IELTS writing Task 1

The chart shows average distances that people in England travelled using different forms of transport in the years 1985 and 2000. It is clear that the total number of miles travelled by English people using all modes of transport increased significantly between 1985 and 2000. The car was by far the most used form of transport in both years. In 1985, the average person travelled 3,199 miles by car, and this rose to 4,806 miles in the year 2000. The figures for miles travelled by train, long distance bus, taxi and other modes also increased from 1985 to 2000. Travel by taxi saw the most significant change, with more than a threefold increase from 13 miles per person per year in 1985 to 42 miles in 2000. There was a fall in the average distances for three forms of transport, namely walking, bicycle and local bus. In 1985, English people walked an average of 255 miles, but this figure fell by 18 miles in 2000. Bicycle use fell from 51 to 41 miles over the period shown, while the biggest downward change was in the use of local buses, with average miles per person falling from 429 to 274 over the 15-year period. #report

The table below gives information about changes in modes of travel in England between 1985 and 2000. #table

Three types of linking Here are three types of linking (cohesive devices) with some examples from 'maps' answer for types 2 and 3. 1) The 'normal' linking words that everyone learns and, but, because, while, whereas, by contrast, however, furthermore etc. 2) Using pronouns and determiners to refer to a previous idea - three main modifications were made... These involved - there were three bus stops... These were - the addition of a bus station... This bus station - the car park, which was situated... this original car park 3) Using synonyms or paraphrasing to connect ideas - some changes were made... three main modifications... the changes - the hospital's transport infrastructure... the hospital's vehicle access - at the intersection... at the junction - parking facilities... parking areas... car park... area for parking - public... visitors... members of the public

process paragraph Can you create a paragraph from the following list of sentences? You'll need to use linking and sequencing words (and, then, next, after which etc.). The sentences describe part of this diagram. - Fresh salmon is delivered to the factory. - Lemon juice and salt are added to the salmon. - The salmon is cooked in a steam oven within 12 hours of delivery. - Factory workers remove and dispose of the skin and bones. - The fish is inspected. - Prepared peas, sauce and potatoes are added. - The resulting fish pies are wrapped. - They are frozen and then stored or dispatched.

passive verbs practice The potato preparation part of the 'fish pie' diagram gives us a useful grammar exercise: Can you describe the following stages of the process using passive verbs? Potatoes... - delivery - clean - peel - slice - boil - chill - store e.g. Potatoes are delivered.

#table

I have shared over than 60 reports so far. I think that these task 1 reports will help you a lot to prepare for IELTS writing. Just click #report to access all the reports which were posted in this channel. Don't forget to tell your friends about this channel.

Here's my full description of the fish pie process diagrams: The pictures illustrate the ingredients that go into a factory-made fish pie, and the various steps in its production. The pie contains salmon, peas, sauce and potatoes, and there are ten stages in its manufacture, from delivery to dispatch. One of the ingredients, potato, goes through its own six-stage preparation process before it can be added to the pie. Potatoes are the first ingredient to be prepared on the production line. They are delivered to the factory up to a month before the process begins, and they must be cleaned, peeled and sliced. Potato peelings are thrown away, and the sliced potatoes are boiled, then chilled and stored. When fresh salmon arrives at the factory, lemon juice and salt are added, and the fish is cooked in a steam oven within 12 hours of delivery. Next, factory workers remove and dispose of the skin and bones, and the fish is inspected. Following inspection, pre-prepared peas, sauce and potatoes are added. The resulting fish pies are placed in microwaveable containers, wrapped, frozen and then stored or dispatched.. (175 words, band 9) #report

The maps illustrate some changes that were made to a city hospital's transport infrastructure between the years 2007 and 2010. It is noticeable that three main modifications were made to the hospital’s vehicle access. These involved the building of a new bus station, new roundabouts and new parking facilities. Looking at the changes in more detail, we can see that in 2007 there were three bus stops on either side of Hospital Road. These were no longer present in 2010, and instead we see the addition of a bus station on the west side of Hospital Road. This bus station is accessed via two new roundabouts; the first roundabout is at the intersection of City Road and Hospital Road, while the second is at the other end of Hospital Road, at the junction with the hospital ring road. The two maps also show that changes were made to public and staff parking areas. In 2007, staff and visitors used the same car park, which was situated to the east of Hospital Road and accessed via the ring road. However, by 2010 this original car park had become a designated area for staff parking only. A new car park, located on the east side of the ring road, provided parking for members of the public. #report

Don't describe items on a graph or chart in terms of coming first, second or last. This makes it seem like you're describing a competition! For example, don't write: Theme parks were first. Theme parks came first, and museums were in second place. In last place were wildlife parks and zoos. Instead, you should write: Theme parks were the most popular type of tourist attraction. Theme parks attracted the highest proportion of visitors, and museums were the second most visited attraction. Wildlife parks and zoos were the least popular of the four types of tourist attraction.

Checklist Here's my preparation checklist for writing task 1. Can you put a tick next to each point on the list? ✅Know what the six types of question are (e.g. line graph...). ✅Try several real test examples of each type. ✅Know the 4-paragraph method suggested in lessons on this site. ✅Practise paraphrasing the question to write introductions. ✅Understand why we don't write a conclusion for task 1. ✅Know how to write an 'overview', and what to include in this paragraph. ✅Practise selecting key information, rather than describing everything. ✅Be able to write good 'comparing' sentences. ✅Be able to describe changes and trends (e.g. increase, decrease). ✅Be able to use the passive to describe steps in a process. Note: I shared this checklist a couple of months ago, but I think it's worth looking at again (if you've seen it before).

I received a message from a student who said that she had been surprised to see a diagram question in writing task 1. She had done lots of preparation for graphs and charts, but was unprepared for diagram questions. So, make sure you have prepared for all of the following question types: Line graph Bar chart Pie chart Table Comparison diagram (a diagram or map that compares things) Process diagram (a diagram or map that shows steps in a process) If you look through the lessons on this blog, you'll find advice and examples for all six question types.

The chart compares the proportions of Australian males and females in six age categories who were physically active on a regular basis in the year 2010. Roughly speaking, close to half of Australian adults did some kind of routine physical activity in 2010. Middle aged females were the most physically active, proportionally, while males aged 35 to 44 did the least physical activity. In the youngest age category (15 to 24), almost 53% of Australian men but only 47.7% of women did regular physical activity in 2010. However, between the ages of 25 and 44, men were much less active on average than women. In fact, in the 35 to 44 age group, a mere 39.5% of males did some form of regular exercise, compared to 52.5% of females. Between the ages of 45 and 64, the figure for male physical activity rose to around 45%, while the proportion of active females remained around 8% higher, at 53%. Finally, the percentages of Australian women and men aged 65 and over who exercised regularly were almost identical, at approximately 47%. (179 words, band 9)

When I'm writing a task 1 report, either for this blog or with my students, I never worry about 'grammatical range'. Here's why: 🔸First, how many different 'grammatical structures' can we really use in the space of only 8 or 9 sentences? 🔸Second, do we have time to think about including an example of a passive, a conditional, various types of clause etc.? 🔸Third, will these different structures be relevant? Will they work in the context of the description? I think it's much more important to spend the 20 minutes thinking about how best to describe the information on the chart in a clear and logical way. In other words, I suggest that you focus on task response, coherence and accuracy. This is what examiners are really looking for in task 1.