WRITING – TASK 1

INTRODUCTION

The chart shows data about the average weekly sales of The graph gives information about the visitors to Cardiff
two coffee shops in New York in 2015. and Dublin from 2010 to 2020.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the
main features and make comparisons where relevant. main features and make comparisons where relevant.
Write a minimum of 150 words Write a minimum of 150 words
Your introduction should always paraphrase the given statement, meaning you should write it again in your own words.
Memorising some good phrases to start a bar graph should help as well, but make sure the phrase you use is relevant to the
given IELTS bar graph in the real exam.

Paraphrasing demonstrates to the examiner that you have fully understood the meaning of the writing task 1 statement and
that you have the knowledge and understanding to be flexible with the language. The aim is to change the words and structure
of the original statement whilst maintaining the meaning of the text.

Successful paraphrasing may involve some of the following:

• Using synonyms/parallel expressions
• Changing the word order of the sentence
• Changing the phrase from active to passive
• Changing the form of words (e.g., noun to verb)

Example of paraphrasing
The chart shows consumer spending on luxury goods in the UK in 2010 and 2020.

Paraphrased statement:

The chart illustrates the amount of money spent on luxury goods by consumers in the United Kingdom in the years 2010
and 2020.
Other things to consider when writing your introduction of a bar chart:
• You do not need to change every word to paraphrase a text successfully.
• You may list given categories (if the list is not too long).
• Include any dates as this is important for tense.
• Write 1-2 sentences maximum.
• Look at the chart itself to see if there is any additional information to introduce not given in the statement.
OVERVIEW (Static Chart)
Your aim in academic writing task 1 is to produce a 'clear overview' where you select and describe the main features/ trends
from the bar chart. It is very important to include an overview paragraph for your writing task 1 response. The examiner will be
looking for this and candidates who do not include an overview paragraph will be extremely difficult to score above a band
score 5.0 in task achievement.

Here are some key things to consider when writing your overview:
• Start your overview with 'Overall' to make it easy for the examiner to locate your overview paragraph.
• Your key features should stand out as the highest or overall figures in some way.
• You should not give precise figures for your overview, save this for your main body paragraphs.
MAIN BODY PARAGRAPHS
You should have two main body paragraphs in your report to meet coherence and cohesion. Besides, this approach is logical
and easy to follow for the reader.
There are different ways you could choose to organise your paragraphs depending on the data.

For example:
Main Body Paragraph 1 - Compare the highest and lowest categories in the dataset
Main Body Paragraph 2 - Summarise and compare the other categories

The content of your body paragraphs will depend on the chart, but here are some general points to consider:
• Make sure to use the correct tense (look carefully at the given dates, are they in the past, present, future, or perhaps they
range from the past to the predicted future)
• Determine if the chart is comparative or superlative
• Always provide data and support your sentences with numbers
• Do not just provide a long list of numbers; the examiner will check every number and they need to be accurate and clear
for the reader
• Use symbols given to you on the axis for currency, percentage etc. (e.g., £, $, %)
• Avoid repetition
Vocabulary for Accuracy
When describing bar graph IELTS task 1, you will often find that a figure cannot be precisely determined and you have to
estimate the number. To show flexibility with your language, you can use words and phrases to estimate the figures.
IELTS Bar Graph Sample (Static)

The chart shows data about the average weekly sales of two coffee shops in New York in 2015.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where
relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Sample Answer
The bar chart compares the most popular types of coffee sold by two coffee shops in New York in a typical week in 2015. The
chart shows average sales of eight items, including iced coffees, Americanos and espressos, in Club Coffee and
Espresso Express.

Overall, it can be seen that Club Coffee is generally the busiest coffee shop, outselling Espresso Express in six out of eight
coffee items. On the whole, stronger coffees such as espressos and flat whites were not as popular as weaker coffees like
cafe lattes or cappuccinos.

In terms of sales at Club Coffee, cafe lattes came top of the list, with an average of around 135 sold each week. Cappuccinos
and Americanos were the next best sellers, with around 115 and 100 of these drinks sold respectively. Club coffee sold
slightly more decaf coffees than iced coffees, with roughly 75 of each in total being sold per week on average. Espressos and
caramel lattes were not nearly as popular, with just 25 and 18 sold in turn.

