LESSONS for IELTS Ol Te ADVANCED WRITING ‘New Oriental Education & Technology Group IELTS Research InstituteContents Ue Um ae! ¢ Ca om Ui Um Car) Cae me 5 B . f } a rs Introduction Task 1 Marking Criteria Line Graphs Pie Charts Bar Charts Tables Processes, Maps, Flow Charts Task 2 Marking Criteria Brainstorming Discussing Advantages and Disadvantages Evaluating Points of View Discussing Problems and Solutions Discussing Reasons and Results Expressing an Opinion Practice Tests & Models Answer Key 14 22 28 36 44 52 62 72 76 84 94 104 114 122 129fo Pa J / /UNITTSINTRODUCTION Analyse (3 minutes) Look carefully at the chart, graph, or other visual data. Find + the topic + what each segment, line, or bar represents + the measurement scales on both axes + significant changes or differences + similarities in trends that you can group together. Plan (2 minutes) Decide: + how to organise your data + which are the most significant data points to support your response, You will usually not be able to include all the data, so you need to choose carefully. Write (10 - 12 minutes) Write the Introduction: 1, Rephrase the topic of the chart. Be as brief as possible. 2. Write one or two sentences, giving an overview of the main trends. You do not need to include any data at this point, a Itis very important to include an overview. You can write this as a conclusion at the end of ieee racers eee ee ae Cea ee a mee eRe Ue mss eur en aOR ald Cerca Write the Body: This will include details of the significant changes and data to describe them. Check (3 ~5 minutes) After you have finished writing, allow yourself a few minutes to carefully check your answer, especially for grammatical mistakes. Check in particular for correct use of verb tenses, prepos- itions, word forms, and comparatives. wwwnhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 7*s, & Example of How to Approach Task 1 Sample Task 1 Question The graph below gives information about the sales of five types of vehicles in Country PV er a ate ee eT ee Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make ea eae ae Meroe ta anor == cars < 1.8 litres cars > 1.8 litres station wagons — commercial vans === motorbikes Analyse the Graph | It is very important to spend a few minutes carefully analysing the to Creo TO CaMe Ca cance ie eo Seren ecru ec e a aaa eC een muri Pr meu ecco a eee ee Pelee nee ane 8 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing wwwanhantrivietcom‘wr: rRoUCTON @_ Activity 2 Look carefully at the graph and choose the best answer for each question from the list below. Discuss your answers with a partner and with the class. You need to answer similar questions for every graph that you write about for the IELTS Task 1 response. 1, Whatis the topic of this graph? A. The graph is about how many people bought cars from 1990 and predictions to 2020. B. The graphis talking about changes in the types of vehicles sold since 1990 and predictions until 2020. 2. What is the measurement scale on the y axis? A. The measurement scale is millions of vehicles sold. B. ‘The measurement scale is percentages of vehicles sold. C. The measurement scale is individual vehicles. 3, Whatis the time scale on the x axis? A. The graphs talking about past and present time only. B. The graph is talking about time from the past to the future. 4. What are the most significant changes shown on this graph? A. Motorbikes and vans are less popular than cars, and station wagons have similar sales’ patterns to large cars. B. The biggest change is that station wagons will be more popular than large cars in the future. C. The biggest changes are that lange cars and station wagons are becoming less popular and that smaller cars have hugely increased in popularity. D. The biggest changes are that motorbikes and vans are much less popular than cars. Plan Your Response Ask yourself: + How can I organise this data to explain it clearly? + What are the most significant data points on the line graph? @_ Activity 3 1. Here are three possible ways to organise the data from the line graph. Discuss with a parmer and decide which is the best way and why. a. I could describe the changes in cach kind of vehicle sales separately across the time periods. b. [could group the vehicles into three categories: large cars and station wagons, vans and motorbikes, and small cars, and then write about changes in each one. ©. Leould compare sales of each kind of vehicle across each ten-year period. wwwanhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 9\ 2. Look back at the graph and decide what the significant data points are. You will refer back to this in Activity 4 below. Write and Check the Response @_Activity 4 Read the Task I response and complete the following activities. 1. Undesline the topic sentence. 2. Grothe overview. 3. Circlon the graph the significant data points that the writer has chosen to highlight. 4. Discuss why the writer has chosen these points. 5. Discuss how the writer has grouped the data on the graph. 6. Underline and correct ten grammatical mistakes the writer has made. The line graph illustrating sales of five different vehicle types in Country A over three decades since 1990 with Future predictions to 2020. In general, cars are more popular than vans and motorbikes, and sales of large cars and station wagons have dropped, while those of smaller cars have dramatic increased. In 1990, large cars over 1.8 litres were the more popular venicles sold, of about 2.7 milion. Sale of both these Cars and station wagons followed *he same pattern to a steady decrease, to a low of around 2 million units in | 2010. This falling in sales will continue to 2020. In contrast, smaller cars were less popular in 1990, by about 1.8 lion sold, but sales increased significantly in the decade from 2000 to 2010, to a peak of 27 milion. A smaller increase will expected in the next ten years. | Seles of both motorbikes and vans are remained steady at around 0.5 milion per year and will continue to do <0 over the period. (167 words) cher Tip In the IELTS Writing test, you are pressured for time. Following an approach which you ee Ce en ere Cum hr to write a clear response in the shortest possibie time COC Ce ORO eRe ae Analyse (1 minute) Read the question carefully: think about the topic and the type of response required. Plan (4 minutes) * Brainstorm ideas. Write brief notes: a few main ideas and some examples and/or reasons. + Plan the structure of the response: number of paragraphs, topic of each body paragraph, your opinion. 10 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing www inhantriviet.comfo Lf. & UNIT I: INTRODUCTION Write (30 minutes) Focus on clear linking of ideas and vocabulary. Check (5 minutes) Focus on grammar, spelling, and word forms. Example of How to Approach Task 2 Sample Task 2 Question ‘Scientists frequently warn people about the need to save energy to prevent harmful consequences for our environment, yet most people have not changed their daily patterns of energy use. a ee ee What can we do to encourage people to save energy? Analyse the Question a Taking a few minutes to carefully read and analyse the question is crucial to gaining a good ee aia U eS Lucca ace ee te R ay Cue Rem ect) en are ese rote Peers cur nur Understanding what kind of response you are being asked to write @_ Activity 5 1, Underline the key words in the topic above. 2. Which words tell you the topic of the response? 3. Which words tell you how to approach this topic? 4, Discuss with a partner. Are the following statements true or false? a. My response should describe details about the different ways that people waste energy; such as using too much fuel or using lots of clectrical appliances. b. This topic is asking me to discuss the reasons why people waste energy’ and to suggest some ways ‘to persuade them to save energy. cI should write most of my response about the reasons for wasting energy and a short section about suggestions for solving this problem. 4. I should write one body paragraph about reasons and one about suggestions for solving the problem, fe, My conclusion should give my opinion about this issue. wwew.nhantrivieticom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 11Brainstorm Ideas Before you begin to write, you need to spend a minute or two thinking of some ideas for the response. @_ Activity 6 Discuss the topic on the previous page and possible ideas with a partner. Use your first language to quickly generate ideas and then compare them with this detailed list of ideas below. Brainstorm Finally, consequences of wasting energy ~ far in the future, not now Response structure: first reasons, then solutions for problem Evidence that human activity > global warming Examples: higher taxes on petrol, cheaper public transport Firstly, individuals feel powerless, e.g. driving the car instead of taking the bus makes no difference Overall, change our habits > save our planet Examples: people buy large cars, use wasteful packaging, squander electricity Secondly, saving energy —> personal inconvenience — lite effect Solution: laws ~ make saving energy cheaper and easier Sense ke Plan Your Response cma een SEU ecu Re Ceee Mc Rn ao aa need to decide how many paragraphs you will write and the topic and ideas for each body paragraph. It is very important to do this before you start writing, because if you do not plan, Rete Le a ee eC Ta ecco Eee erotic Ne CRA Nei ue nace eel Roca @_ Activity 7 Put the notes from the brainstorm above into the plan for the response below. Write the number beside each note into the plan. The first one has been done for you. The italics are a guide to help you. Introduction — a general statement, examples, response structure 3 Body paragraph 1 3 reasons Body paragraph 2 — 1 solution plus two examples Conclusion — a general statement | 12. Lessons for ELTS Advanced Writing wwwnhantrivietcom4 UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION Write the Response Turn your notes and plan into paragraphs. Focus on linking ideas and writing accurate sentences. Check Your Answer After you have finished writing, allow yourself a few minutes to carefully check your answer, especially for grammatical mistakes. Check in particular for correct use of verb tenses, word forms, linking expressions, and noun phrases. @_Activity 8 Read the Task 2 response and complete the following activities. 1. Introduction + Identify the sentence which rephrases the topic. + Identify the sentence which tells the reader the structure of the response. 2. Body + Number the body paragraphs and identify the main ideas, How many are there, and what is the topic of each one? + Underline all the linking words and expressions in the body of the response. + Greall the words and phrases which talk about results and solutions. 