Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-17

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows the process for recycling plastic bottles.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

How plastic bottles are recycled

Student answer (Band 6.0)

The diagram illustrates the cycle of plastic bottles: being discarded, being cycled and the procedure starts over again.

Overall, the production of recycling plastic bottles involves nine steps, which consists of four main stages: collecting used bottles, transferring into raw materials, producing new products and discard them if not needed.

Firstly, used plastic bottles are collected from garbage can and then delivered by truck to recycling center. After being sorted by workers there, the plastic bottles are compressed into blocks. Those blocks of plastic bottles are crushed by two sawtooth wheels into smaller pieces, after which is washed.

The resulting plastic pellets are utilized to be fed in a grinder to be ground even smaller pieces. Once this process is finished, they are heated to form raw material. The raw material is then packaged into pieces for later use, such as producing recycle plastic bottles, plastic bags and nylon clothes. Afterwards, those products would end up in trash bins, where they are collected again to produce new items.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover the main sequence from disposal and collection through sorting, processing, and making new products, and your overview identifies the process as a cycle with nine steps. Most stages are recognisable, including compression, crushing, washing, pellet production, and heating. However, some details are inaccurate or unclear: the pellets are not ground in a grinder; they are produced after the washed plastic is processed. The diagram also shows several possible end products, not specifically recycled bottles, plastic bags, and nylon clothes. The overview’s claim that products are discarded “if not needed” is not a stated stage, although the return arrow does show the cycle continuing. More precise reporting of the diagram’s actual labels and outputs would strengthen the response.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction and overview are followed by the stages in sequence, with “Firstly,” “After,” “Once,” and “Afterwards” helping the reader follow the process. The progression from collection to the final products and back to disposal is generally easy to understand. However, some links are mechanical, and the final sentence introduces a disposal step that is not explicitly labelled in the diagram. There is also a confusing transition in “The resulting plastic pellets are utilized to be fed in a grinder,” which makes the order of processing difficult to follow. Grouping the stages into clearer phases and using references such as “these pellets” only when the antecedent is clear would improve cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a reasonable range of process vocabulary, including “compressed,” “crushed,” “raw material,” and “collected,” which helps describe the diagram. Some less common terms are attempted, but several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for this context. “Being cycled” is not a natural way to describe recycling, “sawtooth wheels” is an imprecise description of the crushing equipment, and “nylon clothes” does not match the diagram’s T-shirt. “Packaged into pieces” also obscures the idea that the raw material is shown as blocks or bundles on a pallet. Choose precise process terms from the diagram and use natural collocations; this will make the account clearer without requiring more elaborate vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including a relative clause in “where they are collected again” and a time clause beginning “Once this process is finished.” The sequence is usually understandable, but some grammatical errors remain. In the overview, “nine steps, which consists” has a subject–verb agreement error, and “After being sorted by workers there, the plastic bottles are compressed” leaves the opening phrase awkwardly attached. The clause “after which is washed” is missing a clear subject, while “those products would end up” shifts unnecessarily to a hypothetical form. Review agreement, complete clauses, and consistent present-simple descriptions of processes. More accurate control of these structures would make the complex sentences clearer.

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