Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-11-05

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The graph below shows the average monthly change in the prices of three metals during 2014.

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

Average monthly change in prices of copper, nickel and zinc (2014)

Student answer (Band 5.0)

The graph illustrates the average monthly change of three metal prices in 2014.

Overall, the most dramatic change was in the nickel in June claiming the last position. In contrast, the most stable metal is copper and zinc also receive ups and down in several month.

zins started with 1% and in first month it price increase to 3% and after that it steadily started to decrease in -1% June and it remains stable for 4 month and then gradually increases to 2% at the end of the year. in addition ,copper price starts at 2% and steadily starts to decrease and goes to -0.5% and then they changes the gear and started to rise up , ending on 1.5%. furthermore ,the nickel price is the highest in the starting month of the year but started to fall downside ended on -3% ad then a little bit increase they receive and in the last month nickel price stops on 1%

In contrast , copper remains the most stable metal, ending on 1.5% in the year 2014 .Nickel received major downfall in their price goes on 1% in 2014 while zinc remained on top with 2% in 2014.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the three metals and report several relevant movements, including nickel’s sharp fall to about -3% in June and copper’s relatively small fluctuations. However, the overview is unclear and partly inaccurate: nickel does not “claim[] the last position” in June as a general trend, and copper is the most stable, while zinc also fluctuates. Some details are misreported or too vague. Zinc rises from 1% to 3% in February, but it does not decrease to -1% in June; it is about -1% then and later remains around -0.5% for several months. Copper ends at about 1.5%, correctly noted, but its movements are not described precisely. Select the main contrasts and give accurate month-to-month comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has an identifiable paragraph structure, with an introduction, an attempted overview, and descriptions of the metals. However, progression is difficult to follow because the body moves between zinc, copper and nickel without a clear organising pattern, then repeats the comparison in the final paragraph. Connectors such as “in addition,” “furthermore” and “in contrast” are used, but some do not express a clear relationship between the ideas. The long body sentences also combine several stages without clear punctuation, making the sequence of changes hard to track. Group the information into a clear overview followed by two focused comparison paragraphs, and use linking phrases only where they clarify the relationship between trends.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant vocabulary for describing trends, including “steadily,” “decrease,” “increase” and “stable,” and the reader can generally identify the intended subject. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are unnatural, such as “changes the gear,” “fall downside,” “receive ups and down” and “stops on 1%.” There are also spelling and word-form errors, including “zins” and “month” where a plural is needed. These choices sometimes make the description difficult to interpret. Build a more precise set of trend expressions—such as “fluctuated,” “fell to,” “recovered” and “ended at”—and check spelling and collocations before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and longer sentences, and the response communicates the broad subject and some key changes. However, complex sentences are often faulty, and errors in tense, agreement, articles and sentence boundaries frequently affect clarity. For example, “zins started with 1% and in first month it price increase” lacks a clear grammatical structure, while “the nickel price is the highest … but started to fall” shifts tense inconsistently. Several sentences run together, particularly the descriptions of copper and nickel, and punctuation around clauses is unreliable. Use past tense consistently for the 2014 data, form complete clauses, and separate each major trend into shorter sentences. More accurate control of these basic patterns would make your comparisons easier to understand.

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