3. Checking for mistakes + Identify and correct ten grammatical mistakes in Paragraphs | and 2 of the response below: ‘There is clear evident that human activity is contributed to global warming and that this may lead to sericus consequences for our planet. However, people continue to buy large cars, Using expensive and wasteful pack- aging, and squandered electricity without regard For the long-term future of the Earth, This essay will discuss ‘the reasons for this and will suggest some possible solution to this problem. Preserving our environment is a complex global task, and each individual feeling powerless in the face oF such a huge issue. People think that if they drive their car to the supermarket instead of taking the bus, for example, ‘is will make most no difference and that conversely if they make personal sacrifices to try and save energy, ‘tis will cause them considerable personal incorvenient for litte global effect. In addition, there are no imme- diate consequence for each small wasteful acting, so itis hard to maintain habits of saving when the resutts are 0 Vague and so far in the future. One solution to this problem is to intvoduce laws that wil make saving power cheaper and easier than using it and then peaple wil see the short-term advantages of acting responsibly and they may change their habits, For example, we could have higher taxes on petvol, and at the same time, we could improve local public transport and cut‘the costs of each trip on the bus or train, #® we can change our global habits so that saving power becomes part of our daily lives, this will have a signiti- ant impact on the future of the planet: (264 words) www.nhantrivietcom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 13=» The information and activities in this unit will help you to understand the marking criteria for Task 1 of the IELTS Academic Writing test. The unit provides an overview of many of the points that you need to focus on in order to achieve success. All of the points mentioned in this unit will be covered more fully in subsequent units of the book. EER Cea ae heme) IELTS academic writing scripts are marked on four basic criteria, and each one has equal weight. sk Achievement Have you written at least 150 words? Have you understood and reworded the topic of the chart(s)? Have you made an overview of the data? Have you grouped the data in a way that helps the reader to understand the information? Have you included some data to support your description? Have you compared and contrasted the data in the chart(s)? 242228 Grammatical Range and Accuracy Have you used a variety of sentence structures? Have you used noun phrases to express your ideas? Have you used appropriate verb tenses? Have you controlled your subject-verb agreement? Have you used correct prepositions? Have you used correct punctuation? (Overall, is your grammar accurate? 2222228 Coherence and Cohesion Have you organised your answer in some logical way to describe data from the chart(s)? Have you ineluded an overview sentence to tell the reader the main ideas of the chart(s}? Have you used a variety of appropriate linking expressions? Have you used referencing pronouns and synonyms to avoid repetition? e222 14 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing www.nhantrivietcom/ a wre tar rte Lexical Resource (Vocabulary) V_ Have you used a variety of appropriate and academic words? V Have you used correct word forms? Have you spelled the words corrcetly? Focus on Task 1 — Be an IELTS Examine Look at the following Task 1 responses to understand these ideas in practice. @ Activity 1 Read the three responses on the next page and decide which one is: + anexpert response + a.good average response + aweaker response @_ Activity 2 Discuss your ideas from Activity I with your partner. Use the list of questions from the marking criteria to give three reasons for your decisions. Think about: + the vocabulary used + the grammar used + the way that data has been organised — i it logical and clear? + the introductory sentence + the overview sentence + the way the ideas are linked together €P_IELTS Academic Writing Module — Sample Task 1 Topic The table below shows the water usage for different purposes in six different countries ce Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make compari- Bees ase Write at least 150 words, wwwnhanttivieticom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 15Response A ‘The table shows water usage tor different sectors in six different counties during 200%. Australia’s domestic water usage was aim? whereas is agrcuttwal usage was 7airn and finaly industrial usage stands at 275m”. Canada had 279m”, 1,238m” and 53am" for the different sectors respectively. Domestic usage in China is 26m*, agricultural use 605m” and finally industrial usage Tim”. Water use in Russia was high, with ‘96m? used for domestic purposes, 1,665m” for agricultural purposes and 96m” for industry purposes. Turkey used BOm?, 16am” and 72m>for the three categories and United Kingdom tse 38m", 610M” and 296m". Overell, he table shows the various amounts of water used by diferent countries in 2001, (112 words) Response B “The table gives water usage information for six countries in Various sectors during 2001: domestic, agricuttura, and industial Russia and Turkey both indicated relative low levels of domestic usage on 98m” and 60m” respectively: however, water usage tor the agricultural sector in these two countries was the highest of all six countries at 663m” and \Aézm’. The lowest user of water for agricultural usage was China at 605m" andthe highest ‘amount of water used tor industrial purposes is in Canada, at 522m”. In Australia, domestic water usage (Satmr*) was higher than industrial water usage (275m") and this trend was similar yet less pronounced in Russia (98m” for domestic usage compared to 96m° for industrial usage) and Turkey, where domestic use was recorded at BOm” in contrast to industrial consumption at Tm". in all other countries, water usage for industria purposes was higher than domestic use. Overall, agricultural water usage was much greater than usage in the other two sectors for all the countries represented. (165 words) Response C ‘The chart gives information about the amount of water used in six countries in the domestic, agricultural, and industrial sectors. China had by far the lowest consumption of water in 2001, while Canada had the highest. hina, Russia, Turkey and the United Kingdom all had noticeably low domestic consumption, ranging from 26 10 98 cubic metres. Three of these also had light industrial usage (71-96mn", but the UK used ten times more water for industvy, at 398m”, By contrast, Australia and Canada consumed ai and 779 cubic metres respectively in the home. Whereas industrial consumption was higher for Canada, at 532, it was only 275 cubic metres #or Australia. Agricuiture consumed between 605 and B10 cubic metres of water in China, Australia, and the UK, but the other three countries had very high usage rates: Canada at 1236, Turkey at 1462 and Russia, even higher, at 1662 cubic metres, Agricultural usage was much greater than either domestic or industrial in all six countries. (163 words) 16 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing ww.nhantriviet.comwane nae aren 7 @ Activity 3 Overall Descriptions Match the overall description to each response. Description 1 ‘This is a good average response. A variety of vocabulary has been used, and there are only a few minor grammatical crrors indicated by mistakes in prepositions. There is a good attempt to compare and summarise the data, and an overview sentence has been included. There is a good variety of sentence structures used. There is one minor verb tense error in this response. Description 2 This is a weaker response. It describes all the data in the table, rather than summarising the main features, and does not compare data. Sentence structure is repetitive and simple. The introductory sentence has virtually been copied word for word from the rubric, rather than being reworded. There are also several verb tense errors: because a date which has been given for the table is in the past, verb tense usage must reflect this as well as being consistent. This response does not give an overview sentence, but instead simply repeats the introductory sentence. It is also below the required word count. Description 3 ‘This is an expert response. Synonyms have been used in order not to repeat vocabulary, and complex sentence structures have been used along with linking language to ensure good overall coherence and flow. The data has been logically grouped, summarised, and compared to good effect. @ Activity 4 Focus on Coherence and Cohesion in Response A 1, This response has very litle logical organisation. Choose the best way(s) to reorganise it A. One paragraph about domestic use and another paragraph about agricultural and industrial use B. One paragraph about the highest consuming countries and another paragraph about the lowest consuming countries C. One paragraph about China and Canada and another paragraph about the other countries 2. Linking words would improve overall cohesion and linking between ideas. Give examples of linking words you could use. www.nhantrivietcom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 17‘, @ Activity 5 Focus on Task Achievement in Response A 1. The introductory sentence has been copied from the question, Can you rewrite and/or changing the word order/sentence structure? 2. The word count is well below the requirement, How will you remedy this? A good overview sentence gives a summary of the overall pattern or trend within the data. Which of the following do you think is most suitable? A, In summary, the table shows water consumption in six different countries. B. Overall, water consumption in the agricultural sector was the highest for all six countries. C. In general, water consumption in the agricultural sector was the highest in Canada at 1,238m’, by using synonyms @_Activity 6 Focus on Grammar in Response A 1, There are several mistakes in this response. Look at the table below: Can you correct the grammatical mistakes? ‘Australia’s domestic water usage was 341m? whereas its agricultural usage was 741m? and finally industrial usage stands at 275m? Domestic usage in China is 26m? United Kingdom use 38m?, 810m? and 398m?. 2, Find four examples of simple sentences. How could you join these ideas together? 3. Rewrite and improve Response A. onse A Rewritten and Improved & rR The table shows how water was used for three different purposes in several countries during 2001. | Australia had the highest domestic water usage, at 341m’, followed by Canada, which had 279m*, Whereas Australia's agricultural usage was 741m’, Canada's was much greater, at 1,238m". The | fatter had the highest industrial consumption, at 532m", while Australia's was much less, at 275m° | Water use in China was the lowest overall, at just 26m’, 605m’, and 71m” for domestic, agricultural, | and industrial purposes respectively. Turkey and Russia used a low amount (between 80 and | 98m") for domestic purposes; however, they were the highest consumers of water for agriculture | (1,462 and 1,663m*). On the other hand, their industrial usage was similar to China's. The United | Kingdom used much less water in the home (38m°) than in agriculture (810m°) or industry (398m’). In summary, the most water was used in agriculture, and Canada was the biggest consumer. (151 words) 18 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing www.nhantriviet.comee UNIT 2: TASK T MARKING CRITERIA @ Activity 7 Focus on Coherence and Cohesion in Response B Carefully re-read the good average response and answer the following questions. 