Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-19

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 illustrates information regarding the frequency of eating at fast food restaurants among people in the USA between 2003 and 2013.

Overall, it is clearly seen that eating at fast-food restaurants once a week or once or twive a month was the most common pattern in all three years. By contrast, very few people ate fast food every day or never ate it. The most noticeable change was the rise in the proportion pf people eating fast food once or twice a month in 2013.

Turning to the details, in 2003, approximately 30% of Americans ate fast food once a week, making this the most common frequency. This figure increased slightly to around 32% in 2006 before falling to about 27% in 2013. A similar proportion, roughly 28%, ate fast sood once or twice a month in 2003. However, this figure dropped to approximately 23% in 2006 and rose considerably to 31% in 2013. Meanwhile, the percentage eating fast food several times a week increased from about 15% in 2003 to 20% in 2006, before declining around 15% in 2013.

Furthermore, at the less frequent end of the scale, about 12% of people ate fast food a few times a year in 2003, compared with approximately 13% in 2006 and 12% in 2013. Only around 4% ate it everyday in 2003, falling to about 35% in 2006 and 2% in 2013. The proportion who never ate fast food also declined, from roughly 4% to 2% and then 1%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The student successfully covers all parts of the task by reporting the main features of the bar graph and making relevant comparisons across the years 2003, 2006, and 2013. An appropriate overview is provided, highlighting the dominant frequency categories and the general trends. Key data points are selected accurately, such as the prominence of eating fast food once a week or once or twice a month, and supported with appropriate figures. However, there are a few minor discrepancies in the detailed data reporting when compared to the visual source, such as the figures for eating every day (where the student states 'falling to about 35%' instead of 3%). Despite these minor typos, the response fully satisfies the requirements of Task 1.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The response is clearly structured with a logical organization and progression throughout. The essay is divided into an introduction, a clear overview paragraph, and well-organized body paragraphs that detail specific trends. Cohesive devices are used appropriately to guide the reader, such as 'Overall', 'By contrast', 'Turning to the details', and 'Meanwhile'. Paragraphing is used effectively, and referencing throughout the text is generally clear and easy to follow, contributing to a smooth reading experience.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates a sufficient range of vocabulary for the task, allowing for some precision when describing data trends, such as 'proportion', 'fluctuated', 'considerably', and 'declining'. There are occasional spelling errors, such as 'twive' instead of 'twice' and 'sood' instead of 'food', along with minor vocabulary slips ('everyday' used as one word where 'every day' was intended). Nonetheless, the lexical range is adequate to convey the information clearly and effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

The writer uses a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures, incorporating various dependent clauses and comparative constructions such as 'making this the most common frequency' and 'compared with approximately 13% in 2006'. Grammatical control is generally strong, with a majority of error-free sentences. Minor errors, such as the pre-positional slip in 'declining around 15%', do not impede communication and allow the reader to easily follow the statistical reporting.

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