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User-written IELTS example

Writing Academic Task 1 Band 4.0 Example

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

195 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 4.0

The line graph compares three varied areas in Europe in term of tourism by amount of countryside visitors from 1987 and 2007. Overall, the lakes area reached the highest peak by the numbers of overseas visitors, and the mountains remained at this level in whole duration, but finally the coast area was by far most popular destination in 2007, at approximately 75,000 visitors. In 1987, the coast was already the most visited area, with about 40,000 visitors, compared with 20,000 for the mountains and 10,000 for the lakes. The coast figure then fell slightly to around 35,000 in 1992, before increasing to approximately 45,000 in 1997 and rising more sharply to 65,000 in 2002. It finished at about 75,000 in 2007. The number of visitors to the mountains increased gradually throughout the period, from 20,000 to 35,000. By contrast, the lakes figure rose from 10,000 in 1987 to 40,000 in 1997, then peaked at roughly 75,000 in 2002. It subsequently declined to 50,000 by the end of the period. Thus, the coast ended highest, while the lakes showed the largest fluctuation.

Targeted Improvement Tips

1
Rewrite the overview so it states that the coast finishes highest, the lakes peak in 2002 and then fall, and the mountains rise steadily.
2
Check every trend statement against the plotted lines; in particular, distinguish the mountains’ gradual increase from the lakes’ sharp rise and later decline.
3
Replace imprecise wording such as “countryside visitors” with “overseas visitors” or “visitor numbers,” and proofread the introduction for articles and prepositions.

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