IELTS WRITING TASK 1

PROCESS AND MAP

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 TEST INFORMATION
Required to write 150 words or more
20 minutes to plan and write the essay
Formal style of writing
Task 1 contributes half as many marks to the score as Task 2. It is worth 33% of the total mark in the writing test.

QUESTION TYPES
Bar Chart
Line Graph
Table
Pie Chart
Process Diagram
Map
QUESTION TYPES AND FREQUENCY (Source- IELTS Advantage)
Chart (44%)
Table (24%)
Graph (18%)
Diagram (11%)
Plan (3%)
 HOW TO PREPARE FOR IELTS?
Learn about the test (Content, Format, Timing, Scoring, FAQ)
Have realistic goals (decide a band score, check your level of English, time frame)
Knowing the requirements of your chosen band scroe
Learn about question types
Learn tips and techniques for each type of question
Common topics and vocabulary
Use official practice tests
Build speed and time management skills for reading and writing
Do a full practice test under exam conditions

BAND DESCRIPTORS
IELTS OFFICIAL BAND DESCRIPTORS
1. Task response/Task achievement - fully address all parts of the task, present a fully developed position in answer to the
question with relevant, fully extended and well supported answer
2. Coherence and Cohesion - sequences information and ideas logically, skillfully managing the paragraph, use a range of linking
words
3. Lexical Resource - Using a range of words and paraphrasing, use collocations, avoiding errors, using less common vocabulary
4. Grammar Range and Accuracy - Using a range of sentence structures, using a range of grammar tenses, avoiding errors
 Man Made process Natural process

Man made process - passive voice (eg, the leaves are picked and put in basket)
Natural process - active voice (eg, water flows from ground to ocean)
 4 PART ESSAY STRUCTURE
1. Introduction - Paraphrase the question (change into synonym, word form...)
2. Overview - identification of the most significant features (1-3 sentences)
3. Detail Paragraph 1
4. Detail Paragraph 2

5 STEPS FOR WRITING TASK 1

1. Analyse the question
2. Identify the main features
3. Write an introduction
4. Write an overview
5. Write the details paragraph
 IDENTIFICAITON OF MAIN FEATURES

Useful questions
Is it a linear or cyclical process?
Where does the process start and end?
How many steps are there to the process?
Can the process be easily broken down into stages? (eg. Brick manufacturing process - creating the brick from the clay,
manufacturing the finished products by drying and firing, packaging and delivering, Cyclical process - eggs, juvenile, and adult)
What are the raw materials and what is produced at the end of the process?
What is the end result of the process?
 IDENTIFICAITON OF MAIN FEATURES

STAGE 1 : Electricity is generated as the water flows into the structure (Diagram A)
STAGE 2 : Electricity is also created as the receding wave draws air back down the column (Diagram B)
 WRITE AN INTRODUCTION

Question : The diagrams below show a structure that is used to generate electricity from wave power.
Introduction (Paragraph 1) : The two diagrams illustrate a method of creating electricity from the force of waves using a
specificially designed man-made construction.
 WRITE AN OVERVIEW

Overview : Give a general description of the diagram or process

Overview (Paragraph 2) : The structure, consisting of a wave chamber and a tall column containing a turbine, is erected on a steeply
sloping coastal cliff or sea wall where it is subject to the movement of the ocean waves.
 WRITE BODY PARAGRAPHS

Stage 1 : Electricity is generated as the wave flows into the structure (Diagram A)

Paragraph 3 : The first diagram shows how the incoming wave fills a large chamber and forces the air inside this space up the column
and through the turbine. The pressure of the air rotates the turbine which generates a current of electricity. The process does not
end there since the structure is able to continue producing power as the sea recedes as can be seen in the second diagram.
 WRITE BODY PARAGRAPHS

STAGE 2 : Electricity is also created as the receding wave draws air back down the column (Diagram B)

Paragraph 4 : As the water now flows away from the structure, it draws air back down the column and downwards through the
turbine in the same direciton as the previous upward flow of air. The turbine continues to turn thus generating even more electricity.
 USEFUL SENTENCE STRUCTURES FOR WRITING TASK 1 (PROCESS)

When the tea leaves have been picked, they are put in the sun to dry.
Once the tea leaves have been picked, they are put in the sun to dry.
After the tea leaves have been picked, they are put in the sun to dry.
After being picked, the leaves are put in the sun to dry.
The tea leaves are picked before being put.
The tea leaves are picked before they are put.
Having been picked, the tea leaves are put in the sun to dry.
 SAMPLE ANSWER

