IELTS Test:

Writing task 1
Mr. Santo
Differences
Aspects Task 1 Task 2

Time suggested (mins) 20 40

No. of words (min) 150 (+40) 250 (+40)

Weight 1x 2x

Content Describe the diagrams Opinion

No opinions Reasons
Comparison sentences Examples
Patterns / main features Experiences

Input – output Fixed and defined input Widely various input and
Predictable output output
Overview
150 words
20 minutes
describe: diagrams, tables, bar charts, pie charts, linegraphs, flow
charts, process, procedure, how something work.
Actually, it has a defined input and a largely predictable output.
Assessment
• Task Achievement
Does the candidate present the data, including the main
points or features completely? Any comparison?
• Coherence and Cohesion
How the candidate organize his or her writing and link
the ideas? Use the linkers correctly, sufficiently?
• Lexical Resource
How wide is the candidate’s range of vocabulary?
• Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Can the candidate apply the correct grammatical
structures in the writing?
Rules
The candidates are not allowed to:
• use their own opinion
this will lead to point reduction instead of giving
extra point
• copy the question
this will be considered as repetition and the words
will not be counted
• use informal language
this test is for academic purpose
• use contraction form of verbs
contraction is classified as non-formal language
LINE GRAPH
BAR GRAPH
TABLE GRAPH
P
I
E

G
R
A
P
H
COMBINATION OF THE GRAPHS
PROCESS
FLOW CHART
MAP
AN OBJECT
HOW SOMETHING WORKS
Structure
• Introduction
– make simple and comprehensive sentences
– paraphrase the title and subtitles
– write the sentences in active form
• Body
– Describe the data presented in the diagram by comparing and contrasting
them
• Overview
– describe the main features
– describe the overall trend (movement)
– this part can be either after introduction or in the last
 Introductory Sentence

t y our
Star nce
The graph shows ...
sente se
What
The diagram illustrates...
y th e
b i on s: Who
p r ess The chart gives information about ...
ex When
The line chart provides information about ..
The graph compares ... (for multiple bars) Where

The graph below gives information about car ownership in Britain

from 1971 to 2007.

The table below shows the amount of waste production (in millions
of tonnes) in six different countries in three different years over a
twenty-year period.
 BODY PARAGRAPH
describing specific facts or figures
S
T As it is illustrated by the graph, ...
A
R From the graph, it can be seen that ...
T
I
As described by the diagram that...
N As can be seen from the...
G
As (is) shown in the...
P
H  In general, there is .....
R
A It is apparent from the...
S
E
It is clear from the...
S It can be seen from the...
Language of Change
This is applied for line or bar charts, table, and pie charts (as long as the
graphs are related to change over time period).

This point includes “trends” (movement); whether the data increase,

decrease, or show no change.
 Describing trends

•Changes or Movements

•Normally expressed in numeric items, such

as population and production volumes
LANGUAGE OF
CHANGE
 GOING UP
Verb
Noun
Present Past Past participle
(a) growth (to) grow grew (has) grown
(a) rise (to) rise rose (has) risen
(an) increase (to) increase increased (has) increased
(a) recovery (to) recover recovered (has) recovered
(an) improvement (to) improve improved (has) improved
(an) upward trend (to) go upward went upward (has) gone upward
- (to) rocket rocketed (has) rocketed
- (to) go up went up (has) gone up
- (to) climb climbed (has) climbed
- (to) shoot up shot up (has) shot up
 GOING DOWN
Verb
Noun
Present Past Past participle
(a) downward trend (to) go downward went downward (has) gone downward
(a) fall (to) fall fell (has) fallen
(a) drop (to) drop dropped (has) dropped
(a) dip (to) dip dipped (has) dipped
(a) decline (to) decline declined (has) declined
(a) decrease (to) decrease decreased (has) decreased
(a) slump (to) slump slumped (has) slumped
(dramatic fall)
(a) reduction (to) reduce reduced (has) reduced
- (to) go down went down (has) gone down
- (to) plummet plummeted (has) plummeted
- (to) plunge plunged (has) plunged
 GOING STEADY
Verb
Noun
Present Past Past participle
- (to) remain steady remained steady (has) remained steady
- (to) remain constant remained constant (has) remained constant
- (to) remain the same remained the same (has) remained the same
- (to) hover hovered (has) hovered
- (to)level out levelled out (has) levelled out
- (to)level off levelled off (has) levelled off
(a)plateau (to) plateau plateaued (has) plateaued
 GOING UP AND DOWN/ THE TOP
Verb
Noun
Present Past Past participle
(a) fluctuation (to) fluctuate fluctuated (has) fluctuated
(a) peak (to) peak peaked (has) peaked
- (to) reach a peak reached a peak (has) reached a peak
- (to) stand at stood at (has) stood at
- (to) hit a low hit a low (has) hit a low
- (to) hit a trough hit a trough (has) hit a trough
- (to) overcome overcame (has) overcame
- (to) overtake overtook (has) overtook
- (to) exceed exceeded (has) exceeded
 Use phrase “stood at” to focus on a particular point, before mentioning the
movement.
 For example: in the first year, unemployment stood at...
The use of some adjectives:
The population rose slowly.
The population rose steadily.
The population rose slightly.
The population rose gently.
The population rose gradually.

