Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-09
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The charts below show the average percentages in typical meals of three types of nutrients, all of which may be unhealthy if eaten too much.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Average percentages of sodium, saturated fats and added sugars in typical meals consumed in the USA
Student answer (Band 5.0)
The pie charts illustrates gives information about the three types of nutrients, the average percentages in typical meals, which may be unhealthy if eaten too much.
In the overview, the charts shows percentages of sodium, saturated fats and added sugars in typical meals. In this charts, the meals in snack, breakfast, dinner, lunch.
Looking at the first, the average precentages of sodium in dinner and it is 43% this highest in this chart. However, the sodium consumed meal in lunch and it is 29%. Again the lowest in, sodium the consumed meals in snack and breakfast, it is 14%. In addition, the highest consumed meal saturated fat in dinner and it is 37%. Again in, the saturated fat consumed meal in lunch and it is 26%. Therefore, the saturated fat in snack and it is 21%. And the lowest the saturated fat consumed meal in breakfast and it is 16%.
Turning to the next, the added sugar consumed meal in snack and it is 42%, this is the highest in this chart. However, the added sugar in dinner and it is 23%. Therefore, the added sugar consumed meal in lunch and it is 19%. In contrast, the lowest in added sugar consumed meal in breakfast and it is 16%.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 4.5 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
You report the main figures accurately, including dinner as the largest source of sodium and saturated fat, and snacks as the largest source of added sugar. You also include useful comparisons, such as sodium at 29% for lunch and 14% for breakfast and snacks. However, the response only partly fulfils the task because it lacks a clear overview of the main patterns: for example, it does not bring together the contrast between dinner’s high sodium and saturated-fat shares and snacks’ high added-sugar share. The opening overview mostly repeats the chart categories, and the body lists figures without explaining their significance. A concise overview identifying these dominant patterns would make the key features clearer and more fully address the task.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The response has some organisation: it begins with an introduction, then discusses sodium and saturated fat before turning to added sugar. This gives the reader a basic route through the information. However, progression within paragraphs is weak, and the repeated pattern of “However,” “Again,” and “Therefore” makes the links mechanical rather than showing clear relationships between figures. Several sentences are fragments or awkwardly connected, such as “Again the lowest in, sodium the consumed meals in snack and breakfast.” The overview paragraph also repeats information from the introduction instead of establishing the main trends. Grouping the charts around comparisons—for instance, dinner’s high shares versus the snack peak for sugar—and using fewer, more precise linking phrases would improve the flow.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
You use relevant chart vocabulary, including “average percentages,” “highest,” “lowest,” and the nutrient names, so the reader can identify the subject of each comparison. However, the range is limited and several phrases are repeated, especially “the … consumed meal” and “in this chart.” Some word combinations are unnatural or unclear, as in “the sodium consumed meal in lunch” and “the highest consumed meal saturated fat.” There is also a spelling error in “precentages.” Use concise, conventional reporting language such as “the proportion of sodium in lunch” or “dinner accounted for the largest share.” More varied and accurate vocabulary for proportions and comparisons would make the report clearer and more natural.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5
The response attempts a few longer structures, including the opening clause “which may be unhealthy if eaten too much,” but most sentences follow a simple pattern and many are not grammatically complete. Agreement errors appear in “The pie charts illustrates” and “the charts shows.” Other examples, such as “the average precentages of sodium in dinner and it is 43%,” contain faulty sentence construction, while “Again the lowest in” is an incomplete clause. These recurring problems sometimes make the relationships between the meal and the percentage difficult to follow. Practise writing complete subject–verb sentences, for example, “Dinner accounts for 43% of sodium intake, the highest share.” Then combine accurate simple sentences with a few controlled comparisons.
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