Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-02

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 6.0)

The bar chart compares the frequency of eating at junk food restaurants among people in the USA between 2003 and 2013.

Overall, it is evident that in 2003 and 2006, the highest frequency of people of eating at fast food restaurants was once a week, whereas in 2013 people was visiting to restaurants once or twice a month. However, the lowest preference is given to everyday visiting to restaurants.

In 2003, almost 32% of people was visiting junk food restaurants. It was followed by the visiting of once or twice a month with 25%. The proportion of people going to fast food restaurants several times a week and a few times a year was lay between the range of 10%-20% which was similar in 2006 and 2013. The percentage of people who visit never visit to restaurant and visit everyday was just under 5% in three years.

Nevertheless, in 2013 the people visit to restaurant once or twice amonth and once a week was approximately 33% and 28% respectively. It hovered above25%

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by reporting the main features and making relevant comparisons across the years. However, some aspects are under-developed or inaccurately described. For instance, the overview correctly notes that 'once a week' was the most frequent category in 2003 and 2006, but misidentifies the 2013 peak by stating people visited 'once or twice a month', whereas the chart shows 'once a week' remained the highest category at 28% (though closely followed by 33% for once or twice a month). The body paragraphs capture several key trends, such as the stable figures for eating every day, but contain inaccurate data points, such as stating 'almost 32% of people was visiting junk food restaurants' in 2003 when referring to the single category 'once a week' as if it represented the total. To reach a higher band, the report needs greater precision in data extraction and a more thorough comparison of the categories.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a coherent overall arrangement with a clear introduction and an overall summary paragraph. However, cohesion is sometimes faulty or mechanical, and referencing is not always clear. The grouping of data lacks a fully logical progression, and transitional phrases are sometimes used awkwardly, such as starting the final paragraph with 'Nevertheless, in 2013...' where no contrast is truly established. Paragraphing is present, but the internal flow of ideas within the body paragraphs is disrupted by disjointed sentences and abrupt data shifts, such as listing percentages without clear comparative links. To improve, the writer should ensure smoother transitions between sentences and organise the body paragraphs by grouping related trends more logically rather than listing data points in a mechanical sequence.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

An adequate range of vocabulary is used for the task, with attempts to use less common items and synonyms, such as 'proportion', 'frequency', and 'preference'. However, there are notable inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'everyday visiting to restaurants' instead of 'visiting restaurants every day', and substituting 'fast food' with 'junk food restaurants' which alters the specific terminology of the prompt slightly. There are also minor lexical slips like 'amonth' instead of 'a month'. These errors do not seriously impede communication, but they restrict the score. To achieve a higher band, the student needs to demonstrate more precision in lexical choices, avoid informal phrasing, and use collocations more naturally.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over basic structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with subject-verb agreement and prepositional patterns, such as 'people was visiting', 'people was visiting junk food restaurants', 'was lay between', and 'visit never visit to restaurant'. Additionally, missing prepositions and awkward structures such as 'the people visit to restaurant once or twice amonth and once a week was approximately...' weaken grammatical control. While these errors rarely impede overall communication, they occur too frequently for a higher band. To improve, the student must carefully check subject-verb agreement, ensure correct verb tenses and forms, and refine complex sentence constructions.

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

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