1. Introduction + How has the question been rephrased? What words are different? 2, How have the body paragraphs been organised? Is this logical? + Body paragraph 1 + Body paragraph 2 3. Which synonyms have been used to avoid repetition? Has the writer used referencing pronouns to avoid repetition? What linking words have been used to connect ideas? @_Activity 8 Focus on Grammar in Response B Answer the following questions about Response B. Axe verb tenses accurate and consistent throughout? Which tense has been used and why? l 2. Can you find the wrong preposition in this response? 3. Is there a good variety of sentence structures used in this response? 4. How many complex sentences ean you find? @_Activity 9 Focus on Task Achievement in Response B 1, Has the writer attempted to summarise and compare the data? Dotted underline examples of comparison and contrast in the response. 2. Check that the required word count has been met. Flow many words are there in this response? 3. Has sufficient data been included in the body paragraphs? Underline examples of this, © _Response B Rewritten and Improved Read carefully — what do you notice about changes in grammar, cohesion and coherence? wow.nhantriviet.co Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 19The table gives water usage information for six countries in various sectors during 2001: domestic, agricultural, and industrial. Russia and Turkey both indicated relatively low levels of domestic usage, at 98m* and 80m* respectively; however, water consumption for the agricultural sector in these two countries was the highest of all six countries, at 1,663m’ and 1,462m’. In contrast, the lowest user of water for agricultural purposes was China, at 605m‘, and the largest amount of water used for industrial purposes was in Canada, at 532m’. In Australia, domestic water usage (341m°) was greater than industrial water consumption (275m’), and this trend was similar yet less pronounced in Russia (98m° for domestic usage compared to 96m’ for industrial usage) and Turkey, where domestic use was recorded at 80m? in contrast to industrial consumption at 73m’. However, in all the other countries, water usage for industrial purposes was higher than domestic use. Overall, agricultural water usage was much greater than usage in the other two sectors for all the countries represented. (169 words) Cae el @_Activity 10 Focus on Response C Carefully re-read Response C below and notice all the underlined and numbered words, phrases, and sentences. Match each number to its description on the next page. You may use some numbers more than once China, Russia, Turkey, and the United Kingdom all had low domestic consumption, Fanging from 26 to 98 cubic metres, Three ofthese also” had light” industrial usage (71-96m'), but™ the UK used ten times more” water for industry, at 398m’. By contrast”, Australia and Canada consumed 341 and 279 cubic metres respectively in the home. Whereas” industrial consumption was higher’ for Canada, at 532, it was only 275 cubic metres for Australia. Agriculture consumed between 605 and 819 cubic metres of water in China, Australia, and the UK, but™ the other three countries had very” high usage rates: Canada at 1,238, Turkey at 1,462 and Russia, even higher”, at 1,663 cubic metres. Agricultural usage was much" greater” than either domestic or industrial in all six countries. 20. Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing triviet.comi So 7 UNIT2: TASK MARKING CRITERIA Synonym(s) for ‘low’ Synonym(s) for ‘usage’ ‘Adverbs ~ can you find more? Words to indicate comparison and contrast a Referencing pronouns ~ can you find any examples? @_ Activity 11 Review Work with a partner. Look back at the checklist of questions on the first page of this unit and check that you understand each one. www nhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 21"> In this unit, you will practise writing a Task 1 response where the input data is in | the form of a line graph. PEL cr ued un ctmncosen This relates to Task Achievement and the coherence part of Coherence and Cohesion on the marking criteria. The line graph below shows the main methods of commuting to work in New Stratford from 1970 to the present day with predictions to 2030. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make ea ee ga Aer taem Oh Modes of Commuter Transport Private car| aus Train =e Motorbike | Teacher Tip Write the names of the transport at the end of the appropriate lines to help you read the meee g 22 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing vawwinhantrivietcom“UNIT: LINE GRAPHS @_Activity 1 Analyse the Graph Work with a partner to answer the following questions 1. What is the topic of this graph? 2. What do the various lines represent? 3. What years does the timeline cover? 4. Which lines have similar trends? 5. What is the most significant feature of the graph? 6. Which line shows a different future trend from the others? @ Activity 2 Organise Your Response Here are three possible ways to describe this data. Discuss with a partner the advantages and disadvantages of each way. 1. Describe each line separately. 2. Compare each decade across the various modes of transport. Group some modes of transport together and compare them across the years. How would you do the grouping? ad aL TSS @ Activity 3 Read the two responses that follow and then answer the following questions. Which response does not begin with a topic sentence? Which response does not have an overview of the trends? Which response ignores most of the important data? Which response has a clearer structure and is easier for the reader to follow? Which response has more complex sentences? Which response would gain a higher score in the IELTS Writing test? eeper ee Response A In general, there has been an increase in the number of commuters over the period and this is predicted to continue. Cars have declined while fain usage has markedly increased. In 1970, about milion people a day used motorbikes. This rose to about S million in 2010, and a slow further increase is predicted, ‘Trains were the least popular option in 1970, at Just over 2 million per day, but there was a dramatic increase to over 7 milion in the next two decades. This increase is predicted to continue to over 12 milion per day in 2030, Usage of buses dropped as trains grew in popularty but there is @ similar pattern oF increased, lower usage. Private cars were the most popular form of transport in New Stratford, starting at 7.6 million in 1970 and growing to a peak oF 12 milion in 2010. However, this is predicted to drop by 2030 t0 10 million per day. (160 words) www nhantrivietcom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 23Response B ‘The graph shows how many people commuted to work in New Stratford and the means of transport winich they chose. It covers a period from 1970 to the present day and beyond to the year 2030. Private cars are very poplar but not so much in 2030. Only 10 milion people will use cars in that year although the same umber of peop used bus transport as cars in 1970 and again in 2030, Tans were net used much atthe beginning of ‘the period whereas this changes. More people Use trains because they are the most popular at the end of the period. Motorbikes are not very popular with commuters. Four million people used them in 1970 and, after twemty years: ‘elapsed, this number fell to 2.5 million, and then it rose to 5 million in 2010 and finished on é milion in 2020. (45 words) Qa eg Ey tree This relates to the cohesion part of Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource (Vocabulary), and Grammatical Range and Accuracy on the marking criteria. &_Verb Tenses i When faced witha timeline that star inthe past, moves through the present, and ends up in the future, candidates must pay attention to the verb tenses and verb structures used throughout the response. @_ Activity 4 1, Underline all the verbs used in Response B. 2. Discuss with a partner whether each verb tense is correct, why it is correct, or whether it should be changed and how you would change it. 3. Discuss different ways of talking about the future in a graph like this. @_Activity 5 1. Look at the first paragraph in Response A. What is wrong with the second overview sentence? (Hint: ‘There is more than one thing wrong!) 2. Discuss Response B with a partner — pay particular attention to repetition of vocabulary and grammar structures. How could you improve it? 3. Look at Response B again and rewrite the body paragraphs aiming for more clarity and accuracy (in the organisation of data and verb tenses). Aim to introduce a wider range of vocabulary and grammar structures, 100, &_Error Correction oie eens 24 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing wow.nhantrvietcom/ So / UNITS: LINE GRAPHS @_ Activity 6 Fill in the gaps with the correct form of the verbs in square brackets. In 1995, about 60% of people (1) [use] CD players, and this figure (2) [rise] steadily to 80% today. In the next twenty years, however, usage (3) [level off]. Home computers were not very common in 1995 ~ they “a [use] by only 30% of people, but there (5) [be] a dramatic rise to the present day: now over half the population (6) [use] them, and this (7) [increase] until 2020, Not many people (8) [access] the Internet before the year 2000, but Internet usage (9) [climb] rapidly, and now almost everyone who (10) [use] a computer also (1) [access] the Internet. This practice (12) [escalate] even further in the years to come. The line graph below shows changing patterns of business communication in New er Cece ea aoe Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make ee ae ee are Narra em BUR TU Business Communications per Day in New Stratford www.nhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 25cea Label each line on the graph to avoid confusion and mark lines with similar trends. Circl® Crue mee cen aCe cs @_ Activity 7 I. Look at the graph on the previous page and work with a partner to answer these questions. a, What is the topic of this graph? b. What do the different lines represent? What similarities can you identify? ‘What other trends can you see? In which year(s) did the most significant changes occur? What way would you group the data? poppe 2. Complete these notes about the graph. Choose the words from the table and use the correct form. You may use some words more than once. cellphone decline rise grow decrease | e-mail increase a. Landline use then b. Letter writing also went into cc. Usage of cell phones, e-mails, and the Internet all d. There was an exponential in the use of and Other Internet usage steadily. 