Back to Writing Hub

User-written IELTS example

Writing Academic Task 1 Band 5.0 Example

Original task prompt, user essay, band score, and related examples in the same report workspace.

184 words AcademicTask 1Line Graph
Task 1

Illustrative target band for this original model answer.

Plan your answer

Try your own response before reading the samples.

Ideas to explore

  • The coast begins as the leading destination, dips slightly in 1992, then rises to finish highest.
  • Mountain visitor numbers rise gradually, with little change between 1997 and 2002.
  • The lakes have the most pronounced movement: a steep climb to the 2002 peak followed by a substantial fall.

Suggested structure

  1. Introduce the chart, locations, unit and period.
  2. Summarise the overall trends and identify the standout peak or change in ranking.
  3. Describe the coast’s figures in time order.
  4. Compare the more gradual mountain trend with the lakes’ sharper rise and fall.
Useful vocabulary & examples
rose steadily
increased gradually over time

Coastal visitor numbers rose steadily after 1992.

remained close to this level
stayed approximately the same

The mountain figure remained close to 30,000 in 2002.

peaked at
reached its highest point at a particular value

The number of visitors to the lakes peaked at around 75,000 in 2002.

fell to
decreased until it reached a stated value

Lake visits fell to 50,000 by 2007.

Task Prompt

The graph below shows the number of overseas visitors to three different areas in a European country between 1987 and 2007.
IELTS Writing Task 1 visual

User Essay Analysis

Review the public answer with report-style highlights.

Band 5.0

The given line graph displays the number of people visiting the mountains, lakes and coastal areas in a European country between the time period of 1987 to 2007. Firstly, the trend for the coastal areas started to decline in 1987 from 40 thousand humans to 35 thousand people in 1982 however gained a steep rise to around 50 thousand by 1997, before continuing upward to roughly 65 thousand in 2002 and 75 thousand in 2007. In contrast, visitor numbers for the mountains rose gradually throughout the period, from 20 thousand in 1987 to 35 thousand in 2007. The lakes began at the lowest level, at 10 thousand, and increased to about 25 thousand in 1992 and 40 thousand in 1997. They then climbed sharply, reaching a peak of approximately 75 thousand in 2002, before falling to 50 thousand by the end. Overall, the coast and mountains finished higher than they began, while the lakes showed the most dramatic fluctuation. The coast was the most popular area at the beginning and end of the period, whereas the lakes briefly became the leading destination in 2002.

Targeted Improvement Tips

1
Correct the coastal low point: the graph shows about 35 thousand visitors in 1992, not 1982.
2
Write a one-sentence overview near the beginning, identifying the coast’s overall rise and the lakes’ sharp peak and later fall.
3
Describe each series in chronological order, using “visitors” and accurate trend phrases such as “fell,” “rose gradually,” and “peaked.”

Related examples for this topic

Compare different bands on the same IELTS prompt.

Browse all