I can’t choose between buying a new computer or saving up a bit
more and getting come clothes. Which do you think would be better? And can you suggest
what exactly I should get?
Write a letter responding to him. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to
include your name.

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 25
Your English friend, Tom, came to visit you recently and he has sent you a letter and some
photographs. Read part of his letter.
I really enjoyed staying with you. Here are the photos I took. Which one do you like best?
When I got home, I realized I’d left my watch behind. It’s green and gold. You haven’t found
it, have you?
I think we’ll have a great time together when you come here in September. We could either
spend the whole time in my family’s flat in the city or stay on my uncle’s farm in the
countryside. Which would you like to do?
Write a letter responding to him. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to include
your name.


WRITING PRACTICE TEST 26
An English friend of yours, Anne, is a student. She has written to you asking for advice. Read part
of her letter below.
We’d love to know when best time of year to visit your country. Also, we want to meet
people of our own age (17-18). What’s the best way to do this?
We don’t want to carry too much stuff, so can you tell us what clothes we should bring? And
while we are there, would you like to join our group and travel round with us? I think it
would be great fun?

Write a letter responding to her. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to include
your name.

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 27
A Canadian friend, Matt, recently visited you and has just sent you a letter. Read part of his letter
below.
You mentioned when I was there that you would like to come to my town to study next year.
Please let me know how long you’re thinking of coming for and what would you like to study
so I can find information for you.
Also, if you come in the summer we could do a trip together either to the Rocky Mountains or
to Vancouver. Which would you prefer?
If you like I could arrange for you to share a flat with some friends of mine. Would you be
interested?
Write a letter responding to him. You should write at least 120 words. You are not allowed to include
your name.
WRITING PRACTICE TEST 28
You are going to stay with your English-speaking friend, Alex, for the weekend. Read part of Alex’s
email below.
It’s great that you can visit me this weekend. A new activity centre has just opened near my
house. Shall we go?
There’s a climbing wall at the centre, or they can take us sailing on the river. The staff at the
centre also take groups into the hills to go mountain biking. Which activity would you prefer
to do?
I think we’ll be tired on Saturday evening so maybe we should just stay in and do something.
So what do you think we should do?
I’m so excited about your visit. Can your parents bring you to my house on Friday evening
rather than Saturday morning?
Write an email responding to Alex. You should write at least 120 words. You do not need to include
your name or address.

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 29
You have received the following email from your English pen friend:
I was thinking about your visit this summer and thought that while you were here, you could
pop in and meet some of my family who live in the North. I had a chat with them and they
would love to meet you. You could even stay with them for a few days. I have put their name
and address below in case you want to write to them. Why don’t you drop them a line and tell
them about yourself and what you are planning to do? Let them know when you are planning
to come so there will not be any surprise. There are loads of things to see and do where they
live and they would be only too glad to give you some ideas.
Their details: Mr and Mrs Jordan
17 Ken Road
Carlisle CA3 4AS
Write an email to Mr. and Mrs. Jordan. You should write at least 120 words. You do not need to
include your name or address.

WRITING PRACTICE TEST 30
You have received an email from your English-speaking pen-friend Harry, who is planning to come
to your country for a two-week holiday.
Hi! Great news! I’ve got two weeks free this summer and I’d really like to spend the time
touring round your country. What do you think I should try and see? Another thing, what
would be the best way to travel?
I will also need somewhere to stay – but not too expensive, of course. If I do come, will you
be free to travel round with me for some of the time? It would be great if you could.
Write an email responding to Harry. You should write at least 120 words. You do not need to include
your name or address.