Cafe lattes were also the number-one purchase in Espresso Express, with just over 120 average items sold in a week.
Cappuccinos were third, at around 65 sales. Caramel lattes came next, with just over 60, three times as many as are sold in
Club Coffee. Decaf coffees and flat whites were joint fifth, with 50 sales apiece, followed by iced coffees at approximately 45
sales a week. The least popular item in Espresso Express was espressos with around 25 sales.
IELTS Line Graph Sample (Dynamic)

The graph gives information about the visitors to Cardiff and Dublin from 2010 to 2020.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.
Write a minimum of 150 words
OVERVIEW (Dynamic Chart/Graph
The overview for dynamic chart should be one paragraph that summarises the key trends shown in the line graph(s). The
key trends are the main increases and decreases in the graph; in other words, the most noticeable features. Do not go into
too much detail by referring to specific figures, save the detail for your main body paragraphs.

MAIN BODY PARAGRAPHS

Your body paragraphs should go into more detail about the key information in the line graph(s). You need to make your
paragraphs clear and organise them logically. Here's a possible example:
Main Body Paragraph 1 - Describe the changes in one category (e.g., travellers to Cardiff)
Main Body paragraph 2 - Describe the changes in another category (e.g., travellers to Dublin) and make comparisons with
the first category

The content of your body paragraphs will depend on the graph(s) but here are some general points to consider:
• Be selective when choosing what lines to describe (you are being marked on your ability to report on the key features)
• Be accurate when you are reading and writing about the data
• Refer to any units given on the graph's axes (such as %, £, $)
• Use a range of linking words, adjectives, adverbs, nouns and verbs
• Use different time expressions to describe the passage of time
• Use a range of vocabulary and grammatical structures to describe change
Language to Describe Trends
A line graph will illustrate different trends that you need to describe. This could be an upward trend, a downward trend or other
noticeable trends.
Adjectives and Nouns to Describe Change
Time Expressions
Sample Answer
The graph shows information about how many people visited Cardiff and Dublin over a 10-year period between 2010 and 2020.
Overall, what stands out from the graph is that there was an upward trend in the number of visitors to Cardiff, but the number
of visitors to Dublin saw a significant decrease over the period. A further additional point is that Dublin had more visitors in
2010, but in 2020, Cardiff was much more popular than Dublin.

In detail, the number of visitors to Cardiff started at around 1.5 million (m) in 2010 and then the figure rose steadily to about
2.3 m in 2013. After that, the figure levelled off and stayed at 2.3 m until 2014. Having fallen slightly to about 1.7 m in 2017,
the number of visitors then soared, rising sharply to just under 4 m in 2018. Lastly, there was a gradual increase, with the final
figure finishing at 5 m in 2020.

However, if we look at the number of visitors to Dublin, the trend was very different. The number of visitors started at around
4.9 m in 2010, after which there was a considerable fall to approximately 2.3 m in 2013. After a slight increase to 2.5 m in
2015, the figure then declined steadily to just over 2 m before finishing at 2 m.
PIE CHART
The pie charts provide data about the 10 most popular university subjects at a New York university in 2000 and 2010.
Summarise the charts by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Overview
You should not go into detail just yet, you only need to summarise information that shows the highest/lowest proportions in the
charts, or biggest changes in the data.

To identify the main trends in the charts, consider asking yourself the following questions:
• Which sector was the largest in the given years?
• Which sector was the smallest?
• Did each sector change a lot or a little in the given years?
• Did any sectors increase or decrease over time?
Main Body Paragraphs
Your two main body paragraphs will go into detail about the key features you highlighted in your overview. You need to refer to
the data accurately - always include the units given in the charts (e.g., %). You should also include the years for each sector
you are describing.

Organise your main body paragraphs logically. For instance, one paragraph could focus on the first chart, and the second
paragraph on the second chart. Make sure to include some comparisons between the charts.

It is also important that you use the correct tense, for example:
• Pie chart in the past: The proportion of energy produced by solar was 20% in 2010.
• Pie chart in the future: The proportion of energy produced by solar will increase by 50% by 2050.
Vocabulary for Ratios
Expressing Percentages with Similar Phrases
To avoid repetition, you can express percentages from the pie charts using different phrases whilst maintaining the same
meaning.
Sample Answer
The pie charts show information about the percentage of people who studied ten selected university subjects at a university in
New York between 2000 and 2010.

Overall, what stands out from the pie charts is that the most popular subject in both 2000 and 2010 was economics. Another
interesting point is that the biggest change was relating to English, which fell dramatically over the decade.

If we look at 2000, economics was considerably more popular than science, with figures of 24% and 20% respectively.
Engineering and English were equally popular at 15%. Twice as many people studied mathematics as accounting, with the
former being 10% and the latter 5%. Finally, a slightly larger percentage of people studied art and design (2%) than Mandarin
(1%).

