IELTS Writing Task 1: checklist

Here's my preparation checklist for writing task 1. Can you put a tick next to each
point on the list?
1.Know what the six types of question are (e.g. line graph...).
2.Try several real test examples of each type.
3.Know the 4-paragraph method suggested in lessons on this site.
4.Practise paraphrasing the question to write introductions.
5.Understand why we don't write a conclusion for task 1.
6.Know how to write an 'overview', and what to include in this paragraph.
7.Practise selecting key information, rather than describing everything.
8.Be able to write good 'comparing' sentences.
9.Be able to describe changes and trends (e.g. increase, decrease).
10. Be able to use the passive to describe steps in a process.
Note: I shared this checklist a couple of years ago, but I think it's worth looking at
again (if you've seen it before).
IELTS Writing Task 1: quick gap-fill exercise
The following sentences describe a bar chart about electricity in Cambridge IELTS
book 13. Choose words from the list below to fill the gaps.
ranked, was, that, far, just, it, of, of
1.China and the United States produced and consumed ______ more
electricity than any other country in 2014.
2.______ the ten countries shown on the chart, only Germany consumed more
electricity than ______ produced.
3.In 2014, China was ______ first in terms ______ the amount of electricity
that it produced and consumed.
4.China produced 5398 billion kWh of electricity in ______ year, while the US,
which ______ ranked second, produced ______ over 4000 billion kWh of
electricity.
1.far2.of, it 3. Ranked, of4.that, was,just

IELTS Writing Task 1: two mistakes

Two of the sentences below contain a small mistake. Can you find the two
mistakes?
1.In 2008, British parents spent an average of around £20 per month on their
children’s sporting activities.
2.Parents’ spending on children’s sports was increased gradually over the
following six years, and by 2014 the average monthly amount had risen to
just over £30.
3.The number of British children who played football remained relatively stable
over the six-year period, at around 8 to 9 million.
 4.Swimming rose from approximately 2 million children in 2008 to around 4
million in 2014.
5.There was a slight fall in participation in athletics between 2012 and 2014.

Mistakes in sentences 2 and 4.

2. "was increased" is wrong. It should be just "increased"
4. "Swimming rose" is wrong. Swimming didn't rise - the number of children (who
went swimming) rose.

The chart above shows how frequently people in the USA ate in fast food restaurants
between 2003 and 2013.

Here's my full sample answer. Fill the gaps to complete it.

The bar chart illustrates the frequency with ______ Americans ate in fast food
establishments from 2003 to 2013.
It is clear that the majority of Americans ate in fast food restaurants between once a
week and once a month in all three years. We can also see a shift ______ eating in
these restaurants less frequently by the end of the 10-year period.
In each of the years shown on the chart, ______ to 60% of people in the US ate in
fast food restaurants between once and four times a month. Roughly 15 to 20% of
Americans ______ eating in fast food outlets several times per week, while 3 to 4%
of people ate in these outlets daily. At the other ______ of the scale, around 4% of
people avoided fast food restaurants completely.
Between 2006 and 2013, the total proportion of Americans who ate in fast food
establishments either once a week or several times a week ______ by almost 10%.
At the same time, there was an ______ of around 8% in the ‘once or twice a month’
category. In other words, the weekly fast food habit that was ______ in 2003 and
2006 became a monthly or twice monthly habit in 2013.
Use the following words:
end, close, increase, which, reported, common, towards, fell
FROM SIMON:
First, here are the answers:
1. which
2. towards
3. close
4. reported
5. end
6. fell
7. increase
8. common

IELTS Writing Task 1: students' questions

Here are some questions about writing task 1, with my answer below each one.
1) Can I write "A glance at the graph shows..." in my overview paragraph?
No, I don't recommend using this phrase. It's not normal to use the word "glance"
when describing graphs or charts, and it seems strange to me as a native speaker. If
you try too hard to use 'original' words, your writing will probably seem forced,
unnatural or inappropriate to the examiner.
2) Can I write "the rate of" instead of "the figure for"?
In many cases, no you can't. I like the phrase "the figure for" because it can be used
instead of "the number of" e.g. "the number of people who live in cities" could be "the
figure for people who live in cities". But I wouldn't write "the rate of people who live in
cities". You have to be careful with the word "rate" - look it up on Google to find
common uses e.g. unemployment rate, birth rate, crime rate, rate of change. Here's
my tip: if you're not sure, don't use it.
3) Can we use "the data of" instead of "the number of"?
No. I would only use "data" instead of the word "information" e.g. "the chart
gives/shows information about..." could be "the chart gives/shows data about...".