Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-09-03

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.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The pie charts show the average percentages in typical meals of three different types of nutrients, all are unhealthy if they are eaten more than enough.

Overall, the amount of sodium and saturated fat consumed in dinner is higher than other of meal except in added sugar because the rate of added sugar is higher in snacks.

To begin with, breakfast and lunch the rate of sodium in breakfast is 14% and 29% in lunch, while the rate of saturated fat in breakfast is 16% that is slightly higher than in sodium and in lunch saturated fat is 26% that is slightly less than in sodium, similarly rate of added sugar in breakfast is 16% and in lunch 19%.

Meanwhile, the ratio of sodium is 43% in dinner and 14% in snacks, while rate of saturated fat in dinner is 37% and 21% in snacks, on the other hand added sugar in dinner is 23% and 42% in snacks, the ratio of added sugar in snacks is higher than in sodium and saturated fat.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers all parts of the task by identifying the main features of the three nutrients across four meal types. You successfully highlight the key trends, such as the high levels of sodium and saturated fat in dinner and the prevalence of added sugar in snacks. However, the analysis could be improved by grouping the data more effectively to avoid a list-like approach. While you mention the main features, the comparison between categories could be more analytical rather than just stating the percentages. Overall, you have provided a clear summary that addresses the prompt requirements.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is coherent and follows a logical progression from an overview to specific details. You use basic cohesive devices like 'Meanwhile', 'To begin with', and 'on the other hand' to link ideas. However, the paragraphing is somewhat weak, as the body paragraphs are quite dense and could be better structured to separate the nutrients or meal types more clearly. Additionally, some sentences are long and run-on, which makes the flow feel a bit mechanical. Improving the use of referencing and varying your cohesive devices would help the text read more naturally.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'nutrients', 'saturated fat', 'sodium', and 'percentages' correctly. However, the vocabulary is somewhat repetitive, particularly the frequent use of 'rate' and 'ratio' to describe percentages. To reach a higher band, you should incorporate more varied reporting verbs and nouns, such as 'proportion', 'figure', 'account for', or 'constitute'. There are no significant spelling errors, but the word choice is functional rather than sophisticated, which limits the score in this criterion.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that affect clarity. For example, the opening sentence has a comma splice ('...all are unhealthy if they are eaten more than enough'). There are also issues with preposition usage and sentence construction, such as 'the rate of sodium in breakfast is 14% and 29% in lunch', which lacks a verb for the second clause. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on sentence boundary punctuation and subject-verb agreement will improve your accuracy.

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

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