Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-10

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 5.5)

The bar chart illustrates the moderate proportion of three different types of nutrients in the usual meals in which the overconsumption leads to health issues.

in dinner, a typical meal consists of the largest share of sodium which is 43%. A similar trend is followed by saturated fat by seving 37%. However, the dinner includes less than a quarter of added sugar. It is seen that snack and breakfast contains exactly same proportion of sodium which is the least among all other nutrients. Surprisingly, share of added sugar rises to thrice the sodium in snacks. Whereas, both saturated fat and added sugar remain constant in breakfast.

In lunch both sodium and saturated fat are in a moderate level which is approximately a quarter. Despite, added sugar is only 19% in lunch.

To sum up, dinner and lunch are the meals which leads to the intake of the greater intake of sodium and saturated fat. Furthermore, added sugar is elavted due to intake of snacks. On the contrary, breakfast is the one with the least intake of nutrients

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify several important patterns accurately: dinner has the highest sodium and saturated-fat shares (43% and 37%), while snacks account for the largest proportion of added sugar (42%). You also note that breakfast and snacks each contain 14% sodium. However, some comparisons are unclear or inaccurate: sodium and saturated fat at lunch are not both approximately a quarter, since sodium is 29%; and breakfast is not the meal with the least intake across all nutrients, because snack sodium is equally low and breakfast’s 16% added sugar is lower than snack sugar but not the lowest overall. The overview is present, but it would be stronger if it clearly compared all three nutrients and highlighted the contrasting snack pattern.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure, moving from dinner and snacks to lunch and then a concluding summary. This gives the reader a basic route through the information. However, progression is uneven: the first body paragraph combines several meal comparisons, while lunch receives only a brief paragraph, and the conclusion repeats earlier points rather than synthesising the chart’s main contrasts. Some linking is awkward or unclear, particularly “Whereas” at the start of a sentence and “Despite” before a complete clause. Organise the body around clearer comparisons—for example, dinner versus snacks, followed by breakfast and lunch—and use linking expressions only where the relationship between ideas is explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant chart vocabulary such as “proportion,” “share,” “intake,” and “overconsumption,” and terms for the three nutrients are generally clear. However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, including “moderate proportion,” “a typical meal consists of the largest share,” “by seving,” and “added sugar is elavted.” “Constant” is also unsuitable for describing equal values across meal categories; “the same” or “unchanged” would be clearer. Spelling errors such as “seving” and “elavted” reduce precision. Aim for straightforward, accurate reporting language, such as “accounts for,” “represents,” and “is highest in,” rather than forcing less natural phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple and more complex sentences, including contrast structures with “However” and “Despite,” and most of the chart’s meaning remains understandable. Some grammatical errors nevertheless affect clarity. For example, “snack and breakfast contains” has a subject–verb agreement problem, while “the meals which leads” also needs plural agreement. The sentence beginning “Whereas” is a dependent clause presented as a complete sentence, and “Despite, added sugar is only 19%” uses an incorrect clause pattern. Capitalisation at the start of the second paragraph and punctuation around several clauses also need attention. Practise complete sentence structures and check agreement and clause links during editing.

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