Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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 line graph demonstrates the average monthly price changes of three metals (copper, nickel and zinc) in 2014.

Overall the graph gives the information that prices of three metals were higher in the last month of the year. From the starting month of the year, every metal's price was gradually declining and the prices were down significantly in June. From July to September prices were remain same.

From the graph, in january the price of Nickel was comperatively higher than others and the changes was 6% with the comparison of previous month. After the first month, the price of nickel gradually declining and r

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

You identify the topic and include a broad overview, noting that nickel was highest at the start and that all three metals ended the year above zero. However, the response addresses the task only partially: it stops mid-sentence at “and r” and gives almost no account of the later monthly movements or meaningful comparisons. The overview also misstates the pattern: prices did not all decline steadily from January, and the sharp June fall was especially marked for nickel, not all three metals. The claim that prices “were remain same” from July to September is inaccurate; copper was steady, but nickel and zinc changed later. The response is 46 words below the required minimum. To improve, complete the report and select accurate key trends and figures across the year.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is some basic organisation: an opening sentence is followed by an overview and then a detail paragraph, so the reader can recognise the intended report structure. However, progression is limited because the response ends abruptly with “and r,” leaving the final paragraph incomplete and the account without a conclusion or full development. Connections between ideas are also basic, relying mainly on “Overall,” “From the starting month,” and “After the first month.” The overview’s broad claims are not followed by enough supporting details to make the sequence clear. Develop the report in a complete order—for example, describe the first half of the year, then the recovery toward December—and use clear links to show contrasts between the metals.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough task-related vocabulary to identify the subject and describe basic movement, including “average monthly price changes,” “declining,” and “higher.” This gives the response a minimally adequate range, but word choice and spelling errors are noticeable. “Comperatively” is misspelled, and “the changes was 6% with the comparison of previous month” is an awkward way to report a monthly percentage change. “Prices were down significantly” is vague when a specific metal and direction could be named. Aim for accurate, concise chart language such as “rose,” “fell,” “remained stable,” and “monthly change,” and check spelling. More varied and precise vocabulary would help distinguish the metals’ different patterns.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response includes some simple sentence forms and an attempt at a more complex time sequence, as in “After the first month, the price of nickel gradually declining…”. However, grammatical control is uneven, and several errors make the report less clear. In “the changes was 6%,” the subject and verb do not agree; “prices were remain same” has an incorrect verb construction; and “From the starting month of the year, every metal's price was gradually declining” uses an awkward tense and structure for describing chart data. The final sentence is incomplete, which also prevents the reader from following the intended point. Practise accurate past-tense reporting and forms such as “prices remained stable” and “the change was 6% compared with the previous month.”

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