Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-21

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 pie charts compare the percentage of three unhealthy nutrients found in the typical meals, if they are eaten frequently.

Overall, it is evident that the highest percentage of sodium and saturated are found in dinner, except the added sugar, while the least percentages of nutrients are found in breakfast.

First of all, the breakfast is containing the equal percentages of saturated fat and added sugar which is 16%, whereas, 14% of sodium is presented in the breakfast and snack meals. Also, sodium present in the dinner is 43%, which is higher than the saturated fat found in the dinner which is 37%.

Moreover, sodium is stood for 37% in lunch.with 26% in lunch. The snack meal has added 21% of saturated fat, however added sugar is available in 42%. In end, the dinner and lunch meals contain 23% and 19% added sugar respectively.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main pattern that dinner has the largest shares of sodium and saturated fat, and you include several relevant figures. However, the overview is inaccurate when it says breakfast has the lowest percentages for all nutrients: added sugar is lowest at breakfast, but sodium is equally low at breakfast and snacks, while saturated fat is lowest at breakfast. There is also a significant data error: lunch sodium is 29%, not 37%; the 37% figure belongs to dinner saturated fat. The response covers the charts only partially, with limited comparison of the key contrasts. It is also six words below the required minimum. To strengthen the report, give a precise overview and check each figure against the chart before comparing the meals.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic paragraph structure, moving from an introduction and overview to details, and signposting such as “Overall,” “First of all,” and “Moreover” helps show the intended sequence. However, the progression is not consistently clear: the final paragraph jumps between lunch, snacks, and dinner without a systematic comparison, and “In end” does not provide a clear concluding function. The sentence “Moreover, sodium is stood for 37% in lunch.with 26% in lunch” is especially difficult to follow because the ideas run together and the punctuation is faulty. Grouping the figures by nutrient or by meal, then using accurate linking phrases, would make the information easier to track.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant chart vocabulary, including “percentage,” “nutrients,” “saturated fat,” and “added sugar,” so the topic is generally clear. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate, which sometimes makes the meaning awkward: “sodium is stood for” and “sugar is available in” are not natural ways to report chart data. “The least percentages” is also an imprecise phrase. Aim for a small set of accurate reporting expressions, such as “accounted for,” “made up,” and “the lowest proportion,” and use them consistently. More precise vocabulary would help distinguish the nutrient shares without relying on repetitive forms of “found” or “presented.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts a mixture of simple and more complex sentences, including a contrast with “whereas” and a clause beginning “if they are eaten frequently.” However, errors are frequent, and some sentences are difficult to interpret. For example, “the breakfast is containing” uses an unsuitable verb form, while “sodium is stood for 37%” has an incorrect passive construction. The sentence beginning “Moreover” also contains a punctuation error where “lunch.with” runs two ideas together. Articles and sentence patterns are sometimes awkward, as in “the breakfast” and “the typical meals.” Practise accurate present-simple reporting structures, such as “Dinner accounts for 43% of sodium,” and check that each sentence has a complete, correctly punctuated structure.

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

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