© Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.

5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy

IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

IELTS WRITING TASK 1 | GRAPHS

_____________________________________________________________
A HOLISTIC APPROACH

CHAPTER 2: GRAPHS WITH A TIME PERIOD

_____________________________________________________________

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

To my endearing students!

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

There are 5 types of charts in IELTS Writing task 1: Tables, Line Charts, Bar charts, Pie Charts, Mixed charts. However, these 5 types
of charts can be classified into 2 main categories.

(1) Charts with a time period

(2) Charts without a time period

You should aim for 180 – 210 words in task 1 to allow yourself enough time for task 2. Do not attempt to write a long essay in excess of
20 minutes as task 1 earns you only 1/3 of the total score in the writing exam.

Since 2019, penalties have no longer been imposed on essays of fewer than 150 words. Therefore, you can now focus more on the
content of your essay, and the line ‘write at least 150 words’ is now meant to remind you to write an essay in proper length.

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

1. Writing the introduction

An ideal introduction should be about 30-40 words in length. You are well-advised to rephrase the topic to show your Lexical Resource to the
examiner. However, do not try to rephrase it at the expense of your time. Remember that every minute in the exam counts! If you find rephrasing
the topic too difficult and time-consuming, you may stick to the original topic wording in the prompt. This will not spell disaster for your overall
score. In order to construct an ideal introduction, you should follow the following steps.

Step 1: Look for the following 6 pieces of information from the chart

1. Type of chart 4. Time period

2. What is being measured [THE TOPIC] 5. Years

3. Categories [how many categories are there?] 6. Units

Step 2: Follow the template and write an introduction based on these 6 pieces of information

The [chart type] chart shows/ demonstrates data on the changes in the number(s)/ amount(s) of / percentage(s) of [the topic]

in [Number of categories], over a period of [years], from ….to….

Notes:

1. If there are more than 3 categories, you should not to list them. Use the word “namely” to list the categories if necessary.
2. To calculate the period, remember to add 1 unit to the sum. This is basic maths. Don’t mess it up!
3. Pay attention to the plural form of ‘number’, ‘amount’, and ‘percentage’. E.g. ‘the numbers of boys and girls were’... vs. ‘the number of boys and
girls was’. There is no difference here. The use of plural form depends on whether you consider the subjects as a whole or separate. However,
for the sake of consistency, you should follow this rule: ‘plural for multiple subjects’ [the numbers of boys and girls] // single for one subject.
[the number of boys].

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

Sample 1:

The chart below shows the number of people moving from rural to urban areas in three countries and predictions for future years.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

Sample answer:

The line chart demonstrates data on the changes in the number of migrants from rural to metropolitan areas, in 3 countries, namely Russia,
Indonesia and Iran, over a period of 26 years, from 2000 to 2025.

[36 words]

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

Sample 2:

The chart below shows the percentage of men and women aged 60-64 in employment in four countries in 1970 and 2000.
© IELTS Actual Test 3/6/2021

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

1997 2000

86 84 79
79 78 76 72
percentage

percentage
65 62
63
56 50
46 43 44

BELGIUM USA JAPAN UK BELGIUM USA JAPAN UK

countries countries

Men Women Men Women

Sample answer:

The bar charts demonstrate data on the changes in the proportions of employed men and women in the 60-64 age group in 4 different countries,
in the year 1997 and 2000.

[31 words]

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

Practice

Please turn to exercise 1,2,3.

Exercise 1:

The charts show the devices people in the age 18 to 25 age group used to watch television in Canada in two different years.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Your attempt:

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

Exercise 2:

The table below shows the percentage participation of women in senior management in three companies between 1975 and 2015.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Your attempt:

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

Exercise 3:

The graph below demonstrates the average number of UK commuters travelling each day by car, bus or train between 1970 and 2030.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Your attempt:

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

2. Writing the general statement

This is a crucial part if you want to secure your score of Cohesion & Coherence. In order to strike a good balance with the body, the general
statement should be between 30 and 50 words in length.

- Don’t go into details in this part.

- You have to mention trends + comparisons between the categories to achieve TR score above 5.
- As for Trends, just look at the start of the period and the end of the period to figure out the general trend [rise or fall]
- As for Comparisons, just indicate the highest / biggest category and the lowest/ smallest category of all.

Follow the template below to write a concise general statement for your essay.

