Writing
One sentence, paraphrased, and the overview that has to follow it. Academic module only. With a practice exercise.
The IELTS Task 1 introduction is one sentence, and it does one job: it says what the chart shows, in your own words. It is the easiest part of the paper to prepare and the easiest to get wrong, because most candidates copy the question.
What follows it matters far more. The overview is two sentences summarising the biggest features, and an answer without one cannot reach Band 6 for Task Achievement however good the rest is.
Two paragraphs
Six rules covering both.
Change the words and the structure. The line graph below shows becomes the graph illustrates or the chart compares. Copied words are excluded from your word count.
The introduction says what is shown, over what period, for whom. Anything more delays the overview.
Illustrates, compares, presents, gives information about, provides data on. Rotate them; do not use shows three times.
It states the biggest features in general terms: what rose overall, which was largest throughout, what changed most. Figures belong in the body.
Start it with Overall or It is clear that. Examiners look for it, and a signposted overview is easier to credit.
Immediately after the introduction is the safer position, because if you run out of time you have already written it.
Method
Six substitutions that work on almost any question.
Line graph becomes graph or chart. Bar chart becomes chart. Table becomes table, which is difficult to paraphrase, so change the verb instead.
Or compares, presents, gives information about. This is the easiest single change and it removes the most obvious copying.
Between 2000 and 2020 becomes over a twenty-year period, or during the two decades from 2000.
Electricity generation from renewable sources becomes renewable energy production. Shorten where you can do so accurately.
Country names, currencies and units stay as they are. Changing them introduces errors for no gain.
An inaccurate paraphrase is worse than a copied one, because it misstates what the chart shows.
Practice
Choose the better option.
The line graph below shows electricity generation from renewable sources in four countries between 2000 and 2020.
Write an introduction and an overview.
1Which is the best introduction?
B. Paraphrased in both wording and structure. A is copied, C is too vague to be a summary, and D is a general opening that says nothing about the chart.
2Which belongs in the overview?
B. It states the biggest features in general terms and uses no specific figures. A and C are body paragraph detail, and D speculates about cause.
3How long should the introduction be?
One sentence. It says what the chart shows and nothing else. A longer introduction takes words from the body without adding anything.
4What happens if you leave out the overview?
Task Achievement cannot reach Band 6. This is the most expensive single omission in Academic Task 1, and it is easy to avoid.
5Which verb is worth avoiding after using it once?
Shows. It is the word in the question, so using it repeatedly reads as copying. Rotate through illustrates, compares and presents instead.
Copied words do not count towards your total and signal to the examiner that you cannot paraphrase, which is itself assessed.
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Paraphrasing one sentence is manageable. Whether your overview picked the right features is what decides the band.
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One sentence. It states what the chart shows, over what period. Anything longer delays the overview, which matters more.
No. Copied words are excluded from your word count and signal that you cannot paraphrase, which is assessed under Lexical Resource.
Two sentences summarising the biggest features, without specific figures. An answer without one cannot reach Band 6 for Task Achievement.
Either is accepted, but second is safer. If you run short of time, you have already written the paragraph that matters most.
No. Save specific figures for the body paragraphs. The overview describes the shape of the data, not its detail.
Full membership
Writing one is easy. Choosing the right two or three features to put in it is judgement, and it is exactly what an examiner assessment tells you.
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