Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-08-04
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The chart below shows how frequently people in the USA ate in fast food restaurants between 2003 and 2013.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.0)
The bar graph illustrates data about often individuals in The United State of America ate in fast food in restaurants from 2003 to 2013.
Overall, it can be clearly seen that people went in restaurant once a week experienced a significant increase and become the highest by the end of the period. In contrast, a few time year remained the lowest during the period. Several time a week showed moderate trend.
In 2006 ,once a week accounted for the highest figure at 33% of people. While several time a week stood at 20% of people. Once or twice a month represented with 25% of people. An identical proportion was observed for a few times a year during 2006 and 2013 at 15% of people.
People which was went to restaurant every day and never showed almost similar trend .In 2003, people who went restaurant every day stood at 4% and never at 5%.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response provides a general overview and selects some key features, such as the trend for those eating out 'once a week'. However, the reporting of data is inconsistent and incomplete. For instance, the prompt covers 2003 to 2013, but the body paragraphs focus heavily on 2006, leaving out significant data points for the start and end of the period. The comparison between categories is limited, and the description of trends is somewhat vague. To improve, ensure you cover the start, middle, and end points of the data provided in the chart to provide a more comprehensive summary.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the progression of ideas is sometimes disjointed. While there are some cohesive devices used, such as 'Overall' and 'In contrast', the connection between sentences is occasionally mechanical. The referencing is sometimes unclear, particularly in the final paragraph where the sentence structure makes it difficult to follow the comparison between the categories. Using a wider variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear thematic focus would improve the flow of the response.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks precision and variety. There are several instances of awkward phrasing, such as 'often individuals' instead of 'how often individuals' and 'a few time year' instead of 'a few times a year'. The repetition of 'people' and 'stood at' limits the range of expression. To reach a higher band, you should aim to use more precise terminology for describing trends, such as 'peaked at', 'fluctuated', or 'remained stable', and avoid repetitive sentence structures when reporting percentages.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response contains frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. There are issues with subject-verb agreement, such as 'People which was went to restaurant', and incorrect preposition usage, such as 'represented with 25%'. The sentence structures are mostly simple, with limited attempts at complex sentences. Errors in articles and pluralisation are also present throughout the text. To improve, focus on mastering basic sentence construction, specifically ensuring that subjects and verbs agree and that relative clauses are used correctly.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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