3. Write the introduction by rephrasing the topic and briefly describing the main trends in the overview sentence. 4, Decide how you will organise the rest of your response — use the notes above to guide you and think about grouping similar trends together. Body paragraph 1 Body paragraph 2 5. Write the response. 6. Check your answer for: + Accurate grammar ~ especially the verbs + Comparison and contrast connectives 26 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing weww.nhanttivietcom/ NT: UNE GRAS / 7. Compare your answer with the model below. |The graph shows how business communication was conducted in New Stratford from 1980 to 2005. In general, cell phone and e-mail communications grew hugely, while letter writing became much less popular. | In 1980, the most common form of communication was the landline phone, at about 25 million calls per day. This grew to a peak of nearly 35 million in 1990 and subsequently decreased with fluctuations to 22.5 million in 2006. Letters were also a popular form of communication in 1980, at about 19 million, but declined in number rapidly from 1985 to end up at 2.5 million in 2005. By contrast, usage of cell phones, e-mails, and the Intemet rose. These three were all virtually ‘unused in 1980, but from 1995 to 2005, there was an exponential increase in the use of e-mail and cell phones. From about 8 million communications a day in 1995, e-mail grew to about 32 million in 2005 and cell phones had a consistent rise to 25 million in 2005. Other Intermet usage rose steadily from 5 million in 1995 to 8 million in 2005. (81 words) ee PoE YouTry @ Activity 8 Write your own response to the graph below. . Analyse the data. 1 2. Organise your answer 3. Write the introduction, 4. 5 . Write the body. . Check your answer carefully. The graph shows the value of sales for four products during 2009. Rea ae [ae RE aM a comparisons where relevant. ATE Tae Rr : g . 3 = FMAMJJASOND 2009 wwewanhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 27In this unit, you will practise writing a Task 1 response where the input data is in the form of three pie charts. PEW kone This relates to Task Achievement and the coherence part of Coherence and Cohesion on the marking criteria. SA ne Re ea ce ee people aged from 17-29 years, 30-45 years, and over 45 years, ee a a a Fe eae as Sara RCS 446 years old and over ‘= shared rental accommodation msingle rental accommodation = own house mown apartment assisted living” hhostel accommodation See a eee Cy @_ Activity 1 Analyse the Charts Work with a partner to answer the following questions. 1. Whatis the topic of the charts? 2. What do the three different pies represent? 28 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing vawwinhantriviet.comf _ Yo WNITASPIE CHARTS What do the different segments represent? Which two pies are quite similar, and which one is different? Which segment is different in pie chart 3? Which segment has similar percentages across all three pies? Which segment changes percentages significantly, and what are those changes? @ Activity 2 Organise Your Response Here are three possible ways to describe this data. Discuss with a partner the advantages and disadvantages of each way. 1. Describe each pie chart separately. Compare each segment across the three pics. Group some segments together and compare them across the three pies. How would you group the segments? Part B Authentic Responses @_ Activity 3 Read the two responses that follow and then answer the following questions. 1. Which response rephrases the topic? 2. Which response has an overview of the general trends? 3. How is the data organised in Response A? In Response B? 4. Which way of organising the data leads to clearer writing? 5. Which response has a variety of sentence structures? 6. Which response has many similar sentences? 7. Which response would gain a higher score in the IELTS Writing test? Response A The pie charts show the percentage oF people lving in different kinds of accommodation in Evonia over three age groups. Most younger people choose rental or hostel accommodation, while thase in the two older categories ‘end to oun their oun houses or apartments. ‘Shared rental accommodation is the most popular choice tor people under 30, at 25%. This drops to o% and 3% respectively for the two older categories. In contrast, single rental accommodation remains steady at around 20-25% across all ages. Only 2% of young people own their own houses, but this proportion increases dramatically to 28% for those between 30 and 45 with a small growth to 31% in the older age group. 12% oF young people have their own apartment and again, this rises significantly to 36% and 32% respectively for the other two groups. Whereas 20% of young people lve in hostels, only 2% of middle-aged ones do and this option is replaced by assisted living, at 13%, n the older age group. (168 words) jeticom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 29Response 8 ‘The pie charts depict accommodation preferences over three age categories in Exonia. ‘Many young people trom 17-29 years old lve in shared rental accommodation, at 25%. 20% oF people from 17-29 years old lve in hostel accommodation and 21% lve in single rental accommodation. Only 12% and 2% respectively of young people own their own apartment or own house. ‘Most middle-aged people 4rom 30-45 years old own their own apartment or house, at 6% and 26% respectively. 25% of people from 30-45 years old le in single rental accommodation, while only O% and 2% lve in shared vertal ‘accommodation and hostels, so these are less popular than the cther choices. Older people over 45 years old mostly live in their own house or apartment, at 31% and 3%. Single Yental accommodation is less popular, at 20%, and 12% of people over 45 years old live in assisted living ‘accommodation. Only 2% of people over 45 live in shared rental accommodation. (160 words) Part C Language Activities This relates to the cohesion part of Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource (Vocabulary), and Grammatical Range and Accuracy on the marking criteria. & Rephrase the Topic a it is very important to rephrase, or paraphrase, the topic of the chart. It is not a good idea to Roya C ea beet Re toa ee @ Activity 4 1. Put the following words into the boxes below. Migmivee| children MOAN depict Bee elderly housing options. ~—=—ikinds--—_—people from x to y years old middle-aged older babies living preferences represent young people —_types 30 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing www.nhantrivietcomUNIT 4: PIE CHARTS a Here is the description of the chart topic The charts below illustrate accommodation choices in the country of Evonia for people aged from 17-29 years, 30-45 years, and over 45 years. 2. Use the words in the table on the previous page to rephrase the topic. Write three different introductory sentences on your own paper. & Avoid Repetition Compare these sentences 1, 25% of people from 20-35 prefer living in hostel accommodation, but living im hostel accommodation is much less popular with people from 36-50 and people 51 years and older. 2. 25% of people from 20-35 prefer to live in hostel accommodation, but this choice is much less popular with the two older age categories. Both of these sentences have no grammatical mistakes, but sentence 2 shows much more control of language than sentence I, and this kind of writing would get a higher mark in the IELTS Writing test. ‘The writer of sentence 2 has ‘tightened’ his writing and avoided repetition by using: + paraphrases such as “this choice™ + synonyms for the age groups. @_ Activity 5 1. Rewrite the sentences below to shorten and ‘tighten’ them by changing the bolded words Hints have been provided in brackets after the sentences. a. Only 7 per cent of people 51 to 65 years old prefer action movies, but the majority of people 51 to 65 years old tend to prefer documentary movies anid drama movies. (this category) b. While documentaries and dramas are most popular with people from 51 to 65 years old, people from 36 to 50 years old prefer animation movies. (older, middle, group) ¢. Approximately 20% of people firom 20 to 35 years old, from 36 to 50 years old, and from 51 to 65 years old prefer romance movies. (all groups) 4. Only 5% of people from 17 to 29 years old are self-employed, but the percentage of people who are self-employed rises to 20 per cent for people from 24 to 40 years old and to 23 per cent for people from 41 to 65 years old. (his, middle, older, group) €. The most common employment situation for people from 17 to 25 years old is working in a company with more than 100 employees, but working in a company with more than 100 employees is much less common for those people 26 to 40 years old and 41 to 65 years old. (this situation, older groups) 2. Rewrite the long version of Response A on the next page, replacing all the bolded words and phrases with referencing pronouns or synonyms. Then, check your answer with Response A on page 29. wwe nhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 31‘The pie charts show the percentage oF people living in different kinds of accommodation in Evonia over three age groups. Most younger people choose rental or hostel accommodation, while middle-aged and older people choose their own houses or apartments. ‘Shared vental accommodation is the most popular option tor people under 30, at 35%. Shared rental accommodation drops to 9% and 2% respectively for people trom 30-45 and people 46 years and older. in contvast, single rental accommodation remains steady at around 20-25% for people trom 17-25, people trom 20-45 and people 46 years and older. Only 2% of young people own their own houses, but the number of people who own their own houses increases dramatically to 28% for those between 20 and 45 and the number of people who oun their own houses increases to >1% in the older age group. 12% oF young people own their own apartment and again, the ‘umber of people who own their own apartment increases significantly to 36% and 23% respectively for people rom 30-A5 and people 46 years and older. While 30% oF young people lve in hostels, only 2% of middle-aged ones lve in hostels and wing in hostels is eplaced by assisted lwving, at 12%, in people 4€ years and older. (210 words) 3. Look back at Response B on page 30 and underline all the places where the writer has repeated phrases. Work with a partner to either change or delete those phrases to improve the writing. &_Error Correction It is easy to make simple mistakes in Task 1 writing, and this will lower your score for Pea ms Ure scene Ree heen aa @_ Activity 6 The following paragraphs have ten errors in word forms, verb tenses, prepositions, or spelling. Find and correct them. NB: Responses A and B above have no grammatical or spelling errors. The pie charts show the percentages of people eat different kinds of takeaway foods in the country of Firenze over three age category. In general, younger people preferred chips and burgers, whereas older ones prefer salads or roast dinners. Chips and burgers are the most popular chose for people under 20 year old, to 33%. This drops to only 10% by people of age over 50 years. 