Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-09-18
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 pie charts compare the average ratio of sodium, saturated fat and added sugar that are the part of common meals taken in the USA. The overconsumption of these nutrients can have drastic changes on the health of the consumers.
Overall, individuals of the USA consume most sodium and saturated fat at the dinner time with the average percentage of 43% and 32% respectively. While snack is the major contributor of added sugar with the average ratio of 42%. Furthermore, the food taken as lunch and snack contain the relatively average level of sodium and saturated fate whereas added sugar is relatively less consumed during the lunch and dinner time. Moreover, the food used in the breakfast contains the least amount of sodium, saturated fat and added sugar. The consumption of saturated fat and added sugar in the breakfast is the same with an average percentage of 16% wheras the usage of sodium in the breakfast is even lower than the other two nutrients with an average percentage of 14%.
In conclusion, dinner and snack consumption is the major reason of intake of sodium, saturated fat and added sugar. The breakfast is the healthiest food as it contains the least amount of these nutrients. The individuals of USA should avoid the overintake of these nutrients in order to live a healthy life.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 7.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5
The student successfully addresses all parts of the task by reporting the main features of the charts and making relevant comparisons across meals and nutrients. An overview is provided, highlighting key peaks such as dinner for sodium and saturated fat, and snacks for added sugar. However, there are a few minor data inaccuracies in the body paragraph, such as citing saturated fat at dinner as 32% instead of the actual 37%, and describing lunch and snack sodium and saturated fat levels as having a 'relatively average level', which lacks precision. Despite these minor discrepancies, the overall response provides a clear summary of the visual data and satisfies the core requirements of Task 1.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0
The response is arranged coherently with a clear overall progression from introduction to body paragraphs and a concluding summary. Information is logically grouped by meal types and nutrient comparisons. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'Furthermore', and 'Moreover' are used to connect ideas, though some transitions feel slightly mechanical or repetitive in structure. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the introduction, body details, and conclusion, ensuring the text is easy to follow despite minor flaws in cohesion.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.0
The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, attempting some less common collocations and topic-specific terms like 'overconsumption', 'contributor', and 'overintake'. However, there are instances of unnatural phrasing and word choice, such as 'average ratio', 'food taken as lunch', and 'saturated fate' (spelling error). While these lexical errors do not impede communication, they reflect a Band 6 level where vocabulary control is sufficient but lacks the precision, flexibility, and natural fluency required for higher bands.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0
The student demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including relative clauses and subordinate clauses (e.g., 'The pie charts compare the average ratio... that are the part of common meals'). There are several grammatical errors and awkward structures throughout the text, such as 'are the part of common meals' (unnecessary article), 'dinner time' (missing preposition 'at'), 'wheras' (spelling error), and issues with article usage like 'the breakfast' and 'the dinner time'. Nevertheless, these errors rarely impede communication and the meaning remains clear.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.