Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-11-04
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 diagrams illustrate the site of a farm in 1950 and the same site today.
Overall, Major changes done in the site. Major things were added in place of sheep while minor changes done in other side of farm.
In 1950, in south east corner there was a large block for sheep and now it is replaced to many sub blocks. For example, two new parking's is constructed one is in the left corner of black road and the other is along the road just behind solar panels. Four solar panels were fixed at south east corner. A camping field is set in the center of parking and solar panels.
Turning to other side of field a farm shop is constructed near the fruit trees. A barn is replaced by holiday cottages and relocated at the left side of chickens. Other things like, fruit trees, soft trees, vegetables, farm house, and chickens remained unchanged.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
You identify the two time periods and note several important changes, including the new farm shop, camping field, solar panels, parking areas and holiday cottages. However, some details are inaccurate: the sheep area is in the north of the 1950 plan, not the south-east, and the solar panels are in the north-east today, not the south-east. The barn was not replaced; it remains on the site, while the holiday cottages occupy a different area. The claim that the other features remained unchanged also overlooks the internal roads and the relocation of the barn. Your overview is very general, and the response is 142 words, below the 150-word minimum. Add a clearer summary and report locations and changes more precisely.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response has a basic overall structure: an introduction, a brief overview and descriptions of changes in different parts of the site. Phrases such as “Overall” and “Turning to other side” help signal movement between points. However, the progression is not consistently clear. The overview repeats “Major” and does not specify the main pattern of development, while the later details move between parking, solar panels, camping and buildings without a clear spatial sequence. The reference in “the other side of farm” is also vague. Organise the description by area—for example, the western fields and new facilities, then the eastern and central buildings—and use clearer links between the 1950 layout and today.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
You use some relevant vocabulary for describing maps, including “replaced,” “constructed,” “relocated” and “remained unchanged,” and the reader can generally understand the features you mean. However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward, such as “Major changes done,” “parking’s,” “black road,” and “sub blocks.” “Soft trees” also misnames the soft-fruit area. These errors make some descriptions less precise, especially when identifying locations and changes. Aim to use the labels shown on the plans and choose natural map-description phrases, such as “major changes have taken place,” “parking areas,” and “smaller plots.” This would make your account clearer and more appropriately formal.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
You attempt a mixture of simple statements and longer sentences, and the basic meaning is usually recoverable. However, errors in verb forms, articles, agreement and sentence construction are frequent enough to make parts of the response awkward. For example, “Major changes done in the site” needs a complete verb phrase, while “two new parking’s is constructed” has problems with the plural noun and subject–verb agreement. “A camping field is set in the center of parking and solar panels” also has an unclear grammatical relationship between the features. Use accurate past and present forms to compare the plans, and check articles and singular/plural agreement. Short, complete sentences would help you express the locations more reliably.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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