Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-11-14

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 6.5)

The line chart illustrates the average monthly changes in the price of three metals ,in the percentage, by the name of Copper, Nickel, and Zinc, in 2014.

Overall, price of all three metals reduced rapidly from January to June, after that this trend became reverse, from July to December the price of all the three metal rise gradually. During the given period, price of Copper was relatively stable comapre to Nickel and Zinc.

In January, Nickel was the highest price changing category (6%), while Zinc became least fluctuating metal (only 1%). Through out January to June, price of Nickel decline singnificantly, from 6% to -3%, while from July to December it recover gradually, and reach to 1%.

The price changes in Copper remain almost stable across given period of time, which was around 2% from the January to December; however, it decline marginally till june, and reach to around -0.5%, then recover till December. Zinc's price was increased in starting, reach to 3% in February, after that it decline rapidly till june and remain almost steady till October at -1%, then again incresed rapidly till December, eventually end at 2%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

You identify the main patterns and support them with relevant figures: nickel falls from 6% to −3% by June, copper stays comparatively steady, and zinc reaches 3% in February before ending at 2%. The overview also highlights the broad shift from negative mid-year changes to recovery later in the year. However, it overgeneralises by saying all three metals reduced rapidly from January to June: copper’s decline is modest, and zinc’s changes are not uniformly downward. The claim that copper was around 2% throughout is also inaccurate; it is mostly between −0.5% and 1%, apart from January. For a stronger account, distinguish price-change percentages from actual prices and describe the metals’ different trajectories more precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate discussion of nickel, copper and zinc. This makes the main information easy to locate, and sequencing phrases such as “In January,” “Through out January to June” and “then” help show time progression. At times, however, the links are mechanical or the references are unclear. For example, “after that this trend became reverse” does not precisely identify which trend is reversing, while the overview’s broad claim about all metals is not fully supported by the later details. Improve progression by grouping the shared mid-year downturn and late-year recovery, then contrasting the metals, and use more precise linking phrases to connect those comparisons.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of task-related vocabulary, including “relatively stable,” “decline,” “recover gradually,” “marginally” and “fluctuating.” These choices communicate the general trends, and the meaning is usually clear. However, several word-choice and collocation problems reduce precision: “highest price changing category” is awkward, “price was increased” is unnatural, and “the price of all the three metal rise” uses an unsuitable form. There are also spelling errors such as “comapre,” “singnificantly,” “Through out” and “incresed.” Use standard chart language such as “recorded the largest monthly change,” “rose” and “fell,” and check spelling and word forms carefully. More precise vocabulary would also help avoid describing percentage changes as prices.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including clauses joined with “while,” “however” and “after that,” and the overall meaning remains understandable. Nevertheless, grammatical control is uneven, with errors in articles, agreement, tense and sentence construction. Examples include “price of all three metals reduced,” “all the three metal rise gradually,” and “it recover gradually, and reach to 1%.” The long sentence about zinc also joins several stages with commas, making its structure difficult to control. Practise consistent past-tense reporting (“fell,” “recovered,” “reached”), singular/plural agreement, and article use. Breaking longer descriptions into two well-formed sentences would help you show range while improving accuracy and punctuation.

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