Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-03

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The plans below show the site of a farm in 1950 and the same site today.

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



 

Student answer (Band 6.0)

The two figures depict the changes a farm has undergone from 1950 to today.

In 1950, the farm was linked by a road which has bisected a river stream. It had a large area allocated for sheep. Below the sheep area were tracks separating fruit trees, soft fruits and vegetables on the one side and barn, farmhouse, chickens to the other side. The south side of the farm was solely enclosed by the river.

At present, after some changes, the farm has changed substantially. At first the tracks are completely upgraded to well built roads. In the fruit trees area, a new farm shop has opened inside it. The soft fruits and vegetables have seen no changes over the course of time. The single sheep area has been removed completely and broken down into 4 parts: two parking, camping field and solar panels. The freshly built new road from left and right side of the farm converges to a single point in the center of the farm leading to a new area for barn. In the southeast side of the farm, nothing much has changed apart from the previous barn which has now been used for holiday cottages.

All in all, the farm has seen some significant redesign and upgraded its inner track for better roads and improved its parking to facilitate the incoming tourists.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers all key features of the two maps, including the removal of the sheep area and the addition of new infrastructure like the farm shop and solar panels. The overview is clear and identifies the main trends. However, some descriptions are slightly imprecise; for example, stating the road 'bisected a river stream' is not supported by the visual evidence, and the description of the new road layout is somewhat confusing. To reach a higher band, ensure that spatial relationships are described with greater clarity and precision, ensuring the reader can accurately visualize the changes based solely on your text.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized into an introduction, two body paragraphs, and a summary. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the 1950 layout from the current one. Cohesive devices such as 'In 1950', 'At present', and 'All in all' help guide the reader through the timeline. However, some transitions are a bit mechanical, and the referencing of locations (e.g., 'to the other side') could be more precise to improve the flow. Overall, the progression of ideas is clear and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, with some attempts at more specific terminology like 'bisected', 'converges', and 'facilitate'. There are some minor inaccuracies in collocation and word choice, such as 'well built roads' (should be hyphenated as 'well-built') and 'broken down into 4 parts' (which is slightly informal). While the range is sufficient to convey the meaning, it lacks the sophistication and precision required for higher bands. Expanding the range of descriptive adjectives and verbs related to spatial change would enhance the quality of the response.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'the tracks are completely upgraded' (tense inconsistency; should be 'have been upgraded') and 'the farm has changed substantially. At first the tracks are...' (awkward phrasing). Punctuation is generally functional, but there are minor issues with article usage and prepositional phrases. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on consistent tense usage when describing changes over time would be beneficial.

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

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