Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-25

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 4.0)

the illustration demonstrates the process of building a water clock.

overall, the process involved seven stages starting from water top on to empty and repeat for timing things.

to begin with, all the process start from a tap dripping in a bottle

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0

The opening identifies the diagram as a process for building a water clock, and the overview correctly notes seven stages and the final instruction to empty and repeat the process. However, the report stops after only a brief opening description and does not explain the stages or the apparatus in enough detail to describe the process. The statement that it starts with “a tap dripping in a bottle” is incomplete: the diagram shows water entering the upper bottle, with a straw acting as an overflow drain and water then dripping into a lower bottle. The required minimum of 150 words is not met, which contributes to the very limited coverage. Describe the construction and sequence through to marking levels and repeating the timing process.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is a basic sense of organisation: the response begins with an introduction, gives an overall statement, and then starts the sequence with “to begin with.” These signals help the reader recognise the intended report structure. However, the response ends before the process is developed, so there is no progression through the stages and no concluding description. The link between the overview and the first step is also limited, and the phrase “all the process start” does not clearly connect the tap to the next actions. Use separate paragraphs for the overview and the detailed sequence, then guide the reader with clear sequencing expressions such as “next,” “once the bottle is full,” and “finally.”

Lexical Resource: Band 4.5

The response uses a small set of relevant terms, including “illustration,” “process,” “water clock,” “stages,” “tap,” and “bottle,” so the topic is generally recognisable. However, the vocabulary is too limited to describe the equipment and actions shown across the diagram, and some combinations are unnatural or imprecise. “Water top on” does not clearly express the first stage, while “a tap dripping in a bottle” leaves the direction and purpose of the water unclear. Build a more precise process vocabulary by naming the upper and lower bottles, the overflow straw, the hole, and the calibration marks, and use accurate action verbs such as “attach,” “fill,” “drip,” and “mark.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts simple sentence forms and uses a present-tense description, which is appropriate for reporting a diagram. Meaning is partly accessible, but grammatical control is inconsistent. For example, “the process involved seven stages starting from” has an awkward participle construction, and “all the process start” has a subject–verb agreement error; “a tap dripping in a bottle” is also not a complete, clearly formed description of the first action. The response offers little evidence of varied sentence structures because it contains only a few short clauses. Practise accurate present-simple passive forms for process descriptions, such as “The upper bottle is attached to the stand,” and check agreement and sentence completeness when linking stages.

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