Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-10-24

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 given diagram illustrates how plastic bottles are recycled is produced.

Overall, the process consists of 9 stages, beginning with throwing plastic garbage in dustbin and ending with producing products like tshirts waterbottle and pencils from raw material of plastic.

Initially throwing waste plastic product into the dustbin. Next, recycling garbage truck comes to collect waste from dustbin. The material is then transported to recycling center for sorting the garbage which can be used for recycling later. Afterwards, the sorted waste items are being compressed into blocks.

Following this, those plastic blocks crushed by machine and go for washing directly. Subsequently, after washing, the plastic pellets are being produced by its machine. next, the pellets are being heated that will form a raw material . Finally, with that raw material, resulting in producing end products like tshirts , pencils, bags, lunch box from a waste plastic items that were thrown in dustbin.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You cover the main stages in the correct order, from placing bottles in a bin through collection, sorting, compression, crushing, washing, pellet production and heating, to making new products. The overview also identifies the process as having nine stages and describes its start and end. This gives the reader a sound account of the diagram. Some details are less fully reported: the sorting stage’s separation into accepted and rejected items is not mentioned, and the final products are listed without noting the diagram’s range, such as food containers and a carrier bag. The closed-loop return from end products to the bin is also not made explicit. Including these features would make the summary more complete and precise.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response is arranged in a clear sequence, with an overview followed by stages introduced through markers such as “Initially,” “Next,” “Afterwards,” and “Finally.” The paragraphs broadly separate the overview from the process details, and the reader can follow the transformation from bottles to new products. However, some linking is mechanical, and the final sentence is overloaded: it combines heating, raw material, end products, and the original disposal point. The transition “Following this” is understandable but does not clarify the crushing-and-washing sequence as precisely as it could. Use shorter stage-focused sentences and make the return loop a distinct final point to improve progression and cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “recycling,” “sorting,” “compressed,” “pellets,” and “raw material,” so the stages are generally identifiable. However, the range is limited and several choices are imprecise or unnatural, such as “plastic garbage,” “dustbin,” “recycling garbage truck,” and “go for washing directly.” “Products like tshirts waterbottle” is also unclear and lacks accurate naming. Repetition of “waste” and “plastic” further limits flexibility. Aim for precise process collocations such as “plastic bottles,” “collection truck,” “are washed,” and “manufactured goods.” Check spelling and presentation of compound product names, including “T-shirts” and “water bottles,” to make the description more polished.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more developed sentences, and the sequence is usually understandable. However, sentence structures and verb forms are not consistently controlled. The opening, “how plastic bottles are recycled is produced,” has an incorrect construction, while “Initially throwing waste plastic product into the dustbin” is a fragment without a finite verb. Passive forms are attempted, but “those plastic blocks crushed by machine” is missing an auxiliary, and “the plastic pellets are being produced by its machine” is awkwardly formed. Articles, plurals, and punctuation also need attention, as in “a raw material .” and the comma spacing in the product list. Build complete sentences with consistent present-simple passive forms, for example, “The bottles are crushed and then washed.”

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