Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 18 · 2026-10-25

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 6.0)

The line graph illustrates the average monthly fluctuation costs of three metals in 2014.

Overall, it is clear that nickel had the highest price in beginning but it plummeted to lowest of all at the end of year. Meanwhile, price of zinc surged in December and copper faced a slight fall in its cost at the end of year.

In januray price of nickel was 6%. Then, it gradually dragged down to -3% till june. Afterwards, its cost soared to -1 in july and levelled off until september. Furthermore, it faced a -1% decline in october and rocketed to 1% in november and december.

In contrast, price of zinc rose from 1 to 3% in feb, then it fell dramatically till june and accounted for -1%. Moreover, it climed to -0.5% and remained stable until september and then again dropped to -1% in october. After that, it goes up steadily and reached to 2% in december. Whereas, copper plunged from 2 to 0.5% in march and stayed the same in april. Then, it again witnessed a decrease in its price to -0.5 in may and june. Next, its price increases to 1% until september and in next two months it comprised for again 0.5% and in december it lasts for 1.5%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover all three metals and give a clear overview of their contrasting movements, especially nickel’s sharp fall and zinc’s rise towards December. Most reported figures and trends match the graph, including nickel’s January peak and June low, and copper’s recovery after May. However, the overview is not fully accurate: nickel does not finish as the lowest series; it ends at about 1%, while copper is around 1.5% and zinc 2%. The statement that copper “faced a slight fall” at year-end also conflicts with its rise from about 0.5% to 1.5%. Some details are less clearly expressed, such as nickel’s fall to June being described as gradual despite the sharp drop from May to June. Prioritise accurate overall comparisons and summarise the main phases more precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a coherent overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview, and separate descriptions of nickel, zinc and copper. Time markers such as “Afterwards,” “In contrast,” and “After that” help the reader follow changes across the year. However, the organisation becomes less controlled in the final paragraph, where zinc and copper are combined in one long sequence, making comparisons harder to track. Some linking words are mechanical or do not express the relationship clearly; “Whereas” introduces copper without a complete contrast structure, and “Furthermore” adds information that is not clearly distinct. Use one paragraph per metal or group metals by shared trends, and make each paragraph’s progression explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of trend vocabulary, including “plummeted,” “soared,” “levelled off,” and “remained stable,” which helps describe changes rather than simply list figures. Some less common choices are inaccurate or unnatural in this context: “fluctuation costs” is not a natural description of monthly percentage changes, “dragged down” is informal, and “rocketed” overstates a rise from 1% to 1%. There are also spelling errors such as “januray” and “climed,” alongside awkward phrases including “it lasts for 1.5%.” These do not prevent understanding, but they reduce precision and control. Prefer neutral chart language such as “monthly price changes,” “fell,” and “stood at,” and check spelling and collocations carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including clauses introduced by “then,” “while,” and “afterwards,” and the main trends are generally understandable. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly with articles, verb forms and sentence construction. For example, “nickel had the highest price in beginning” needs an article and a more natural phrase (“at the beginning”), while “it goes up steadily” shifts into the present tense in a past-year report. “It faced a -1% decline” also has an unclear grammatical relationship between the verb and figure, and the final “Whereas” clause is not a complete contrast construction. Maintain past tense consistently, check articles and prepositions, and divide long sequences into complete, clearly punctuated sentences.

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