Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-08-13

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 6.5)

The bar graph compares the frequency of eating fast food in restaurants among the Americans over a decade starting from 2003 to 2013.

Overall, most of the people in USA preferred to eat once a week in 2003 and 2006, whereas in 2013, the highest frequency of eating at fast food restaurants was once or twice a month. While, the least proportion of individuals ate fast food everyday.

At first glance, it is evident that in the initial given year, almost 31% of the Americans had a frequency of once a week to eat fast food. Similarly, around 30% of citizens ate once or twice a month, although nearly 4% of people ate fast food everyday. The percentage of people who ate several times a week was about 17%. Moreover, the proportion of the Americans who went to fast food restaurants a few times a year and never was approximately 12% and 5% respectively.

Moving further, The trend of eating in 2006 there is negligible difference in the proportion of individuals who ate once a week in 2006 and once or twice a month in 2013 that was 33%. Furthermore, the percentage of people whose frequency of eating fast food everyday, a few times a year and never was similar in 2006 and 2013 which were 3%, 15% and 4% correspondingly. Additionally, approximately 20% individuals went several times a week to the fast food restaurants in 2006, while the ratio was only 16% in 2013.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

You have successfully identified the main features of the data and provided a clear overview. You covered all three years (2003, 2006, and 2013) and made relevant comparisons between the categories. However, the analysis in the final paragraph is slightly confusing; for example, stating that the proportion of individuals who ate once a week in 2006 and once or twice a month in 2013 was 33% is difficult to follow and slightly inaccurate based on the visual data. To improve, ensure that your comparisons are more precise and that you clearly distinguish between the different categories when discussing trends over time.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The response is logically organized with a clear introduction, overview, and body paragraphs. You use cohesive devices such as 'At first glance,' 'Similarly,' and 'Moving further' to guide the reader. However, some transitions are slightly mechanical, and the referencing in the final paragraph is a bit cluttered, making it harder to follow the comparison between 2006 and 2013. Improving the flow between sentences and ensuring that pronouns or references clearly point to the intended data points would enhance the coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'proportion,' 'frequency,' and 'negligible difference.' There are some minor issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'the Americans' (often just 'Americans' is more natural) and 'the ratio was only 16%' (where 'percentage' or 'figure' would be more precise than 'ratio'). You attempt to use a variety of descriptors, but the vocabulary remains somewhat repetitive. Expanding your range of synonyms for 'increase,' 'decrease,' and 'proportion' would help you achieve a higher score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While your meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical slips, such as 'among the Americans' (should be 'among Americans'), 'in the initial given year' (slightly awkward phrasing), and 'the percentage of people whose frequency of eating fast food everyday... was similar' (which is grammatically disjointed). Punctuation is generally acceptable, but there are some minor errors in sentence construction. To reach a higher band, focus on ensuring that your complex sentences are error-free and that your subject-verb agreement is consistent throughout.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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