Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-10-25

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 pie charts illustrate the average rate of nutrients, sodium, saturated fat and sugar in typical meal in the usa.

Overall, all nutrients are dramatically higher in dinner. Conversely, breakfast constitute less amount of sodium, saturated fat and sugar.

As can be seen from pie chart, sugar is considerably higher in snack than sodium and saturated fat. Similarly, amount of saturated fat is nearly as same as sugar in breakfast while both nutrients are slightly more than sodium, by 2%. Then, sodium registered as highest amount of nutrient in lunch, by 29%, while sugar canbe seen least, by 19%. Dinner consist 43% of sodium which is higest amount of nutrient than saturated fat and sugar. saturated fat accounts 37% of dinner and sugar constitute 23% of dinner among all nutrient. Finally, dinner consist of significiant amount of nutrient.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.5
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the three nutrients and report several relevant figures, including sodium at 43% in dinner and added sugar at 42% in snacks. However, the overview is inaccurate: dinner is not the highest meal for all nutrients, because added sugar peaks in snacks, and breakfast is not the lowest for every nutrient, since snacks have the lowest sodium share too (tied with breakfast). Some comparisons are also unclear or incorrect: saturated fat in breakfast is not nearly the same as sugar in breakfast; both are 16%. The response is 138 words, below the required 150, and this limits the detail and coverage. Give a precise overview, then compare the main peaks and lows across all three charts.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic structure, with an introduction, an overview and a paragraph of comparisons, and sequencing words such as “Overall,” “Similarly” and “Finally” help signal movement between points. However, the progression is not consistently clear: the discussion jumps from snacks to breakfast, lunch and dinner, then repeats dinner information. The final sentence adds no new comparison, while several ideas are compressed into long sentences, making relationships harder to follow. Organise the body by meal or by nutrient, and use each paragraph to develop a distinct set of comparisons. Clearer referencing and fewer repetitive transitions would make the report easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant chart vocabulary, including “accounts,” “registered” and “amount,” and the reader can generally understand which nutrient and meal you mean. However, the range is limited and several choices are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “average rate of nutrients,” “higher in dinner” and “significiant amount of nutrient.” Repetition of “amount,” “nutrient” and “consist” also makes the description less precise. Spelling errors such as “higest” and “significiant,” along with the joined form “canbe,” reduce accuracy. Use standard chart language such as “proportion,” “share” and “accounted for,” and check spelling and collocations carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more developed sentences, and the main figures are usually understandable. However, errors occur frequently in basic sentence patterns and agreement. For example, “breakfast constitute” needs a singular verb, while “Dinner consist” should be “Dinner consists” or “Dinner accounted for.” Articles and plurals are also inconsistent in “in typical meal” and “from pie chart.” The sentence beginning “Similarly” lacks a clear grammatical comparison, and punctuation and spacing are uneven. Practise accurate subject–verb agreement, articles and plural forms, then build longer sentences around one clear comparison at a time. These corrections would make your meaning more consistently clear.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.