Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-23

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

IELTS Writing

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The provided Pie charts illustrates the average percentages of three forms of essential elements including sodium,saturated fats and added sugars in common meals consumed in USA, Which all together may proved unhealthy if excessive ammounts are taken.

Overall, it can be seen at a glance that dinner accounts for highest concentration of sodium and saturated fat, while snacks contains highest added sugar. Snack and breakfast comprises very low ammounts of sodium and saturated fat. Added sugars are also present in breakfast in very little quantity.

First of all, 14% Sodium is present in snack and breakfast. Lunch contains 29% sodium. As far as dinner is a major concern, because it contains 43% sodium. Than comes saturated fat 21% fat included in snack. 16% fat is present in breakfast which is a low number among other three meals. Lunch and Dinner contain 26% and 36% fat respectively. Breakfast and lunch contains 16% and 19% added sugars. Dinner comprises 23% added sugars. Snack accounts 42% added sugars.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response6.0
Coherence and Cohesion6.0
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main pattern accurately: dinner has the largest shares of sodium and saturated fat, while snacks lead for added sugar. You also report most figures correctly and include an overview, which addresses the key parts of the task. However, the saturated-fat figure for dinner is given as 36%, whereas the chart shows 37%. The overview’s claim that breakfast and snacks contain very low amounts of sodium and saturated fat is only partly precise: snacks have 21% saturated fat, more than breakfast’s 16%. The response reports the data but offers limited comparison across nutrients and meals. A clearer overview and more explicit comparisons—for example, contrasting dinner’s sodium peak with the snack sugar peak—would make the key features more fully developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and a paragraph reporting the figures. This gives the information an overall coherent arrangement. The progression within the final paragraph is less smooth, however, as it moves from sodium to saturated fat and then sugar without consistently signalling those shifts. Phrases such as “First of all,” “As far as dinner is a major concern,” and “Than comes saturated fat” are either awkward or do not clearly connect the comparisons. Grouping the figures into clearer sections, such as one comparison of sodium and fat followed by one on sugar, would improve progression. Use linking expressions selectively and make each transition show the relationship between the data.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant chart vocabulary, including “accounts for,” “concentration,” “contains,” and “comprises,” and the reader can generally understand the intended comparisons. However, several choices are imprecise or unnatural for describing percentages: “essential elements” mischaracterises nutrients that may be unhealthy in excess, and “36% fat included in snack” is unclear. There are also noticeable spelling and word-form errors, including “ammounts” and “proved,” alongside inconsistent capitalisation of “Sodium.” Aim for accurate, natural collocations such as “the proportion of sodium in dinner” and “the share of added sugar from snacks.” More precise vocabulary and careful spelling would make the report clearer and more controlled.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including the overview clause beginning “while snacks contains highest added sugar.” The meaning is usually recoverable, but some grammatical errors recur. For example, “The provided Pie charts illustrates” has a plural subject with a singular verb, and “snacks contains” and “Snack and breakfast comprises” also show agreement problems. The opening sentence is difficult to control because “Which” begins a fragment and “may proved” uses an incorrect verb form. Articles are also missing in phrases such as “accounts for highest concentration.” To improve, check subject–verb agreement, use complete clauses, and review verb forms and articles. These corrections would make your varied attempts more accurate and easier to read.

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