Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-14

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 6.0)

The chart illustrates the average proportions of sodium, saturated fat and added sugar in the usual meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks) taken by the individuals of the USA.

Overall, highest percentages of sodium and saturated fat are present in the dinner whereas, snack items contain the highest amount of added sugar. Breakfast items have the lowest amount of sodium, saturated fat and added sugar but lunch shows a little differences in the percentages of these three types of nutrients.

With regard to sodium, food items consumed in the night contain the highest amount of it, about 43% . Breakfast and snack have the lowest amount of sodium, only 14% whereas lunch items have somewhat moderate amount , likely 29%. Similarly, the highest percentage of saturated fat is also present in the supper, 37%. Morning meals and evening snacks have 16% and 21% of saturated fat respectively, while meals of the daytime carry 26% .

Turning to added sugar, snacks are overloaded with it ,about 42% . Breakfast contains the lowest amount of sugar, only 16%. However, lunch and dinner have moderate amount of it, 19% and 23% respectively.

At a glance, foods of the morning time have the lowest amount of all these three nutrients, while snacks are overloaded with added sugar. Dinner is rich in sodium and saturated fat. whereas lunch has the highest amount of sodium too.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main contrasts accurately: dinner has the largest shares of sodium and saturated fat, while snacks lead for added sugar. The figures you report are consistent with the chart, and the response includes an overview as well as details for all three nutrients. This meets the task well. However, the overview is not fully precise: breakfast is not the lowest for every nutrient, since added sugar is lowest at lunch (19%), compared with 16% at breakfast—actually breakfast is lower; more importantly, breakfast and lunch comparisons should be stated clearly rather than described as “a little differences.” The final sentence also contradicts itself by saying lunch has the highest sodium, although dinner is highest. These unclear or conflicting points limit how fully the key features are presented; a more concise, accurate overview would strengthen the response further.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate detail paragraphs for sodium and saturated fat, then added sugar. This makes the information easy to locate, and transitions such as “With regard to sodium” and “Turning to added sugar” help signal topic changes. However, the final paragraph repeats overview points and introduces a contradiction, stating that dinner is rich in sodium but that lunch has the highest amount. Some linking is also mechanical, and the repeated “highest/lowest amount” pattern makes the progression feel less controlled. Grouping the comparisons more consistently and ending with a concise summary rather than repeating earlier claims would improve cohesion and clarity.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “proportions,” “saturated fat,” “added sugar,” and “moderate,” and the meaning is generally clear. There are also attempts at varied meal labels, such as “supper” and “morning meals.” However, several choices are imprecise or unnatural for a chart report: “individuals of the USA,” “food items consumed in the night,” and “overloaded with it” sound awkward or informal. “Amount” is also repeated where “percentage” or “share” would be more precise. These choices do not prevent understanding, but they limit precision and naturalness. Prefer neutral, consistent terms such as “meals in the United States” and “accounted for,” and avoid switching between meal labels when the chart uses breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including contrast clauses with “whereas” and “while,” and most sentences communicate the intended comparisons. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly with articles, agreement, and sentence boundaries. For example, “snack items contain the highest amount” needs a plural subject or a clearer singular construction, while “lunch shows a little differences” has a number-agreement error. In “Breakfast and snack have,” the article or plural form is missing, and the final “whereas” is incorrectly attached after a full stop. There are also inconsistent spaces before punctuation. These issues rarely obscure meaning, but proofreading sentence structure, agreement, and punctuation would make the report more controlled.

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