15% of the middle group prefers these two type of food, In contrast, preferences for pizza is similar for all age groups in the charts. 32 Lessons for IELTS Advanced WritingLo Lo UNIT: PE CHARTS - [ei meee awa The charts below show movie preferences in the country of Evonia for people aged DP eee ee ee ey eRe Rea A aR ae a Be ee ee eae a Write at least 150 words. 36-50 years old 51-65 years old a Pe Cue ue eco eu ot aicee le Race ecm) Ue ure niece ane mary @_ Activity 7 1. Look at the charts above and work with a partner to answer these questions. a. What is the topic of the charts? b. What do the different pies and segments represent? c. What are the similarities and differences between the three pies? Which significant changes do you need to focus on in your response? fe. What is the best way to group this data? 2. Complete the notes below. a. romances ~ mostly b, documentaries and dramas slightly, then rise . action and animation slightly, then - d._ biggest change is between and groups; and are fairly similar waww.nhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 333. Write the introductory and overview sentence by rephrasing the topic and briefly describing the main trends, See note d on the previous page. Usefial phrases: movie watching/ viewing habits/preferences/choices 4. Decide how you will organise the rest of your response and write the structure below. See notes 4, b, and c on the previous page. a. Describe similarities across the three pies. b. Describe cc. Describe 5. Now, write the rest of the response 6. Check your answer for: + Referencing + Accurate grammar 7. Compare your answer with the model below. The pie charts depict film viewing choices in the country of Evonia over three age categories from 20 to 65 years old. In general, preferences are quite similar for the two younger groups, but they change markedly for the older group. The only film category which is equally favoured across all ages is romance, at about 20 per cent. Action and animation are the two best liked types of movie for 20- to 36-year-olds, at 24% and 28% respectively. This patter is similar for the middle group, but the percentages fall slightly. However, there is a significant drop for those from 51 to 65 years old, to 7 and 10 per cent. In contrast, dramas and documentaries are less popular with the younger group, at 15% and 11% respectively, and these rise slightly in popularity for the middle-aged group. The older group much prefers these movies, and they account for 63% of all viewing preferences in this age group. (159 words) ee Porte oul) @_ Activity 8 Write your own response to the charts on the next page. Analyse the data. Organise your answer. Write the introduction. Write the body: Check your answer carefully a eNS 34 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing wiw.nhantrivietcom- wre: PIEGHARTS The pie charts below illustrate the percentages of people in five different employment situations in the country of Evonia over three age categories: 17-25 years old, 26-40 RAE en eee Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words. 17-25 years old 26-40 years old = more than 100 employees = 10-100 employees = under 10 employees = self-employed ‘unemployed ORO er a eee es tence ene Ucn ue Ore ome CCRT me ear employees’, and “companies with under 10 employees’ throughout your answer, this will take many words, and it will not improve the quality of your response Rice Is eC aCe Cee eee wowwnhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 35 ooIn this unit, you will practise writing a Task 1 response where the input data is in the form of a bar chart. PEL unre This relates to Task Achievement and the coherence part of Coherence and Cohesion on the marking criteria. Fe a a ee a Re ea er Eek ee Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make Cease ate Write at least 150 words. Percentages of Students Finding Employment in Molovia @_Activity 1 Analyse the Chart Work with a partner to answer the following questions. 1. What is the topic of this chart? 2. What do the bars represent? 3. What do the grey bars represent? What do the black bars represent? 36 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing vnwwanhantriviet.com(UNITS: BAR CHARTS 4. Graduates of which faculty had the most success in finding jobs? 5. Students from which two faculties had more success in 2005 than in 19952 Overall, in which year did graduates have more luck finding employment? @_Activity 2 Organise Your Response Here are three possible ways to describe the data, Discuss with a partner the advantages and disadvantages of each way. Describe each subject separately for 1995 and 2005. Deal with the year 1995 and then 2005. Group some subjects together and compare them with the others. Which subjects would you group together? - Part B Authentic Response: = @_ Activity 3 Read the two responses that follow and then answer the following questions. 1. Which response rephrases the topic? 2. Which response has an overview of the main trends? 3. How is the data organised in Response A? In Response B? 4. Which way of organising the data responds better to the rubric ‘Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant’? Which response has a variety of sentence structures? Which response has many similar and simple sentences? Which response would gain a high score in the IELTS Writing test? Response A ‘The bar chart indicates employment opportunities within half a year of graduation #rom seven areas of study in ‘Molovia and how these changed #Y0m 1995 to 2006. In 1995, employment prospects were generally good. Computer Science, Business and Law were the three most ‘sought aPter professions for graduates, and close to 90% gained employment in these areas. Engineering and teaching followed close behind at around 80% and 75% respectively. Science and the Arts were the least sought after by employers, but even in these areas around 60% found jobs. However, in 2005 the situation had changed and there were fewer Jobs available in most areas, except for the Sciences, which increased by about 5% in popularty. Teaching remained relatively unchanged and Engineering ‘and the Arts both fell about 10 percent, to 65 and 50 percent respectively. (136 words) wwnw.nhantrivietcom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 37Response B ‘The bar chart shows the percentage oF students who found employment within & months of graduation over ‘seven sublect areas in 1995 and 2005 in Molovia. In general, employment dropped over the period, rising only or Computer Science and Science. Around 90% of graduates oF computer science found work in 1995 and this rose to 95% in 2005. About 85% of business and law graduates got work in 1995 and this dropped to 60% in 2005. 25% of engineering students ound work in 1995 but less than 65% did in 2005. Teaching was about the same for both years. More Science graduates found work in 2005 than in 1995, Arts fll from above 50% to around 40%. Business and Lay had the greatest change, dropping trom approximately 85% to 60% over the period, (133 words) Gear ee (ome Eye wats Mita} This relates to the cohesion part of Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource (Vocabulary), and Grammatical Range and Accuracy on the marking criteria. & Rephrase the Topic eas Itis very important to rephrase, or paraphrase, the topic of the chart, It is not a good idea Roe sauree ec cage tenure ie ees ete @_ Activity 4 1. How many different expressions can you think of for these words(phrases in the context of the topic? Percentage 38 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing www.nhantriviet.com7 / Find Employment Within 6 Months of _—_Seven Subject In 1995 and 2005 Graduation ‘Areas Here is the description of the chart topic: ‘The bar chart below shows the percentages of students who found employment within 6 months of graduation over seven subject areas in 1995 and 2005 in Molovia. 2. Use the answers to Activity 4.1 above to rephrase the topic. Write three different introductory sentences on your own paper. Note: Sometimes, it is better to break the topic into two sentences if itis too long oF leave out some of the less important information and include it elsewhere in your response. & Avoid Repetition cis important not only to avoid repetition of words and phrases but also to avoid repeating the same structure. @_ Activity 5 Look at this excerpt from Response B and complete the activities on the next page. Around 90% of graduates of computer science found work in 1995 and this rose to 95% in 2005. About 85% of business and law graduates got work in 1995 and this dropped to 60% in 2005. 75% of engineering students found work in 1995 but less than 65% did in 2005. Teaching was about the same for both years. More Science graduates found work in 2005 than in 1995. Arts fell from above 50% to around 40%. www.nhantriviet.com Lessons for lELTS Advanced Writing 39 UTS: BAR CHARTS.1, HRAGIIgit the sentences/clauses with the same structure. 2. Underline synonyms and clotted. underline different ways of making comparisons. 3. Identify the sentences that do not make sense because information is missing. 4. Discuss with a partner what you think that information is and how you could improve the sentences. 5. Rewrite the paragraph — use a variety of sentence structures (be sure to include some complex sentences); use more synonyms; fix up the sentences that have information missing; and use a variety of comparative language structures. & Error Correction coca UAE CRE Cem Mer ek a developed a good eye for proofreading and can find errors and correct them quickly. Pee aee ee @_ Activity 6 The following paragraphs have ten errors in word forms, verb tenses, prepositions, or spelling. Find and correct them. Time yourself, then compare your time and correction rate with a partner. Can you categorise the errors? In 1995, employment prospects were generaly good. Computer Science, Business and Law were the three ‘most sought-afier professions for graduates, and close to 90% gain employment in these areas. Enginering and Teaching followed close behind at around 80% and 75% respectly. Science and Arts was the least sought-after for employers, but even in these areas around 60% found jobs. ‘However, in 2005 the situation has changed and there were fewer jobs available in most areas, except for the Sciences, which increased by about 5% in popular. ‘Teaching remained relatively unchanged and Engineering and Arts both felled about 10 per cent, to 65 and 50 percentage respectively. 