Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-17

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)

This bar chart illustrates that how often US people ate in fast food resturants between 2003 and 2013.Mostly people ate fast food once a week and once or twice in a month but very few people ate fast food every day.

In 2003, only 4 percent people ate fast food daily,17% peopel ate junk food in several times a week and 31% people eat once in a week, 30% people ate once or twice a month and some 13% people ate a few times a year,5% people never ate junk food.

In 2006, only 3% people ate junk food every day and 16% people eat several times a week, 33% people ate once a week and 25% people ate once or twice a month, 15% people ate a few times a year and 4% peole never eat junk food.

In 2013, 3% people eat fast food in every day and some 16% people ate several times a week, 27% people ate once a week, 33% people ate once or twice a month and 4% never ate junk food.

In conclusion, Mostly US people ate in fast food resturant in 2006 once in a week and in 2013 once or twice a month.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the main pattern that weekly or monthly visits were common, and your year-by-year paragraphs include several relevant figures. However, the overview is limited and the final conclusion inaccurately says weekly visits were most common in 2006: the chart shows once-a-week visits at 33%, narrowly above monthly visits at 25%, so that comparison is correct, but the overview should also capture the shift to monthly visits becoming the most common frequency in 2013. Some figures are misreported or omitted: in 2013, once-a-week visits were about 28%, not 27%, and the “a few times a year” figure of 15% is missing. The response therefore reports the data only partially, with key features not consistently selected or summarised.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an opening statement, separate paragraphs for each year, and a concluding sentence. This makes the information reasonably easy to follow. However, the year-by-year listing creates a repetitive progression rather than grouping the most important comparisons across the period. The overview and conclusion also repeat similar points without clearly synthesising the overall change. Linking is mostly limited to “In 2003,” “In 2006,” and “In 2013,” while long strings of figures are joined with commas, making some sentences feel crowded. Organise the body around trends—for example, the change from weekly to monthly visits—and use clearer sentence boundaries and comparisons.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant topic vocabulary such as “daily,” “once a week,” and “a few times a year,” so the reader can generally understand the categories being described. However, the range is limited and wording is often repetitive, especially the repeated use of “people ate” and “junk food.” Some choices are inaccurate or informal for this chart, including “junk food” where the task refers to fast-food restaurants, and “Mostly” at the start of the overview and conclusion. Spelling errors such as “resturants,” “peopel,” and “peole” are noticeable and reduce precision. Use consistent chart terminology and a wider range of reporting verbs, such as “accounted for,” “rose,” or “declined,” to describe the figures more precisely.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response communicates its basic meaning, and it attempts both simple statements and longer sentences containing several figures. However, the range of sentence structures is limited, and errors occur frequently. The opening phrase “illustrates that how often” has an incorrect clause structure; “4 percent people” needs an article or a different construction; and “people eat” shifts into the present tense while describing past data. There are also errors in prepositions and phrasing, such as “ate in every day,” as well as missing spaces after full stops and commas. These problems sometimes make the data-heavy sentences harder to read. Practise accurate past-tense reporting and divide lists into complete, well-punctuated sentences.

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