Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-08-25

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 5.5)

The line chart compares the amount of montly charge in three diffrents metallic materials in the year of 2014.

Overall.it is noticable from the line graph that, the nickel experienced the most significant fluctuation,reaching the highest point at the beginning of the year and the lowest point in june. By contrast,copper shoewd relatively smaller changes throughout the period,while all three metals experienced a general recovery towards the end of the year.

Looking first at nickel,its price increased significantly by 6% in junuary before falling to 4% in february and 1% in march ,Its then remineded relatively stable at around 1% in april to may.However ,the figure dropped shraply to -3% in june ,the lowest point shown on the graph.Afther that.nickel stayed at around -1% from june to september before dowing agine to -2% in october .finally it rose considerably to about 1% in novembor and reminded at around 1.5% in december .

On the other hand, copper and zinc, copper started at approximately 2% in junuaryand declined graudlly to around 0.5% in march and april.it then fell to about -0.5 in may and reached around -1% in june. from july to september , copper growth to approximately 1% and remined stable,before down in october. Zinc, meanwhile, rose from about 1% in January to 3% in February, before declining steadily and reaching around -1% in June. It remained slightly negative until October, but increased sharply in November and finished at approximately 2% in December.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers all parts of the task by identifying the main trends for all three metals. You successfully highlight the significant fluctuations in nickel and the general recovery of all metals towards the end of the year. However, the report is slightly hindered by a lack of clear comparative analysis; while you describe each metal individually, you could improve by more explicitly contrasting their performances at key points (e.g., comparing the peak of zinc in February against the simultaneous decline of copper). The overview is clear, but the data reporting is occasionally repetitive, which prevents it from reaching a higher band.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is logically organized into an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. You use some cohesive devices such as 'By contrast', 'Looking first at', and 'On the other hand' to guide the reader. However, there are issues with punctuation and sentence structure that affect the flow. For example, the sentence 'Its then remineded relatively stable' and the frequent misuse of periods (e.g., 'Afther that.nickel') create a mechanical feel. Paragraphing is present, but the internal cohesion within the second body paragraph is slightly disjointed due to the rapid listing of data points.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'significant fluctuation', 'declined gradually', and 'remained relatively stable'. However, there are numerous spelling errors throughout the text, such as 'montly', 'diffrents', 'junuary', 'shraply', 'dowing', and 'reminded'. These errors are frequent enough to be noticeable, though they do not impede communication. To reach a higher band, you should focus on accuracy in spelling and attempt to use more precise collocations when describing trends, such as 'a marginal decrease' or 'a sharp recovery'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but the accuracy is inconsistent. There are frequent errors in basic grammar, such as subject-verb agreement ('copper growth to' instead of 'copper grew to'), missing articles, and incorrect verb forms ('reminded' instead of 'remained'). Punctuation is also a significant issue, with many sentences incorrectly punctuated or run-on. While the meaning remains clear, the high frequency of these errors limits the score. You should focus on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy and ensuring that your sentence boundaries are clearly marked with correct punctuation.

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

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