Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 14 · 2026-11-05

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 illustrates the average percentages of Sodium,Saturated fats and Added sugars in typical meals consumed in the USA of nutrients, all of which may be unhealthy if eaten too much.

Overall,the Dinner is highest the percentages in all pie chart, while the Lunch is the middle percentages of nutrients, and the Breakfast and Snacks are low percentage than two other food.

However,the Sodium, Dinner is the high percentages of all other foods to 43% , whereas the Lunch is added to 29% in sodium and the low sodium in Breakfast and Snacks to 14%.

The Saturated fat added in Dinner significantlys rose in 37%, but the Snacks include the low saturated fat about 21% and lunch this add 26% saturated fat ,whereas the Breakfast add low saturated fat to all other foods.

However, the added sugar, Snacks by the rose in all other foods with 42%,and the Dinner added sugar was 23%,but the lunch added suger are low percentages about 19% and the Breakfast add suger significantly fall in all pie charts.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover all three nutrients and identify several important patterns, especially dinner’s high sodium and saturated-fat shares and snacks’ high added-sugar share. The figures you report for these comparisons are accurate, and the overview attempts to summarise the meal categories. However, the overview is not fully reliable: dinner is not highest for every nutrient, because snacks lead for added sugar, and lunch is not consistently in the middle. Some details are also unclear or incomplete, such as saying breakfast has the lowest saturated fat without giving its 16% figure. Make the overview more precise by highlighting the contrasting peaks and include the key breakfast comparison. This would make the main features clearer and more fully developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for sodium, saturated fat and added sugar. This helps the reader follow the nutrient-by-nutrient comparisons. However, progression within sentences is often difficult to follow, and linking words are sometimes mechanical or misplaced. For example, repeated uses of “However” do not always signal a contrast, while the sodium sentence beginning “The Sodium, Dinner…” has an unclear relationship between its parts. The overview also groups breakfast and snacks as low, although snacks are highest for added sugar. Use clearer topic sentences and connect each comparison directly to the relevant meal and figure; this would improve the flow and precision of the organisation.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “average percentages,” “sodium,” “saturated fat” and “added sugar,” so the topic is generally identifiable. However, the range of comparison language is limited, and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate enough to make parts awkward or unclear. Phrases such as “the middle percentages,” “the high percentages,” and “added sugar was 23%” do not express comparisons naturally. There are also spelling and word-form errors, including “suger” and “significantlys.” Aim for precise reporting verbs and comparison phrases, such as “accounted for,” “was the largest share,” and “was lower than.” This would make the data description more natural and exact.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple statements and longer sentences with contrast, for example the sentence comparing dinner and lunch for sodium. However, many sentence patterns are not controlled, and errors sometimes make the relationships between figures difficult to understand. The opening has subject–verb disagreement in “The pie charts illustrates,” and several clauses lack a clear grammatical structure, as in “the Lunch is added to 29%” and “the Breakfast add low saturated fat.” Articles, agreement and sentence boundaries also need attention. Practise building clear comparison sentences with a subject, accurate verb and figure—for example, “Dinner accounted for 43% of sodium, compared with 29% at lunch.” More reliable sentence construction will improve clarity.

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

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