There was a slow rise in the population.

There was a steady rise in the population.
There was a slight rise in the population.
There was a gentle rise in the population.
There was a gradual rise in the population.
•From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, the
the population
population increased
increased dramatically.
dramatically.
••From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, there
there was
was a
a dramatic
dramatic increase
increase in
in the
the
population.
population.

•From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, the
the population
population increased
increased significantly.
significantly.
•From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, there
there was
was a
a significant
significant increase
increase in
in the
the
population.
population.

••From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, the
the population
population increased
increased considerably.
considerably.
••From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, there
there was
was a
a considerable
considerable increase
increase in
in the
the
population.
population.

••From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, the
the population
population increased
increased rapidly.
rapidly.
••From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, there
there was
was a
a rapid
rapid increase
increase in
in the
the population.
population.

••From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, the
the population
population increased
increased substantially.
substantially.
••From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, there
there was
was a
a substantial
substantial increase
increase in
in the
the
population.
population.

••From
From 1996
1996 to
to 1998,
1998, the
the population
population increased
increased markedly.
markedly.
••From
From 1996 to 1998, there was a dramatic increase in
1996 to 1998, there was a dramatic increase in the
the
population.

••From 1996 to 1998, the population increased greatly.

••From 1996 to 1998, there was a great increase in the population.

••After
After 1998,
1998, the
the population
population grew
grew more
more slowly.
slowly.
••After
After 1998,
1998, the
the population
population growth
growth was
was slower.
slower.
How to Make Sentences
There was/were + a/an + adj + N + in ….
There was a sharp increase in the sale of gold in 1990.

N (sub) + V + adverb …
The sale of gold increased sharply in 1990.

N (sub) + experienced + a/an + adj + N + …

The sale of gold experienced a sharp increase during
1990.
Language of Comparison
This is mainly applied for pie charts, table, bar charts,
or when there are more than one line charts.

This point is to measure the candidate’s ability in

using varied vocabulary expressing comparison:
more productive than , the most productive
more favorite, less favorite, as favorite as
spend more money than
there are more people worrying about

Combine Language of Change and Comparison to

make more sentence variation
 LANGUAGE
OF
COMPARISON

Overall Sentence: one sentence that summarizes the whole chart

To begin, take a look at the graph above.

Which country has the highest level of pollution? 

Which country has the lowest?
 How to use comparatives and superlatives
Comparatives are used to compare two things. You can
use sentences with THAN, or you can use a
conjunction like BUT.
Comparatives Examples:
• Durban has a larger number of high-rise buildings
than Las Vegas, and has a much greater area.
• New York has a smaller area than Hong Kong, but it
has fewer high-rise buildings.

Superlatives are used to compare more than two

things. Superlative sentences usually use THE,
because there is only one superlative.
Superlatives Examples:
• Hong Kong has by far the largest number of high-rise
buildings of the seven cities mentioned here.
• Las Vegas has the smallest population.
Percentages
Approximations
There were more people who enjoyed football in 1990
than in 1995.

Study load is the major reason that the students are

worried about.

Bus was the most favorite public transport in England

in 1985.

Children enjoy reading more than playing games.

It is projected that in 2020 car will be more common

than the present day.
How to Start Writing
Make sure to UNDERSTAND the diagrams.
Find the MAIN FEATURE or SIGNIFICANT POINTS
in the diagrams
Find the TOPIC WORDS of the question then think
of the synonym or the parallel expression.
Mostly the data presented are in the PAST TIME.
Pay attention to the AXES (x and y coordinates) in the
chart, or PERCENTAGE, if it is a pie chart.
Pay attention to the movement of the chart
(TRENDS)