Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-01

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 pie charts illustrates the average percentages of sodium, saturated fats and added sugars in typical meals of the day consumed in USA. They can be unhealthy if eaten too much but are also required to the body in a calculated amount otherwise may result in malnutrition.

Among them, sodium is consumed lowest in breakfast and snacks while highest in lunch and dinner. On the contrary, added sugar is highest in snacks and lowerst in lunch.

Sodium is consumed 14% in snacks and breakfast, 29% in lunch and 43% in dinner. Whereas, 16% of saturated fat is consumed for breakfast, 21% for snack, 26% for lunch and 37% for dinner. As for the third nutrient that is added sugar is consumed 16% for breakfast, 42% for snack, 19% for lunch and 23% for dinner.

For the breakfast, sodium is lowest while other two are consumed in equal amount.For the snack, added sugar is highest and sodium is lowest. For the lunch, added sugar is lowest whereas others are consumed in equal amounts.Lastly, for dinner, sodium takes the crown with being highest at 43% while added sugar is lowest.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

The response addresses all parts of the task by reporting the main features and making relevant comparisons across the three nutrients and four meal types. For instance, you correctly identify that sodium is highest in dinner (43%) and lowest in breakfast and snacks, while added sugar peaks in snacks at 42%. However, the overview is somewhat limited, and some ideas are under-developed or contain inaccuracies in the detailed breakdown—such as stating that added sugar is lowest in lunch when the data shows dinner is actually lower in some respects or misinterpreting the meal breakdown in the final paragraph. To reach a higher level, you should provide a clearer, more comprehensive overview of the main trends right at the beginning and ensure every reported figure precisely matches the visual data without contradictory statements.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

There is a coherent overall arrangement to your writing, with a clear attempt to group information by nutrient and meal type across distinct paragraphs. You make use of basic cohesive devices and transitional phrases such as "Among them", "On the contrary", and "Whereas" to connect your ideas. However, the progression of information can feel somewhat mechanical or repetitive, particularly in the third paragraph where data is listed rigidly. Referencing is occasionally unclear, and the paragraphing, while separating the introduction, body details, and concluding meal breakdowns, could be managed more fluidly. To improve cohesion, try to integrate data points more smoothly into comparative sentences rather than listing every percentage in a formulaic pattern, ensuring a natural flow from one idea to the next.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

Your vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing you to successfully discuss the percentages of sodium, saturated fats, and added sugars. You make some attempts at less common vocabulary, such as "malnutrition", "consumed", and phrases like "takes the crown". However, there are notable word choice and collocation inaccuracies throughout the text, such as writing "The pie charts illustrates" (plural subject with singular verb form), stating that nutrients "are required to the body" instead of 'required by the body', and using "lowerst" (spelling error). Furthermore, terms like "takes the crown" are too informal for an Academic task. To achieve a higher band, focus on precise word choices, accurate word forms, and maintaining an appropriately formal academic tone while eliminating spelling slips.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, utilizing structures like relative clauses and comparative transitions to convey information. There are, however, some recurring errors in grammar and punctuation. For example, there is a subject-verb agreement issue in your opening sentence ("The pie charts illustrates"), missing prepositions or articles in phrases like "in breakfast" instead of 'at breakfast', and punctuation issues such as missing spaces after periods (e.g., "amount.For the snack"). While these errors do not severely impede communication, they persist throughout the response. To move to a higher band, you need to produce a higher frequency of error-free sentences, pay closer attention to prepositions and articles, and ensure careful proofreading of punctuation and basic grammatical agreements.

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

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