40 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing woww.nhantriviet.com/ 4 UNIT: BAR CHARTS. Part D Guided Writing The bar chart below shows the percentages of different kinds of landfill waste in five igo eee eee Na eae Re ea ee ae comparisons where relevant. irae tac URC Landfill Waste in Five Countries 2010 ‘GHouseheld waste) ‘mElectonec waste ‘m Construction waste Aareutural waste | @. Activity 7 1. Look at the chart above and work with a partner to answer these questions. ‘What is the topic of this chart? What do the different coloured bars represent? What is the most significant feature? Which category makes up the highest percentage in most of the countries? Which countries show similar data? What is the best way to group the data? ne pe ep 2. Write the introductory and overview sentence by rephrasing the topic and briefly describing the most significant point(s). 3. Look at the structure of paragraphs and complete the missing notes below. a. Auantis, & Vatania ~ similar: high % of at % followed by z & b. & Bratistan — : Molovia 35% dedicated to & but only 15% & Bratistan more than 50% & less than 5% wwwanhantivietcom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 414. Now, write the full response. 5. Check your answer for: + Correct use off comparative language structures * Contrast connectives 6. Compare your answer with the model below. This chart illustrates the makeup of landiil sites in five different countries. Waste is divided into four main categories. In general, construction waste is the biggest category, and agricultural is the smallest, with the exception of Bratistan, which has a very high level of agricultural waste but an extremely small proportion of electronic waste. Vatania, Atlantis, and Selenia have similar landfill usage. All of these countries have a fairly even distribution of different kinds of waste, with a high percentage of construction waste, at 35, 32, and 29 per cent respectively. This is followed by electronic and household (24-29%) and finally agricultural waste, which makes up less than 20% in all three countries. Molovia and Bratistan are significantly different. Molovia has approximately 35 per cent of its landfills dedicated to construction and household waste but only about 15 per cent is electronic and agricultural, whereas Bratistan's profile is unique. More than half the waste in this country is agricultural, while a tiny fraction is electronic waste (less than 5%). (169 words) 7. Underline all the language of comparison and dotted underline the contrast connectives in the model. ss TEA @_ Activity 8 Write your own response to the chart on the next page. Analyse the data. Organise your answer. Write the introduction. Write the body. Check your answer carefully. we 42 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing www nhanttivietcomThe bar chart below shows the four main sources of primary health care in five aes Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Ritter Encore Health Care Delivery 2010 BNurse | eDooter (GP) | Hospital cnc | Specialist Atlantis Bratistan Selenia ‘country (ote et eae ceca) weww.nhantrivietcom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 43» In this unit, you will practise writing a Task 1 response where the input data is in the form of a table. lez) This relates to Task Achievement and the coherence part of Coherence and Cohesion on the marking criteria. nalyse the Tables and Plan Your Response The table below shows average minimum and maximum temperatures in degrees Celsius in winter and summer for four cities in an Asian country. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make en ees a Write at least 150 words. Cities Pees Atucee Catia Pretty Maximum ‘West City East City North City South City @_ Activity 1 Analyse the Table Work with a pariner to answer the following questions. What is the topie of this table? How many temperatures are shown for each city? What do the + and — signs with the temperatures represen? How many seasons are represented? Which cities experienced the greatest variation in temperature across seasons? Which cities had the least variation in temperature? @_Activity 2 _ Organise Your Response Here are three possible ways to describe the data, Discuss with a partner the advantages and disadvantages of each way. 1. Write one paragraph about winter temperatures and one about summer temperatures. 2, Group the West city data and the North city data together in one paragraph, and the East city data and the South city data together in the next paragraph. 3. Write about each city in the order of the table in one large paragraph, describing all the data 44 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing www.nhantrivietcomUNIT 6: TABLES - Part B Authentic Responses @_Activity 3 Read the two responses that follow and then answer the following questions. 1. Which response rephrases the topic? 2. Which response gives an overview of the table? 3. How is the data organised in Response A? In Response B? 4, Which response has a variety of sentence structures? 5. Which response has many similar and simple sentences? 6. Which response would gain a high score in the IELTS Writing test? Response A ‘The table illustrates changes in temperature over the year in four Asian cities. In general, the West and North cities have much higher fluctuations in temperature than East and South cities. The North city is the coldest in winter with an average low of -12°C and a high of only 5°C. The West city has slightly higher average temperatures but the same general pattern. in summer, However, these tuo cities are the hottest of the four, with highs of 32°C and 30°C respectively and lows around the mid-teens. ‘The Cast and South cities are more temperate, and the South city is the warmest overall. This city has an average low of 7'C in winter and the temperature averages 16°C in the hottest part of the day. In summer, ‘the average is 25°C with lows of 21°C. The East city has the fewest Variations in tempevature over the year. t ranges from 2°C in winter to 22°C during summer days. (159 words) Response B ‘Alerage temperatures for four cities in an Asian country during summer and winter are given in he table. Overall, ‘ne largest fluctuation in average temperatures across seasons Was indicated in the West city and the North city. Minimum winter temperatures in the West city and the North city beth dipped below 2er0. These temperatures were at-a'C and -I2°C respectively. The East city and the South city experienced milder temperatures ranging rom a minimum of 2C in the East to a maximum of 13°C. The South cty experienced sightly higher temperatures OFC minimum and 18°C maximum. Summer temperatures in the West city and North city experienced more variation. There was a 13°C minimum to 30°C maximum in the West city and a maximum of 32°C for the North city. This was in comparison to its minimum temperature of 15°C. Temperatures in the East city and South city increased during summer. The increases were from 1" to 22°C and 2°C to 25°C respectively. (163 words) Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 45% ‘Ne Gare C Language Activities This relates to the cohesion part of Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource (Vocabulary), and Grammatical Range and Accuracy on the marking criteria. &_Rephrase the Topic a een Cyc GO aCe ac oes Cy Cn ec a reese meme ar niet seer he " @_ Activity 4 Sort the following words and phrases into four categories given in the columns below. availability i Tocally grown midday most expensive cheapest peak morning rush hour exemplar busiest similarly drop by nearly half rise in general remain ———_ similar pattern midnight temperate slightly higher heavy daytime use average mild vary in contrast fall respectively halved traffic volume variation high however temperature hottest, low in comparison __imported Seasonal Fruit/ Traffic Flow on General Task 1 Fruit Bridges Vocabulary 46 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing www nhantrivietcomwiv: tats 4 & Overview Sentences ‘An overview sentence summarising the most important data or main points is an essential part of gaining a good score. Do not be tempted to leave this sentence out of your response as you will be penalised under the Task Achievement descriptor of the marking criteria. @_ Activity 5 1. Look at the overview sentences from Responses A and B. fa, In general, the West and North cities have much higher fluctuations in temperature than East and South cities. b. Overall, the largest fluctuation in average temperatures across seasons was indicated in the West city and the North city. What do you notice about each sentence? Check the features on the checklist below. pee cae uae Uses a linking word to indicate ageneral_ Yes / No. If yes, write it Yes / No. If yes, write it ‘statement here: here: Is a concise summary of the main points Yes /No Yes/No (Often offers a comparison or contrast of | Yes / No Yes/No some types Does not contain any data Yes / No Yes / No Is general rather than specific Yes / No Yes/No 2. Answer the questions about the trends in tables 1 and 2. Then, write an overview sentence for each table. Use the checklist above to help you. isco When you are looking at data to determine the trends for your overview sentence, look for Petar een ne UN soem ene ee Me tse a Caged of the table, check the others to see if something similar or different is happening. in this SA Mn CRC CLC) Table 1: Fri January a ey erg (Summer) (CD) (Winter) (Spring) Apples (L) $4.50 Oranges (L) $4.95 Oranges (I) $5.00 Bananas (I) $2.99 Strawberries (L) $6.00 Note: (L) = local; (|) = imported; NA = not available www nhantrivietcom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 47eae What is the trend for apples? What is the trend for local oranges? What is the trend for imported oranges? What is the trend for bananas? What is the trend for strawberries? What is the trend for local fruit prices? What is the trend for imported fruit prices? Which is the most important trend? eae Overview sentence: Table 2: Traffic Flow Note: Figures refer to the number of vehicies. 1. What is the trend for the Harbour Bridge? 2. What is the trend for the River Bridge? 3. What is the trend for the City Bridge? 4, Whatis the trend for the Smith Bridge? 5. Which trends are similar? 