Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-10

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows the process for making a water clock.

Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information below.

HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN WATER CLOCK

Student answer (Band 6.5)

The linear diagram illustrates 7 key steps for building your own water clock. The process starts from the tap and ends with a manual step by step guide at the bottom.

Overall, it can be seen that the process starts from the tap to fill the bottle to a certain level, After that, the hole is exposed and water drips into another container to measure levels per minute. Finally, the entire process can be repeated by emptying the container.

The key details of the first stages include, filling a plastic bottle with water, which is attached to a stand with tape. On the side a straw is glued to the bottle and the next step is to conceal the hole at the bottom with a finger and allow the water to rise to a constant level of the straw from which it starts dripping.

The later stages involve removing the finger from below the first bottle and allowing the water to drip into another plastic bottle that is placed under with its neck cut down. The water is measured by a pencil to observe levels per minute and can be repeated to time tasks.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The report covers the main sequence and gives a clear overview: water is supplied to the upper bottle, then allowed to drip into a lower container, where levels are used for timing. It also includes relevant construction details such as the stand, tape, straw and cut-off bottle. This gives the reader a sound account of the process. Some details, however, are less fully or precisely described. In particular, the straw is an overflow drain that establishes the constant water level; the response says water rises to its level “from which it starts dripping,” which could suggest the straw itself is where the timed dripping begins. The final calibration step is also vague: the pencil marks lines on the lower bottle, rather than measuring the water directly. Clarifying these points would make the account more complete and exact.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response is arranged in a sensible sequence, with an introduction, an overview and paragraphs describing the earlier and later stages. Connectors such as “Overall,” “After that,” “Finally” and “The later stages” help guide the reader through the process. The progression is generally clear, although some linking and reference could be more precise. For example, “the hole” and “another container” require the reader to infer which bottle is meant, while “the process starts from the tap and ends with a manual step by step guide” is not a clear description of the sequence. The overview also repeats information that is developed in the body. More direct stage-by-stage linking and clearer references to the upper and lower bottles would strengthen the flow.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The vocabulary is adequate for describing a process, and the writer uses relevant terms such as “attached,” “stand,” “straw,” “drips” and “container.” There are also attempts at more specific language, including “conceal” and “calibration” (implied by the discussion of levels). However, some choices are imprecise or unnatural for this diagram. “The hole is exposed” is less exact than saying the finger is removed, and “the water is measured by a pencil” misrepresents the pencil’s role in marking lines. “Neck cut down” is also an awkward description of the bottle with its neck cut off. Choosing more precise process vocabulary and natural collocations would improve clarity and control.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The response uses a mix of simple and complex forms, including relative clauses (“which is attached to a stand”) and participle phrases (“allowing the water to drip”). Most sentences communicate the intended sequence, but some grammatical and punctuation errors remain. In “After that, the hole is exposed…,” the comma is followed by an unnecessary capital letter within the same sentence. The phrase “placed under with its neck cut down” lacks a clear object after “under,” and “allowing the water to rise to a constant level … from which it starts dripping” has an unclear clause connection. The opening sentence of the overview also shifts awkwardly between stages. Breaking complex descriptions into clearer clauses and checking sentence boundaries would improve accuracy.

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