Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · IELTS Momentum Workout · 2026-09-22

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows a town square and surrounding area in 2014 and the plans for development of the area to be completed by 2020. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 5.0)

The diagram illustrates the plan of a town square and the area around it in 2014 and also a plan for its development which needs to be completed by the year 2020. The plan includes a few changes like adding covered seating , childrens's playground in the centre of the townsquare near the bar and restaurant and the plant beds are also added in the middle in the place of bandstand .The fish market is planned to be replaced with a supermarket. The administrative building is required to be made into five sements ,which are then made as shops leaving some space in between them which was not present in the 2014 layout.The history museum is to be replaced by a local artists gallery. The bar and fish restaurant those are to be divided into five sections and be made into more bars and restaurants. The library also needs to be divided into three sections .

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response covers the main changes depicted in the maps, such as the replacement of the fish market with a supermarket and the history museum with a local artists' gallery. However, the overview is missing, and the student attempts to list every single detail rather than selecting and reporting the main features effectively. For example, specific descriptions like 'leaving some space in between them which was not present in the 2014 layout' miss the broader architectural or functional transformations. Furthermore, some spatial descriptions are slightly inaccurate, such as placing the playground in the centre near the bar. This places the response firmly at Band 5.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The text suffers significantly from a lack of proper paragraphing, as it is written as a single dense block of text. This makes logical progression difficult to follow. While basic cohesive devices and transition attempts are made ('The plan includes', 'The fish market is planned', 'The history museum is to be replaced'), referencing is often repetitive and mechanical. There is no clear overall structure separating the introduction, overview, and body details, which limits cohesion. This level of organisation aligns with Band 5.0.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, successfully employing terms related to town planning such as 'supermarket', 'administrative building', 'history museum', and 'gallery'. However, the range is limited, and there are noticeable word choice and collocation issues, such as 'sements' instead of segments, and awkward phrasing like 'those are to be divided into five sections and be made into more bars and restaurants'. Repetition of simple verbs ('is planned', 'is to be replaced') restricts lexical flexibility, earning a Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but control is inconsistent. There are frequent grammatical errors, punctuation flaws, and awkward phrasings, such as 'childrens's playground' (possessive error), missing articles ('the plan includes a few changes like adding covered seating , childrens's playground'), and comma splices or spacing issues before punctuation. Verb tense and voice consistency also falter in places (e.g., 'those are to be divided'). These frequent errors can cause minor reader difficulty, placing this criterion at Band 5.0.

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

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