Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-11-07

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 6.0)

The line graph illustrates the mean percentage changes in price of copper, nickel and zinc of every month during the whole year of 2014. Overall, it is apparent that proportion changes in prices of these metal fluctuate throughout the time period. While, the zinc prices was lower at the start of year and higher at the end of year.

Firstly, the price of nickel was 6% in January after that plummeted to 1% in March with the passage of time average price of nickel fluctuated with the timeframe reached to-1% July. Furthermore, the cost remained same for three month after that there was slight drop in cost in October and then soared to 1% in November. While the percentage change in cost of copper vary throughout the year, it was at 2% in January and then steadily dropped over the time. The cost of copper after drop rose to 1% in July and remained stable for three months in October reached just under 1% . Moreover, the cost reached nearly to 1.5% in December.

Secondly, the price of zinc in January was 1% which increased to 3% in Feburary after that the cost dropped with the time period reached -1% in June. The value of zinc remained stable for three months from July to September and then cost of zinc soared to 2% in December.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You cover all three metals and include several relevant figures, such as nickel’s fall from 6% in January to around -3% in June and copper’s rise to about 1.5% in December. However, the overview is unclear and partly inaccurate: zinc was not lower than the other metals at the start, and its year-end figure was about 2%, rather than clearly the highest. Some details are also misreported: nickel reached about -1% in July, not -1% after a June low without noting the -3% figure, and copper was around 0.5% in October, not “just under 1%.” A clearer overview of the metals’ contrasting patterns and more precise reporting of key turning points would make the summary more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction and overview are followed by paragraphs describing nickel and copper, then zinc. This gives the reader a basic route through the information, and sequencing words such as “Firstly,” “Furthermore,” and “Secondly” help signal progression. However, the organisation within the first body paragraph is crowded, with several metals and time periods combined, and some links are unclear. For example, “with the passage of time average price of nickel fluctuated with the timeframe reached to-1% July” does not clearly show how the figures connect. Use separate, focused comparisons and clearer sentence boundaries; avoid relying on repeated “after that” and “while” to connect every change.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of task-related vocabulary, including “plummeted,” “fluctuated,” “remained stable,” and “soared,” which helps describe movement. Some less common choices are attempted, but several are inaccurate or unnatural in context: “proportion changes” is not the usual expression for the graph, “average price” confuses price with percentage change, and “cost … reached” is less precise than describing the monthly change. There are also spelling errors, including “Feburary,” and repeated use of “cost” and “price” makes the account less precise. Build a reliable set of collocations for describing rises, falls, stability, and percentage changes, and check spelling before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including clauses introduced by “while” and “after that,” and the main trends are generally understandable. However, some sentences contain several clauses without adequate punctuation, as in “with the passage of time average price of nickel fluctuated with the timeframe reached to-1% July.” There are also errors in agreement and verb forms: “the zinc prices was,” “the percentage change … vary,” and “the cost … rose” where the subject and tense are not consistently controlled. Articles and prepositions are also sometimes missing, for example “at start of year” and “reached to.” Use shorter sentences for individual data points, then check subject–verb agreement, past-tense consistency, and punctuation.

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

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