Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-12

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 5.5)

The picture illustrates the site of a farm in 1950 and the same site today.

Overall, there is a significant change in the beechwood farm, in 1950, it was simply designed with fruit trees, soft fruits and vegetables with chickens and barn, although there was farmhouse too with track and sheep too. Today, there is drastic change in the farm. with modern facilities available and farmhouse itself looks more upgraded.

In 1950, the farm was very simple with less facilities and no electricity available. There where fruits, vegetables and soft fruits, on its right there was track with barn and chickens too.

Today, farm is completely upgraded with modern facilities available and electricity too. Firstly, there are fruit trees, soft fruits, vegetables as the main source, in addition there is barn, chickens and farmhouse too. But holiday cottages with parking, camping field with parking is new additon, more importantly there are solar pannels available, farm shop and road is designed properly anyone who wants to visit farm can easily go through the farm by this road.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the two time periods and mention several relevant changes, including the new camping field, holiday cottages, parking, solar panels and farm shop. The overview also recognises that the site has become more developed. However, some details are inaccurate or unclear: the farm is not described as having “no electricity” in 1950, and the claim that the farmhouse is “more upgraded” is not supported by the plan. The response also says the road is “designed properly” without clearly comparing the original track system with the present road layout. To strengthen the report, describe the main spatial changes precisely—for example, the former tracks became roads, while the farmhouse and chicken enclosure remain and new visitor facilities were added. (12 words copied from the task prompt were not counted.)

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, an overview and separate descriptions of the two periods. This gives the reader a basic sense of progression. However, the overview and body paragraphs repeat several points, such as the presence of fruit, vegetables, chickens and the farmhouse, rather than developing a clear comparison. Linking is also sometimes mechanical: “Firstly,” “in addition” and “more importantly” do not consistently show the relationships between the features. The long final sentence combines several changes and becomes difficult to follow. Group information by location or by what stayed and what was added, and use clearer comparisons such as “while” and “whereas” to guide the reader.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant vocabulary for describing the plans, including “fruit trees,” “holiday cottages,” “camping field” and “solar panels.” These terms help identify important features, and the meaning is generally understandable. However, the range is limited by repeated general words such as “farm,” “facilities” and “available,” while some expressions are imprecise for a map report: “completely upgraded,” “main source” and “designed properly” do not clearly describe the changes shown. There are also spelling errors, including “additon” and “pannels.” Aim for more precise terms for land use and layout, and check spelling carefully. For example, describe facilities as “newly added” and explain that tracks were replaced by roads.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentences, and the main message can usually be understood. However, sentence boundaries and punctuation are not consistently controlled. In the overview, “Overall, there is a significant change in the beechwood farm, in 1950, it was simply designed…” joins separate ideas with commas; the sentence beginning “Today, there is drastic change…” also has an unnecessary full stop after “farm.” Articles and sentence patterns need attention, as in “Today, farm is completely upgraded” and “there is drastic change.” The phrase “there where fruits” also contains an incorrect verb form. Practise writing shorter, complete sentences first, then combine ideas with accurate conjunctions and punctuation.

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