Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-08-19

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 6.5)

The circular representations demonstrate how much sodium, saturated fat and sugar typical meals contain in USA.

To begin with, Americans consume as much as 43% of sodium in their dinner followed by lunch at 29%. Interestingly, the amount of sodium in their breakfast and snacks is found to be same at 14%.

Moving ahead, dinner, again, contains the highest proportion of saturated fat accounting at 37% ; by contrast, the least amount of this nutrient was seen in breakfast (16%). However, lunch and snacks were consisted of only 21 to 26% of saturated fat.

Furthermore, while sugar was the major component of snacks with 42%, its average amount in breakfast, lunch and dinner was noted to be 16%, 19% and 23%, respectively.

In general, snacks contained much of the sugar amounts than other nutrients whereas, sodium and saturated fats were mostly contained by the night time meal of the Americans.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response successfully identifies the main features of the charts and makes relevant comparisons. You have correctly highlighted the dominance of dinner for sodium and saturated fats, and snacks for added sugars. The overview is clear and provides a good summary of the data. To reach a higher band, ensure that all data points are described with complete accuracy; for instance, your description of lunch and snacks for saturated fat (21% to 26%) is slightly imprecise compared to the visual data. Overall, the response covers all parts of the task well and provides a logical summary of the information presented.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The response is logically organized with a clear progression of ideas. Each paragraph focuses on a specific nutrient, which makes the information easy to follow. You have used cohesive devices such as 'To begin with', 'Moving ahead', and 'Furthermore' to link your points effectively. The use of 'by contrast' and 'respectively' demonstrates a good grasp of cohesive structures. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the information flows smoothly from one section to the next. To improve, ensure that referencing is always precise to avoid any ambiguity in the comparison of data sets.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You have used a sufficient range of vocabulary to describe the data, including terms like 'circular representations', 'proportion', 'nutrient', and 'major component'. The use of 'respectively' is a good addition for clarity. However, there are some minor inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'lunch and snacks were consisted of', which should be 'consisted of' or 'contained'. Additionally, 'much of the sugar amounts' is slightly awkward; 'a higher proportion of sugar' would be more natural. Expanding your range of descriptive verbs and nouns will help you achieve a higher score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the majority of your sentences are clear, there are some grammatical errors. For example, 'accounting at 37%' should be 'accounting for 37%', and 'lunch and snacks were consisted of' is grammatically incorrect (passive voice error). The phrase 'same at 14%' is missing an article ('the same'). Despite these errors, the meaning is never obscured, and the punctuation is generally used correctly. To improve, focus on verb patterns and preposition usage to ensure greater accuracy in your complex sentences.

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

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