Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 17 · 2026-11-05

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 illustrate the three type of nutrients with their average percentages in typical meals that was consumed in USA by people.

Overall, it is clearly noticeable that dinner showed their dominance in every nutrients except from adding sugar. While, breakfast showed the lowest share in consuming every nutrients in USA.

To begin with sodium nutrient which is consumed by population of USA . 43% of total population eat sodium by typical meals in dinner but only 14% of population consume sodium in breakfast . The percentages of sodium in lunch is 29% but the proportion of saturated fat in lunch is slightly decreases by 3% and in sugar the percentages is about 19% in lunch .

moving further with snacks which is highly consumed in adding sugar with 42% of proportion of the total percentages of meal. But in sodium and saturated fat their percentages is about 14% and 21% respectively. The citizens of USA consumed 37% of saturated fat in dinner. The proportion of saturated fat and adding sugar in meal of people of USA is remained same with 16 %.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify several important patterns, including dinner as the largest contributor to sodium and saturated fat, and snacks as the largest source of added sugar. However, the overview is not fully accurate: breakfast is not the lowest meal for every nutrient, since snacks have the same sodium share (14%), and breakfast and snacks are both below lunch and dinner for saturated fat. Some figures are also described imprecisely: 43%, 14% and 29% refer to the shares of sodium across meals, not percentages of the population eating it. The final claim that saturated fat and added sugar both remain at 16% is incorrect; only breakfast has 16% for both. Select the key comparisons accurately and explain them clearly to strengthen coverage of the chart.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has an opening, an overview and two body paragraphs, so there is a basic attempt to organise the information. The progression is less clear within the body: the first paragraph moves from sodium to lunch comparisons, while the second combines snack figures, dinner data and a final statement about breakfast. Linking phrases such as “To begin with” and “moving further” signal movement, but they do not always make the relationships between comparisons clear. Repeated references to “the proportion” and “percentages” also make some sentences difficult to follow. Group the information by meal or nutrient, keep related comparisons together, and use clear references such as “this figure” only when the referent is unmistakable.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant chart vocabulary, including “proportion,” “percentages,” “dominance” and “consumed,” and the reader can generally identify the nutrients and meals being discussed. However, the range is limited and several choices are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “three type of nutrients,” “adding sugar,” and “their dominance in every nutrients.” Repetition of “percentage” and “proportion” also limits precision. Use standard terms such as “added sugar,” “share” and “accounted for” to describe the data, and choose wording that distinguishes a meal’s contribution from the number of people consuming a nutrient. More accurate collocations would make the comparisons clearer and more appropriate for an academic report.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

There are attempts to use complex sentences, for example the contrast beginning “While, breakfast showed…,” but control is inconsistent and many sentences contain errors. Examples include “three type” instead of a plural form, “meals that was consumed” with incorrect agreement, and “the percentages of sodium in lunch is” with a mismatch between subject and verb. Sentence boundaries and punctuation are also unreliable, as seen in the opening fragment “To begin with sodium nutrient which is consumed by population of USA.” These errors sometimes make relationships between figures harder to understand. Practise accurate simple comparison sentences first, then add subordinate clauses while checking agreement, articles, plurals and punctuation.

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