Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-20

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 charts illustrates the average proportions of sodium, saturated fats and added sugars in typical meals - breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks - consumed in the USA.

Overall, dinner constituted for the highest proportion of sodium. Similarly, the saturated fat was mostly eaten in dinner. Whereas, breakfast carried the least proportion of all three types of nutrients. However, added sugars were mostly consumed in snacks.

With regards to the proportions of each nutrient, sodium was mostly eaten in dinner followed by 29% in lunch. While, the lowest proportions were consumed in snacks and breakfast both at 14%. Similarly, saturated fat was mostly consumed in dinner at 37%, lunch at 26% while snack and breakfast carried only 21% and 16% respectively. Conversely, added sugars was mostly consumed in snack with a share of 42%. Although, dinner constituted for 23% while breakfast and lunch at 16% and 19% respectively.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main patterns accurately: dinner has the largest shares of sodium and saturated fat, while snacks lead for added sugar, and you include relevant figures such as 43%, 37% and 42%. The overview also notes breakfast’s generally low proportions. This covers the task well, though some comparisons are less fully developed—for example, you could explicitly contrast the 14% sodium shares at breakfast and snacks with dinner’s 43%, or compare the different meal patterns across all three nutrients. The response is 136 words, below the 150-word minimum; the 10 words copied from the prompt are not counted. Add a little more data-based comparison rather than repetition to complete the summary.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview and a paragraph reporting figures. The main points are generally easy to follow, and phrases such as “Similarly” and “Conversely” signal relationships between the nutrients. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical or faulty. “Whereas” begins a sentence fragment after the overview, and “Although” is used to introduce a sentence that does not complete a concessive structure. The final paragraph also moves through each nutrient in sequence without much synthesis, so comparisons across categories are limited. Use complete sentences and organise the details into clearer comparisons—for instance, group sodium and saturated fat, then contrast their dinner peaks with the snack peak for sugar.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of task-related vocabulary, including “proportions,” “constituted” and “consumed,” and the meaning of the data remains clear. There are, however, several inaccurate or unnatural collocations: “dinner constituted for” and “breakfast carried the least proportion” do not express the comparisons naturally. Repetition of “mostly eaten/consumed” also limits flexibility. Choose precise reporting language such as “accounted for,” “represented” or “made up,” and vary the verbs where appropriate. Be consistent with the chart’s labels, especially “saturated fat” and “added sugar,” rather than shifting between singular and plural forms. These improvements would make the description more idiomatic and precise.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and more complex forms, and most of the figures can be understood without difficulty. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly in agreement and sentence construction. “The charts illustrates” has a plural subject with a singular verb, while “added sugars was” has a plural noun with a singular verb. “Whereas, breakfast carried…” and “Although, dinner constituted…” are incomplete or incorrectly punctuated subordinate clauses. There is also an awkward construction in “lunch at 26% while snack and breakfast carried…” because the comparison is not expressed in a fully parallel sentence. Check subject–verb agreement and ensure that contrast words connect complete clauses; these corrections would improve accuracy while preserving your attempts at complex sentences.

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