IELTS writing task 1
OUTLINE
Test correction
How to build a long sentence
OVERVIEW
Practice
Homework
Expression
Rate between two quantities of 60 miles per hour and
different units, likes miles $1.20 per gallon are rates.
and hours, or dollars and
gallons.
Ratio a comparison of two 4 to 3, 4:3, or 4/3
numbers or measures that
have the same unit.
Percentage “out of one hundred.” 60%
Proportion an equation stating that 6/9 = 24/36
two ratios are equivalent.
Building a long sentence
A) The IELTS exam is popular, and over 1 million people take it
every year.
B) The IELTS exam is popular, with over 1 million people taking
it every year.
A) The cost of living is high, and prices are going up every year.
B) The cost of living is high, with prices going up every year.
Notice:
• And + Auxiliary verb
• With + Ving
Building a long sentence
“with” & “at”
AT: Petrol prices were particularly high in January, at £1.30 per
litre.
WITH: Petrol prices were particularly high in January, with a
litre costing £1.30.
General understandings
1
5 Layout of your writing
Introduction • Sentence 1: Paraphrasing the topic
• Sentence 1: the most outstanding
features (Eg: main trend, highest –
Overview lowest point)
• Sentence 2: a general comparison
between reported objects
• Body 1, Body 2: Give further details –
describe other features, significant
Body differences and make comparisons 6
where relevant. Support with figures
By Hoang Dung from the diagram.
OVERVIEW
o a summary of the main features in a graph; make
comparison where relevant
o normally 2-3 sentences long
o should be the second paragraph you write in your
essay; or can be included in the introduction
o do NOT support anything you see with data from
the graph, just write about what you can see
visually
o Do NOT include numbers/ percentages
OVERVIEW
o Give some kind of overview => get a 5
o No overview => get below a 5
o Select the appropriate data => get a 6
o Give a ‘clear’ overview => get a 7+
OVERVIEW
Language for overview
o The graph shows / indicates that + S + V
o The graph shows / indicates + Noun phrase
o It is clear from the graph that + S + V
o It can be seen from the graph that + S + V
o From the graph, it is clear that + S + V
o As the table shows, + S + V
o As can be seen from the graph, + S + V
o As is shown/ illustrated by the graph, + S + V
o Several key trends are revealed by the graph showing
smt/that + S + V
OVERVIEW
Language for overview
» Overall, there was an upward/ downward trend in X.
» Overall, there was no pattern of increase or
decrease.
» In fact, there was considerable fluctuation in X…
» Overall, the trend was stable with no significant rises
and falls.
OVERVIEW
Graph with timeline
Graph without timeline
Map
Process
OVERVIEW - Graph with timeline
OVERVIEW - Graph with timeline
OVERVIEW - Graph with timeline
TREND
It’s clear that the total amount of acid rain emissions in the UK dropped
considerably between 1990 and 2007. The most dramatic decrease was
seen in the electricity, gas and water supply sector
OVERVIEW - Graph with timeline
OVERVIEW - Graph with timeline
TREND
Comparison
OVERVIEW - Graph with timeline
OVERVIEW
Graph with timeline
Graph without timeline
Map
Process
OVERVIEW - Graph without timeline
It is clear that the largest proportion of consumer spending in
each country went on food, drinks and tobacco. On the other
hand, the leisure/ education category had the lowest
percentage in the table.
OVERVIEW - Graph without timeline
It is noticeable that levels of poverty were higher for single people
than for couples, and people with children were more likely to be
poor than those without. Poverty rates were considerably lower
among elderly people.
OVERVIEW - Graph without timeline
COMPARISON
OVERVIEW
Graph with timeline
Graph without timeline
Map
Process
OVERVIEW - Process
OVERVIEW - Process
The diagram below
shows how a central
heating system in a
house works.
It shows how the tank, boiler and pipes ensure a constant
flow of hot water to both the radiators and the taps.
OVERVIEW
Graph with timeline
Graph without timeline
Map
Process
OVERVIEW - Map
The diagrams below
show the changes that
have taken place at
Queen Mary Hospital
since its construction
in 1960.
During this period, the hospital has increased in size, and in
addition to a new nursing school, a cancer center has been
created and extended while shopping center was completely
demolished.
OVERVIEW - Map
OVERVIEW - Map
OVERVIEW - PRACTICE
Students:
o Work in groups of 3
o Analyze the given graphs how to write the overviews
o Write TWO overviews for 2 graphs
Achievement test 1
The bar chart illustrates the amount of money given in billion from three
sale sectors: games software, DVD/ video and CDs worldwide from
2000 to 2003 .
It can be seen that the sales of videos / DVDs and games software have
increased while the sales of CDs have gone down slightly. Also, CDs
was the type of product consumed the most.
Achievement test 1
The line graph describes the figure for books which were used in
Burnaby Public Library by male and female readers between 2011 and
2014.
Overall, the number of book used by female readers significantly went
up while that by male readers remarkably went down over the period
shown.
Achievement test 1
The line graph displays the proportion of traveler visiting Brighton destinations,
including: Art Gallery, Pavilion, Pier and Festival in England from 1980 to
2010.
As illustrated, a fluctuation was seen in the percentage of sightseer to each
place. Overall, Pavilion and Festival was the two most common attractions
visited at all.
Achievement test 1
The bar chart reveals the number of people who used three mentioned
airports, namely: John F. Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark over five-
year period from 1995 to 2000.
Overall, it can be seen that over the period, there was a fluctuation in the
number of passengers who travelled via John F. Kennedy airport, while
the other two airports saw an upward trend. Another point is that
LaGuardia airport was the most popular at the end.
Achievement test 1
The bar chart compares the percentage of jobless women in every
single states of the Great Britain between 2013 and 2014.
It can be clearly seen that, there has generally been a small decrease
in female unemployment rates from 2013 to 2014, except in Scotland.
Achievement test 1
The two pie charts compare the percentages of online sales across
different retail sectors in Canada in the years 2005 and 2010.
For three of the sectors, it is evident that over this time frame there
was significant change in their proportion of online transactions.
Achievement test 1
The line graph compares the amount of money spent on buying books in
Germany, France, Italy and Austria over a period of ten years between
1995 and 2005.
Overall, there was an upward trend in the figure for money used for
purchasing books in every mentioned country. During this ten-year
period, Germany remained the biggest spenders on book, with all three
other countries spending much less on them.
Achievement test 1
The two pie charts give information about what households spent their
money on / household expenditure on goods and services in 1950 and
2010.
It is immediately obvious that there are some quite significant
differences / some things are significantly different between the two
charts.
Achievement test 1
The bar chart illustrates the number of male and female students
studying Computer Science at a UK university over three years.
It is clear that compared to the number of home students, the
number of international students was significantly smaller.
Nevertheless, there was clear statistical growth in the latter group
from 2010-2012.
Achievement test 1
The line graph illustrates the amount of fast food consumed
by teenagers in Australia between 1975 and 2000, a period of
25 years. Overall, the consumption of fish and chips declined
over the period, whereas the amount of pizza and
hamburgers that were eaten increased.
Achievement test 1
The table shows changes in the spending patterns by month
of an average Australian household between 1991 and 2001.
In general, Australian household spending was higher in 2001
than in 1991 but the difference was not significant.