Regarding the changes in 2010, economics went up slightly from 24% to 30%. By contrast, the number of science students
dropped slightly from 20% to 16% in 2010. Mathematics stayed the same percentage in both years at 10%. Finally, in 2000,
15% of students studied English; but by 2010 the figure fell dramatically to just 2%.
Linear or Man-made Process

Cyclical or Natural Process

 The diagram below shows the manufacturing process for making sugar from sugar cane.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
OVERVIEW
Overviews for process questions can be done quite easily by asking yourself a few
questions.

1. Is it a man-made or natural process?

2. How many stages are there?

3. What is produced?

4. Where does it start and where does it end?

OVERVIEW:

Overall, the production of sugar involves a seven-stage, man-made process, that

begins with growing the sugar cane in farms and culminates in drying and cooling
the syrup to form sugar.
Important REMINDER:
1. Identify whether it’s a linear or cyclical process.
2. Grammar – use the ‘passive voice’ for linear process while use the ‘active
voice’ for cyclical process. Your verb tense should be in the present form.
3. Use ‘relative clauses’ to describe the materials that are used or needed.
4. Make sure to use ‘sequencing words’ to say or explain what each stage does
but don’t over use them.
5. If a diagram or photo includes relevant words/terms, make sure to use all of
them in your report.

6. For linear process, state the end result; for cyclical process, finish your
report at the same stage in the cycle which you started.
Sequencing Words

Firstly / Initially In the first place Subsequently Prior to

To start / begin with Meanwhile The next phase/stage During this process
(Soon) afterwards Simultaneously Then / Next / Later Eventually
Once this stage is At the end of the
At the next stage Concurrently
completed… process
Following this After that At this stage Finally
The diagram below shows the life cycle of a butterfly .
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where
relevant.

The Life Cycle of a Butterfly

The way in which sugar is made from sugarcanes in sequence is portrayed in the given
diagram. Overall, the production of sugar involves a seven-stage man-made process, that
begins with growing the sugar cane in farms and culminates in drying and cooling the syrup
to form sugar.

In the first step, sugarcanes are grown in suitable fields. By around 12 to 18 months of its
cultivation, the canes are harvested manually or by machines. The harvested canes are then
sent for crushing in a rolling machine. This machine extracts the sugarcane juice, which is
collected in containers.

The next phase is purifying the extracted juice in a limestone filter, and the clear juice is
later transferred to a large, funnel shaped evaporator. This is heated thoroughly from the
bottom until the juice transforms into syrup. Once this stage is completed, centrifuging
comes next which involves a crucial method of separating sugar crystals from syrup. These
crystals are initially dried and then cooled, and eventually sugar is made.
STATIC (figures don’t change overtime)
Introduction
Give an introduction of the table in only one or two sentences by paraphrasing the question
and showing:
 Kind of graph (table)
 Main topic (e.g. consumer spending on different items)
 Place (e.g. Ireland, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Turkey)
 Time (e.g. between 2002)
 Unit of measurement (%)

Example:
The table illustrates the proportion of national expenditure in Ireland, Italy, Spain, Sweden
and Turkey on three types of consumer items in 2002.
Overview
In one to three sentences, an IELTS chart (static) overview should include only the
outstanding features such as:
 The highest figure
 The lowest figure
 The similar figures
 The unchanged figures

Example:
Overall, the category of consumer goods that all countries spent most on was food, drinks
and tobacco, which was three times higher than on the other types of goods. The lowest
spending could be seen in the category of leisure and education in all five countries.
Body
In terms of choosing figures within a static table, you should base on these criteria:
 Choose data by column (the highest, lowest, equal figures)
or
 Choose data by row (the highest, lowest, equal figures)

In the body part, specific details will be reported in two separate paragraphs. You can group
the data of the Table charts based on such ways:
 Categories (e.g. body paragraph 1: Food/Drinks/Tobacco; body paragraph 2:
Leisure/Education & Clothing/Footwear)
or
 Countries (e.g. body paragraph 1: Ireland, Turkey with higher figures; body paragraph
2: Italy, Spain, Sweden with lower figures)
Example:
Across all three categories, food, drinks and tobacco accounted for the highest proportions
of consumer spending in all five countries, with Turkey (32.14%) and Ireland (28.91%)
spending significantly more on these items than the other three countries (18.80% in Spain,
16.36% in Italy and 15.77% in Sweden).
On the other hand, leisure and education were the smallest expenditure for all these
countries. Even in Turkey where the spending was greatest, the figure was only 4.35%. Spain
was the lowest-spending country in this category, at 1.98%. Expenses on clothing and
footwear were not as high as food, drinks and tobacco but most people in all five countries
would spend more on them compared to leisure and education, with Italy (9%) as the highest
and 5.40% for Sweden being the lowest. The national spending in this area for the
remaining countries averaged around 6.5%.
DYNAMIC (figures change overtime)
Introduction
Give an introduction of the table in only one or two sentences by paraphrasing the question
and showing:
 Kind of graph (table)
 Main topic (e.g. world population)
 Place (e.g. Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America, Oceania)
 Time (e.g. 1950, 2000, 2050)
 Unit of measurement (%)