6. Which trends are different? Overview sentence: &_Using Comparisons @_Activity 6 1. Complete the following table with the correct form of the comparative and superlative adjectives. cheap a. b. « = more expensive Ce cs f the busiest high a h i lower i 48 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing jewwnhantriviet.com4 i 7 wrens 2. Complete the rule about correct formation of comparative and superlative adjectives. If the adjective ends in ; make the comparative and superlative form by dropping the and adding ‘ier’ and ‘iest’. If the adjective has more than syllables, insert + normal adjective to form a comparative and + most + normal adjective for the superlative form. &_Adverbs ‘Using adverbs to qualify your explanations of Task 1 data helps you to be more specific and accurate in your writing, as well as showing your vocabulary range. @_ Activity 7 Sort the following adverbs according to their meaning. considerably substantially ‘moderately ‘somewhat lightly i _ significantly reasonably Large Amount ere Sais & Error Correction @_ Activity 8 The following paragraph has ten errors in word forms, verb tenses, prepositions, or spelling. Find and correct them. Time yourself, then compare your time and correction rate with a partner. ‘The price of local grown apples were varying ftom a peak at $4.50 per kilo in summer to a low of $2.25 in winter, and they are available all yearly round. In contrast, locally grown oranges are not on sale in autumn, and their cheapiest season is spring, at $3.90 in average per kilo, Summer is the expensivist time to buy local oranges. However, importing oranges and bananas are available all year and are consistently price at around $5 and $3 per kilo respectivly. Teacher Tip Rc oe a ae Tea Poeun alana u Sentai ame mye eis ce RU ie ee ete ct Ce acs eee een Ua eee aCe Re at Reece ul eC me aCe Ur Cum Se ae ae a Be www nhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 49ht CLK Ad ing Fa gee ee eT Re ce a aA ec aaa tear a Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make Pe eee as Write at least 150 words, LACS ete ours! ‘January (Summer) April(Autumn) July (Winter) October (Spring) $4.50 $3.75 $2.25 $4.25 $4.95 NA $4.30 $3.90 $5.00 $5.50 $5.25 $5.00 Bananas (I) $2.99 $2.99 $2.99 $2.99 ‘Strawberries (L) _ $6.00 $8.00 NA. $6.50 @_ Activity 9 1. Look at the table above and start planning your answer. Use your overview sentence from Activity 5 and write an introductory sentence to go with it in the first paragraph 2. Look at the words in Activity 4 (Language Activities) that you identified as suitable for this response to help plan the body of your response. The price of apples from a of $4.50 per kilo in summer toa of $2.25 in winter, and they are available all year round. : oranges are not on sale in autumn, and their season is spring, at $3.90 on average per kilo. Summer is the time to buy local oranges. ‘ oranges and bananas are all year and are priced at around $5 and $3 per kilo . Strawberries are the fruit and are at their in summer, at $6 a kilo, They are expensive in autumn (SB per Kilo) and are not in winter at all. 3. Check your answer for: + Correct use of comparative language structures + Contrast connectives 50 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing vnwwanhantriviet.comSm ‘6: TABLES e 4. Compare your answer with the model below. The table depicts average fruit prices over the year in one country in the Southern hemisphere. Four different fruits are used as exemplars. Overall, locally grown fruit varies in price and availability according to the seasons, whereas imported fruit is more consistently priced. ‘The price of locally grown apples varies from a peak of $4.0 per kilo in summer to a low of $2.25 in winter, and they are available all year round. in contrast, locally grown oranges are not on sale in autumn, and their cheapest season is spring, at $3.90 on average per kilo. Summer is the most expensive time to buy local oranges. However, imported oranges and bananas are available all year and are consistently priced at around $5 and $3 per kilo respectively. Strawberries are the most expensive fruit and are at their cheapest in summer, at $6 a kilo. They are expensive in autumn ($8 per kilo) and are not available in winter at all. (160 words) Ce @ Activity 10 Write your own response to the table below. Analyse the data. Organise your answer Write the introduction. Write the body. Check your answer carefully. The table below shows the number of cars per hour crossing the four major bridges in New Stratford at 8 a.m., 12 noon, 4 p.n., 8 p.m., and midnight. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words. Bridges 8am. 12 Noon 4p.m. 8 p.m. Midnight Harbour Bridge 12,500 10,300 11,750 6,400 2,550 River Bridge 8,300 6,490 8,500 4,450 1,250 City Bridge 6,225 6,800 6,150 1,280 555 ‘Smith Bridge 2,350 2,125 3,330 4,225 430 trivietcom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 51In this unit, you will practise writing a Task 1 response where the input data is in the form of a process, map, or flow chart. Geir Analyse the Diagrams and Plan Your Response This relates to Task Achievement and the coherence part of Coherence and Cohesion on the marking criteria. eas A diagram showing a process sometimes comes up in Task 1. The first thing you should do is to follow the process from beginning to end in order to understand it, then break it down eel cm clsce ene ae iar laes Cs} na a ee a ee oe ara cd Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Mara em Uo 52 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing& (UNIT PROCESSES, ARS, FLOW CARTS Looking carefully at process diagrams such as these for start and finish points on the graphic will help you to make sense of the process. A 1 Analyse the Diagram ty. ys Work with a partner to answer the following questions. What does this graphic represent? Where does the water go from the primary setling tanks Where does the substance at the top of the shudge tanks go? What happens to sediment in the secondary settling tanks? What happens to the material in the drying lagoons? ‘What are the two final options for water which has been in the lagoons? Do you think itis relevant to make comparisons in this type of response? Why/Why not? eee snow @_Activity 2 Organise Your Response What is the best way to organise your response? A. One paragraph explaining each step of the process in detail and comparing each stage to another B. A series of bullet points for each step of the process C. An introductory sentence, a body paragraph explaining each step, and then a summary statement Teacher Tip Rewrite the IELTS Writing question in a different way and use it as your introductory sentence. You must still have an overview or concluding sentence in this type of response, Re rece ie ees Welw aati (cy This relates to the cohesion part of Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource (Vocabulary), and Grammatical Range and Accuracy on the marking criteria. @_ Activity 3 1. Which tense are you most likely to use in your response? Why? A. Present simple passive, because there is no time indicated on the diagram. B Past simple passive, because the stages occurred in the past. G. Present continuous, because the stages are occurring: now: 2. Convert the verbs in this response to active or passive voice as you think is appropriate. Firstly, the wastewater (screen) to remove large solids. Then, it (send) to primary settling tanks where the liquid (arain off) to go to biological filters www.nhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 53hy and thence to secondary settling tanks. Meanwhile, the heavier particles in the wastewater (sink) to the bottom of the primary settling tanks and (remove) to sludge tanks ‘where the gas that forms above the surface (burn off) or (use) as a power source, The sludge (transfer) to drying lagoons, after which it (stockpile) and eventually (ag) as fertiliser. “The clear liquid in the secondary settling tanks ‘Giphon off) into lagoons, but what {alls to the bottom of these tanks (return) to the primary setling tanks to go through the process again. Water from the lagoons cither (channel) into the sea or (use) to irrigate woodlots. eet) There may be some subject-specific vocabulary items that you are nat familiar with in these types of process diagrams. Do not be intimidated by this, as you can still write about the process without knowing exactly what every word means. Using synonyms to vary the DCA n ei nice eae @_Activity 4 Sort the following vocabulary items into the right category. transfer make use of shift send transport bring utilise operate employ return Words Meaning ‘Move’ Words Meaning ‘Use’ er Tip Itis also very useful to be able to convert nouns into verbs for this type of question. That way, some of nouns which are used in a diagram can be utilised in your response while at the same Se ee eg ee eae cc @_Activity 5 1. Complete the table with the correct verb forms of the nouns from the process diagram. Sometimes, the verb form and the noun form are the same. tis also important to use linking words to make the stages in the process clear. 54 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing wwwanhantrivietcom_UNITT: PROCESSES, MAPS, FLOW CHARTS 2. Underline the linking words used in the paragraph below. Firsily the wastewater is screened to remove large solids. Then, itis sent to primary setiling tanks where the liquid is drained off t0 go to biological filters and thence to secondary settling tanks, Meanwhile, the heavier particles in the wastewater sink to the bottom of the primary settling tanks and are removed to sludge tanks where the gas that forms above the surface is burnt off or used as a power source. The sludge is transferred to drying lagoons, after which itis stockpiled and eventually bagged as fertiliser. 3. Use linking words to write a paragraph about the process for processing peanuts below: - Peanuts harvested in fields and transported to factory . Peanuts checked at factory for quality and size }. Peanuts shelled and salted by machine Peanuts bagged Peanuts transported to retail outlets | 6: Peanuts bought and enjoyed by customers 4. 7 @_ Activity 6 Now, try to write your own response to the wastewater process diagram. When you have completed your answer, check it against the model below. The process diagram illustrates the process by which wastewater is treated so that itis able tobe _ used in the form of energy, fertiliser, and irrigation water or released into the sea. Firstly, the wastewater is screened to remove large solids. Then, itis sent to primary settling tanks where the liquid is drained off to go to biological filters and thence to secondary settling tanks. Meanwhile, the heavier particles in the wastewater sink to the bottom of the primary settling tanks and are removed to sludge tanks where the gas that forms above the surface is bumt off or used ‘as a power source. The sludge is transferred to drying lagoons, after which it is stockpiled and eventually bagged as fertiliser. The clear liquid in the secondary settling tanks is siphoned off into lagoons, but what falls to the bottom of these tanks is returned to the primary settling tanks to go through the process again. ‘Water from the lagoons is either channelled into the sea or used to irrigate woodlots. The diagram shows how wastewater is successfully reused and recycled in three different ways. (187 words) www nhantiviet com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 55i Analyse the Maps and Plan Your Response This relates to Task Achievement and the coherence part of Coherence and Cohesion on the marking criteria. Another type of graphic which can come up in Task 1 is a map, often of a town or city, showing changes over a period of time. The maps below show the Civic Square of the town of Smallville in 1980 and now. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Briere me RCs Civic Square Smallville 1980 aR ee @_ Activity 7 Analyse the Maps Work with a partner to answer the following questions. 