The pictures illustrate the steps involved in producing tea as well as the process by which a cup of tea is made.
There are eighteen steps in the process, from planting the tea seeds in the ground to drinking a nice cup of tea.
Tea is grown in India and China. In the first stage, the tea seeds are sown on the ground, after which the sun shines which allows the
seeds to grow into large plants. Once the tea leaves have been picked and put in basket, they are spread under the sun so that they
can be dried. The tea leaves are packed into boxes before the boxes are loaded into the lorry. Finally, the tea boxes can be delivered
to the shops where customers can purchase them.
When the tea has been taken home, we can make a cup of tea. At the same time as the water is heated by putting the kettle on the
stove, a tea bag can be put into a cup. Once the water has been spoiled, it can be poured into the cup. Having been left for 2 minutes,
milk and sugar can be added to the cup. Finally, we can enjoy a cup of tea.
LET’S PRACTICE!
The diagram illustrates the process by which sugar is made from sugar cane.
In general, sugar cane goes through 7 main stages in order to be turned into sugar, from growing trees to drying and cooling.
To start with, sugar cane plants are grown and the process takes for around 12 to 18 months, before being harvested by a
farmer. Another notable point is that in addition to manual labour, machines are also used for the harvesting process. Once
the sugar cane is harvested, it is crushed in the grinding machine so that juice can be produced.
Furthermore, the resulting juice is passed through limestone, which serves as a filter to remove impurities. Having been
filtered, the strained juice is put in an evaporator, where it is turned into syrup by heating. Before being dried and cooled as
the final stage of the sugar manufacturing process, sugar cane syrup is added to the centrifuge, which helps segregate crystals
from syrup.
The first step is that the clay is dug from the group. After being placed on a metal grid, the clay is then put onto a roller,
where it is mixed with sand and water. The clay can be transformed into bricks by using two ways, either by using a wire
cutter or shaping it in a mould. At this point, the clay bricks are dried for 1 to 2 days in the oven.
Next, they are put in a kiln at moderate temperature before being heated with high temperature. Having been cooled for one
to two days in the chamber, the bricks are then packed. Finally, the box can be loaded onto the lorry so that it can be
delivered to construction site.
 USEFUL EXPRESSIONS FOR NATURAL PROCESS

lay eggs
eggs hatch
come out, appear, emerge
create, form, manufacture
migrate, head to, relocated to
female frog, adult frog
To begin with, female moth lay eggs on a leaf. The eggs hatch after 10 days and silkworm larvae appear. The larvae rely on
mulberry leaf as their food source for around 4 to 6 weeks before creating silk thread around their body. It takes them up to 8
days in order to manufacture enough thread to cover their whole body. Having spent 16 days in their cocoon, the larvae
appear again and they are called adult moth. The life cycle starts once again when adult lays eggs.
Overall, the salmon pass through three physical stages. The first two stages occur in the river while the last stage happen in the
open sea.
To begin with, female salmon lays eggs among small stones at the base of the reeds in the slowly moving upper river. After about 5
to 6 months, the eggs hatch and fry emerge and they are around 3 to 8 cm. Following this, the fry migrate to the lower part of the
river, which is flowing fast.
Having grown there for about 4 years, their length reach up to 15cm and they are called smolt. They then head to the ocean where
they grow into adult salmon, which average 70 to 76 cm long. They spend around 5 years there after which the life cycle starts
over again when they move to their birth place to lay eggs.
The diagram illustrates the process by which water travels on, above, and below the Earth’s surface continuously as part of the
hydrologic cycle.
In general, this cycle is comprised of three main stages which are evaporation, condensation, and precipitation.
To start with, water from the ocean, which contributes up to 80% of water vapor in the atmosphere, turns into water vapor
through a process called evaporation. Secondly, water vapor is condensed, after which a cloud is formed as a condensation
process. This process leads to the rainfall as part of the precipitation process.
Rainwater, which falls onto the surface of the Earth’s crust, goes through different stages. The next step is that some of the water
is turned into snow in snow mountains while the majority of the precipitated water either runs off into the lakes or penetrates the
ground as groundwater. Rainwater that passes through the pervious layer makes its way through the ground into the ocean, after
which the entire hydrologic cycle starts over again when the rainwater is evaporated.
LET’S PRACTICE!