Overall / In general, [mention the trends] + [mention the comparisons]

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

Sample 1:

The chart below shows the number of people moving from rural to urban areas in three countries and predictions for future years.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

Sample answer:

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

Sample 2:

The chart below shows the percentage of men and women aged 60-64 in employment in four countries in 1970 and 2000.
© IELTS Actual Test 3/6/2021

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

1997 2000

86 84 79
79 78 76 72
percentage

percentage
65 62
63
56 50
46 43 44

BELGIUM USA JAPAN UK BELGIUM USA JAPAN UK

countries countries

Men Women Men Women

Sample answer:

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

Practice

Please turn to exercise 1, 2, 3

Exercise 1

The graph below demonstrates the number of UK commuters by car, bus or train between 1970 and 2030.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Your attempt:

________, the _______ of car and train commuters were ____ the increase while there ____ a steady _____ in the number of bus
passengers over the time period. ____ addition, cars enjoyed the highest popularity among British commuters at any given time.
[42 words]

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

Exercise 2:

The table below shows the percentage participation of women in senior management positions in three companies between 1975 and 2015.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Your attempt:

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

Exercise 3:

The chart below gives information about participants who have entered the Olympics since it began.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Your attempt:

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

3. Writing the body

This is the most important part in your answer to Task 1, which accounts for about 80% of the total score. Thus, you must allow
yourself enough time to perfect it.

- You should always structure the body paragraph(s) by comparing and contrasting data of 2 or more categories throughout.
You should not just describe data of each category, which will likely lower your score.

- To score high [band 7+] in TR, you must include the following KEY features in the body paragraph(s). In the actual IELTS exam,
Cambridge usually uses 4 or 5 [max. 6] out of these 10 key features to develop graphs with a time period in writing task 1.

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

THE 10 KEY FEATURES

1. The Start & End The start:
[vertical analysis] → You should mention which category is the highest and/ or lowest of all the categories.

The end:
→ You should mention which category is the highest and/ or lowest of all the categories.

 NOTE: In a graph which has only 2 categories, you may want to change the wording from “the highest/ lowest” to
“higher/ lower”. This is because, in formal English, we use comparative to compare 2 factors.

Examples 1990: starting year & 2005: ending year

1. London had the highest number of cars in both 1990 and 2005, reaching 2
million and 3 million, respectively, while Brighton saw the lowest number
of cars in 1990 [400,000]. However, in 2005, Leeds topped the chart as a
city with the lowest number of cars [200,000].

1990 2005

1990 19 20 2005
2. In 1990, London had the highest number of cars [1 million] while Brighton 95 00
saw the lowest number of cars [300,000]. However, in 2005, Leeds topped
London 1mil 1.5mil
the table with the highest number of cars [2 million], while Brighton
remained the city with the lowest number of cars [500,000]. Brighton 300k 500k

Leeds 700k 2mil

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

[2 categories]

4,000,000
3. In 1990, London, compared with Brighton, had the higher number of cars, 3,000,000
reaching at 2 million, while in 2005 Brighton saw the higher figure, rising to 2,000,000
3 million cars, as opposed to 1,8 million cars in London.
1,000,000
0
london brighton
1990 1995 2000 2005

4,000,000
4. In any given year / At the start and the end of the period, London always 3,000,000
topped the chart, with 2 million cars in 1990 and 3 million cars in 2005. In
2,000,000
addition, Brighton saw the lowest number of cars in 1990 [1 million] while
Leeds was home to the fewest cars in 2005 [1.5 million]. 1,000,000
0
1990 1995 2000 2005
London Brighton Leeds

2. The overall rise → For any categories, if the value at the end of the period [E] is higher than the value at the start of the period [S], you will have
or fall in each the overall increase [and vice versa]. if [E] = [S], you should not mention the category concerned as there is no overall rise or fall.
category
 NOTE: 1 category has an overall rise/increase/fall/decrease, but 2 categories have overall rises/increases/
[horizontal falls/decreases.
analysis]

Examples 1990: starting year & 2005: ending year [2 categories with overall fall + 1 with overall rise]

2,000,000
1. London saw an overall increase in the number of cars, from 1,5 million in 1,500,000
1990 to 1.9 million in 2005, a rise of 400,000 cars. In contrast, over the 1990
1,000,000
same period of time, Brighton and Leeds experienced overall falls, by 1995
500,000
200,000 [from 1 million to 800,000] and 500,000 cars [from 1.2 million to
0 2000
700,000], respectively.
2005

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 © Composed by Mr. Sang Vo [IELTS 8.5] - 0944273350 @ ETEST Test Prep Academy
IELTS Writing Skills – TR | CC | LR | GRA
Target Band Score: 7.0+

[2 categories with overall rise + 2 with overall fall]

2. From 1990 to 2005, despite obvious fluctuations in the number of cars, both 1990 1995 2000 2005
London and Oxford saw overall increases of 300,000 and 600,000 on cars,
respectively. By contrast, over the same period of time, Brighton and London 1.5mil 1mil 5mil 1.8mil
Leeds experienced overall falls, by 100,000 [from 300,000 to 200,000] and Brighton 300k 200k
300,000 cars [from 800,000 to 500,000], respectively.
Leeds 800k 500k

Oxford 900k 700k 2mil 1.5mil

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