Example:
The table compares changes in worldwide population distribution percentagewise between
the six key continents from 1950 to 2000, with predictions for the year 2050.
Overview
In one to three sentences, an IELTS Table chart (dynamic) overview should include only the
general trend.
 Choose data from the first to the last year to see big changes among categories
(increase/decrease/fluctuation)
 Choose data in the mid-period to see differences between the highest and lowest figures,
or equal figures.
Example:
Main feature 1: The only region where the percentage is expected to increase by 2050 is
Africa.
Main feature 2: Europe is expected to have the greatest drop in percentage contribution by
2050.
Main feature 3: The only region showing a fluctuation in percentage contribution over the
whole time period is Asia.
Overall, the only region where the percentage contribution is expected to increase by 2050 is
Africa, while Europe is expected to have the greatest drop in proportion over the same time
span. Moreover, Asia is the sole continent showing a fluctuation in percentage contribution
over the hundred year period.
Body
In body paragraph 1, you should give evidence to support your first 1or 2 key features.
Don’t forget to make comparisons where relevant.
Main feature 1: The only region where the percentage is expected to increase by 2050 is
Africa.
Main feature 2: Europe is expected to have the greatest drop in percentage contribution by
2050.

Example:
From a relatively small percentage contribution of 9% in 1950, the people of Africa are
forecasted to make up a fifth of the total world population by 2050. This is almost a
reversal of the situation for Europe which stood at 22% in 1950 and is expected to continue
its steady decline to reach just 7% in 2050.
For body paragraph 2, you do the same thing for your remaining key features. Remember
to describe other insignificant features in general form.
Main feature 3: The only region showing a fluctuation in percentage contribution over the
whole time period is Asia.

Example:
Another notable trend can be seen in the data for Asia which is the only region to show an
increase in proportion contribution over the first fifty years but the prediction of a decline,
despite small, is expected towards the end of 2050. The remaining regions, North America,
Latin America and Oceania each make up less than 10% of the total world population and
show only minor fluctuations in contribution over the whole time period.
Application
Model answer

The table illustrates the performance of three different branches of a chain of restaurants in
three different locations in Vancouver for the year 2016.

Overall, it is clear that the Georgia Street’s branch is the company’s most profitable branch,
with the highest number of transactions and ATV. Drake Street, on the other hand, lags far
behind, despite the fact that its ATV is higher than Dunsmuir Street.

It is evident that the best performer is the branch in Georgia Street, which with 854
transactions a day on average has at least 100 more transactions than Dunsmuir Street and
more than double from Drake Street. Georgia Street is also ahead in terms of average
transaction value (ATV), with $10.69 per transaction compared to Dunsmuir Street’s $5.61
and Drake Street’s $9.02.

On average, eat-in and take-away transactions are almost equal in each restaurant, with
take-away transactions ending slightly ahead in two of them. Drake Street is the only
Tarnagul is a small town near Melbourne. The maps show the town’s development over a period
of time.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where
relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Important REMINDER:
1. Make two general statements about the map. You should describe the maps
generally and write about the most noticeable differences between the maps.
- How has the map/place transformed?
- What feature(s) have disappeared? What new features are in their place?
- What feature(s) have remained the same over the time period?
2. You must not only describe physical locations, but highlight changes over time
3. The passive form is often used in this type of writing task, as we do not know
who is planning these changes.
4. Be careful with TENSES
5. Use cardinal directions in describing locations instead of regular directions
(left, right. etc.)
The maps display how Tarnagul evolved over the previous century. Generally speaking, there
two phases, one being the first half of this period, where the township develops farming and
infrastructure to become a dedicated producer of citrus products. However, the second half,
ironically, sees this industry's disappearance, with most of the town being transformed into a
tourist hub
Regarding this first phase, the original town was a small 'one-road' agricultural community
surrounded by orchards and dairy pastures, amongst which a river winded, certainly
suggesting a rustic charm. Five decades later, a railway and some industrialisation of the then
dedicated horticultural industry had begun, with packing sheds appearing alongside a new
railway track.
Moving ahead 50 years, time had indeed extracted a heavy toll. With the railway closed,
tracks removed, and fallow field, the only vestige of the past was the possibly dilapidated
station and sheds, utilised as a craft market, museum, and tourist shop. A similar initiative had
seen the establishment of a riverside wildlife sanctuary and a park near the tourist premises.