1, What has happened to the car park in the present map? 2. How many cafés and restaurants were there in 1980? In the present map? Which buildings have not changed? ‘What has happened to most of the Norfolk pine trees and the garden? Which new building appeared in south-west area of the present map? What has happened to the area where the car park used to be? Overall, would you say the focus of the area has changed? In what ways? Do you think itis relevant to make comparisons in this type of response? Why/Why not? ae exe ntrvietcom 56 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing www.ce 2 ee 7 vatsres unica oa @_ Activity 8 Organise Your Response Whar is the best way to organise your response? A. Comparing each map building by building B, An explanation and comparison of the main changes between the two years with one body paragraph focusing on 1980 and another on the current map C. A rief description of the 1980 map with more focus on the more recent map ima) RUIca aes See eee hue oe) Ce ER Cea cy all other Task 1 responses. That is tion, body paragraphs, and an overvi ntence. eee This relates to the cohesion part of Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource (Vocabulary), and Grammatical Range and Accuracy on the marking criteria. er Tip Paying careful attention to tense shifts in your ans eer ea cates Se Caeser gt @_ Activity 9 Which is the correct tense structure in the sentences below? A. In the current map, the Norfolk pine trees were removed and a city library was constructed in their place. B. In the current map, the Norfolk pine trees had been removed and a city library had been constructed in their place. ©. In the current map, the Norfolk pine trees have been removed and a city library has been constructed in their place. @_ Activity 10 Write an appropriate verb in each gap. Tn 1980, most of the square ‘a large car park by a row of Norfolk pines on both sides, a small garcien west of these trees, and a row of small shops and restaurants on the far eastern side of the square, The post office on the south-eastern corner and this, along with the town hall, ‘one of the few buildings to have remained unchanged. In the present map, the original car park by a multi-storey car park adjacent to the town hall, All but two of the trees , but a new circular area with a fountain and seats around it and a statue in the middle. A library also www.nhantrivietcom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 57in the square, and the shops but now mostly cafés and restaurants, Language describing where things are in relation to each other is useful. Use the compass on the map to help you. @_ Activity 11 - 1. Complete the table with the adjective forms. Some have been done for you as examples. erence a.northern b. © da e. north-eastern i 9. h. 2. Complete the sentences with appropriate vocabulary either from the boxes below or table above. surrounded by to the left of between opposite in the middle to the right of adjacent to a, In 1980, the electrician’s was situated the hairdresser’s and the souvenir shop, whereas in the current map, it has disappeared. b, Inthe current map, a multi-storey car park has been builtin the corner of the square. ¢. In both maps, the post office remains unchanged in the corner of the square. d. The statue in the centre of the square is seats. e. In the current map, the car park has changed into a multi-storey building the town hall @_ Activity 12 Now, try to write your own response to the Smallville Civic Square maps. When you have completed your answer, check it against the model on the next page 58 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing woww.nhantrivietcom= fw PROCESSES, MAPS, FLOW CHARTS,“ ‘The maps show how the Civic Square in Smallville has changed between 1980 and now. | In 1980, most of the square was a large car park surrounded by a row of Norfolk pines on both sides, a small garden west of these trees, and a row of small shops and restaurants on the far eastem side of the square. The post office was on the south-eastem comer and this, along with the town hall is one of the few buildings to have remained unchanged. | In the present map, the original car park has been replaced by a multi-storey car park adjacent to the town hall. All but two of the trees have gone, but a new circular area has been built with a fountain and seats around it and a statue in the middle. A library has also been constructed in the square, and the shops have remained but are now mostly cafés and restaurants. | ‘Overall, the Civic Square has become more recreation focussed, with garden seats and an increase in places for people to eat or buy food. | (179 words) Ge Analyse the Charts and Plan Your Response This relates to Task Achievement and the coherence part of Coherence and Cohesion on the marking criteria. The flow chart below shows the study pathways available to students at the University ee Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make Ce ee eae a Write at least 150 words. Study Pathways — University of Atlantis English and Course length: 3 oF 4 years “English and Business 5) | Foundation Course length: 4 oF 5 years 4 years = Diploma in Business + Certificate in Ccenfiat in Enalsh — i dom alse www.nhantrivietcom Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 59\ @_Activity 13 Analyse the Chart Work with a partner to answer the following TRUEIFALSE questions. Students with an IELTS score of 5.5 and above are eligible to enter IT’ and business courses. T/F Students with an IELTS score of 6.0 can enter directly into postgraduate programmes. T/F In four years, a Bachelor's degree in business can be completed. T/F Students with an IELTS score of less than 5.5 can complete a certificate in English in one year. T/F gee Students wanting to study English and business can choose from a four-year or five-year study programme, depending on the qualification they select. T/F 6. An IELTS score of 6.0 entitles students to direct entry into diploma and Bachelor’s degrees without the need to study at foundation level. T/F 7. Students with an IELTS score under 5.5 are not able to study any degree or diploma programmes initially. T/F @_Activity 14 Organise Your Response What is the best way to organise your response? ‘A. Aparagraph explaining each of the IELTS scores and their pathways. B. Apparagraph explaining entry requirements followed by a paragraph explaining the qualifications. G. Aparagraph on ITT qualification options followed by a paragraph on business ones. ta Writing a response to this flow chart requires a good understanding of tense shifts, as you errr ee ee rue ere Ser eT Geran Urea) This relates to the cohesion part of Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource (Vocabulary), and Grammatical Range and Accuracy on the marking criteria. @_ Activity 15 L. Which tenses are you most likely to use for each section? a. Programmes: b. Future results: ¢. Entry requirements: 2. In which section might you use the modal verb ‘can’? a. Programmes b. Future results c. Entry requirements 60 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing wwwanhantrivieticom‘UNIT 7: PROCESSES, MAPS, FLOW CHARTS 3, Fill in the gaps in the body paragraphs below with the correct form of each verb, Students with an IELTS test score of 5.5 can (a) enter] any of the Foundation Programmes at the University. Those with a 6.0 can (b) [move] into diplomas and undergraduate degrees, and those with a 6.3 (¢) [be] eligible for postgraduate study. ‘There (a) [be] three Foundation Programmes. English and IT (e) [be] a three-year qualification, at the end of which students (f) [have] a Certificate ish and a Diploma in IT One year’s further successful study (g) [give] them a Bachelor's degree in IT. The second choice is English and Business, which (h) [be] similar to the IT course except that the whole programme (j) [take] five years to complete. The final programme (j [be] the Certificate in English by itself. This (k) [be] a one-year full-time course, at the end of which students can (1) [elect] to sit the IELTS test and subsequently (m) [join] any mainstream course at the University @_ Activity 16 Now, write your own response to the flow chart on page 59. When you have completed your answer, check it against the model below. The flow chart shows study pathways at the University of Atlantis. There are two main ways to enter ‘mainstream subjects: through an IELTS test score or a Foundation Programme. ‘Students with an IELTS test score of 5.5 can enter any of the Foundation Programmes at the University. Those with a 6.0 can move into diplomas and undergraduate degrees, and those with a 6.5 are eligible for postgraduate study. There are three Foundation Programmes. English and IT is a three-year qualification, at the end of ‘students will have a Certificate in English and a Diploma in IT. One year’s further suc- cessful study will give them a Bachelor's degree in IT. The second choice is English and Business, which is similar to the IT course except that the whole programme takes five years to complete. The final programme is the Certificate in English by itself. This is a one-year full-time course, at the end of which students can elect to sit the IELTS test and subsequently join any mainstream course at the University. (173 words) wiwnhantriviet.com Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing 61The information and activities in this unit will help you to understand the marking criteria for Task 2 of the IELTS Academic Writing test. The unit provides an overview of many of the points that you need to focus on in order to achieve success. All of the points mentioned in this unit will be covered more fully in subsequent units of the book. Eure onawatn aura kent: IELTS academic writing scripts are marked on four basic criteria, and each one has equal weight. Task Response Have you understood the topic of the question and the type of response required? Have you answered all the parts of the question? Have you developed some main ideas about this top Have you given examples, reasons, or details to support your ideas? Have you written at least 250 words? 22222 Coherence and Cohesion Have you written a clear introduction which explains the topic and tells the reader the organisation of your response? Does your answer have a clear point of view which is developed throughout your essay? Does your response have clear paragraphs? Does each paragraph have one topic and a topic sentence? Have you used a variety of appropriate linking expressions to show the structure of your response? Have you used referencing pronouns and synonyms to avoid repetition? RPeisie. Be Grammatical Range and Accuracy Have you used a variety of sentence structures? Have you used noun phrases to express your ideas? Have you used appropriate verb tenses? Have you controlled your subject-verb agreement? Have you used correct punctuation? Overall, is your grammar accurate? 22222 62 Lessons for IELTS Advanced Writing www.nhantriviet.com