Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Momentum Workout · 2026-10-14

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 5.5)

The maps compare a city square and surrounding area in 2014 and plan for development of area to be completed by 2020.

Overall, in 2014 town square had more open space with the library and history museum. The fountain and town hall remain at same place in both maps. Whereas new plan shows more shops, restaurant and bars more facilities for people.

There is no any change take place of fountain and town hall in both maps. In 2014, the fish market situated at left corner of north side which converted to supermarket. Beside there was the history museum which replaced by a local artist gallery in map of new plan. The library, fish restaurant and a bar demolished and new bars and restaurants opened and a good covered seating area with children's playground take place infront of it.

The administrative building reformed in so many shops. the bandstand deconstructed and new plant beds erected in plan map of 2020.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main purpose of the plans and give a useful overview: the square gains more commercial and recreational facilities, while the fountain and town hall remain. Several key changes are also accurately reported, including the fish market becoming a supermarket, the museum becoming a gallery, and administrative buildings being replaced by shops. This covers the task well, with some comparison between the two maps. However, some details are unclear or incomplete: the library is said to be demolished, although the plan does not show what replaces it, and the seating and playground are described imprecisely as being “in front” of the new businesses. The plant beds are mentioned, but their northern location is not explained. More precise coverage of these features would make the account more fully developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure, moving from an introduction and overview to details about the changes, and the reader can generally follow the comparison. However, progression within the detail paragraph is uneven: changes to the northern and western buildings, southern businesses, seating, playground and eastern shops are combined without a clear spatial order. Linking is also limited and sometimes awkward. For example, “Whereas” begins a sentence fragment, while “Beside there was” does not clearly show the relationship between the fish market and museum. Organise the details by area—for example, north and west, then the centre and south, then east—and use clear links such as “Meanwhile” or “In the southern section” to guide the reader.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant map vocabulary, including “fountain,” “fish market,” “covered seating area,” “children’s playground” and “administrative building,” so the main changes are usually understandable. There are also attempts at more specific language, such as “converted to” and “replaced by.” However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, including “reformed in so many shops,” “deconstructed” for the bandstand, and “take place” for the playground. “Good” is too general to describe the seating. These choices sometimes make the intended change less precise. Build a reliable set of verbs for map descriptions—such as “was replaced by,” “was converted into,” “was removed” and “was added”—and use precise location phrases to describe where each feature is situated.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, and the present and past tenses generally help distinguish the existing map from the proposed plan. Nevertheless, errors occur in basic sentence construction and in the more complex attempts. For example, “plan for development of area” is missing articles, “There is no any change take place” has an incorrect verb pattern, and “Whereas new plan shows” is not a complete sentence in this context. There are also problems with agreement and tense in “the library, fish restaurant and a bar demolished and new bars and restaurants opened.” Use complete sentences, check articles and subject–verb agreement, and keep past forms for 2014 features and future or planned forms for the 2020 proposals. This will make your meaning more consistently clear.

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

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