Level 4 IELTS Writing Task 1 Task 1 Non-Temporal Charts Task 1 on the IELTS exam requires you to transfer key information from a chart into a written report. The IELTS instructions are Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. You need to be able to give a clear interpretation of the data in the chart. You need to produce a report that gives an introduction and a body paragraph for each of the data sources. On your ipad, go to https://takeielts.britishcouncil.org/ Click on Results Click on IELTS assessment criteria Download IELTS task 1 Writing band descriptors (PDF, 35 kb) What are the 4 aspects of writing which you get marks for? Look at the descriptors for bands 4, 5 and 6. Look at the points in the box below. Which aspects of writing do they relate to? To have a good chance of getting a band 5 or 5.5 in IELTS, you need to:- write an overview describe the main information in the chart(s) correctly make some comparisons organise your writing in a clear and logical way use some good linking words use suitable vocabulary with good range, spelling and correct word forms have some simple sentences, some compound sentences (using linking words like and & but), and some complex sentences (e.g.., which was much lower than ; it is clear to see that ) In this section you will: review how to write about non-temporal charts review grammar and vocabulary for this kind of writing practice writing well-organized reports which describe and compare key information
What kinds of charts can you see below? Non-Temporal Chart Types Percentage of travellers who were UAE nationals to different countries, 2014 Turkey 17% Malaysia 20% Saudi Arabia 49% Oman 8% France 6% UAE citizens visiting various countries in 2014 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Saudi Arabia France Oman Malaysia Turkey UAE nationals travel destinations, 2014 Saudi Arabia France Oman Malaysia Turkey 49% 6% 8% 20% 17% 2014 data for destinations of Emirati travellers Turkey Malaysia Oman France Saudi Arabia 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% Would you write the same or different reports for each of these? 1
Non-Temporal Charts - Vocabulary & sentence structure Tips for writing about non-temporal charts Name the largest section first Compare other sections to the largest section or to each other. Look for ways to compare the different sections of the chart Use comparative adjectives (adjective + er) Use superlative adjectives (adjective + est) Use more than or less than Describing One Part of a Non-temporal Chart Starting with the amount: The highest The greatest percentage of women attended university. The largest proportion of books read were Arabic. A significant number of tourists came from Russia The smallest The lowest Starting with the topic: largest Pizza made up the second largest percentage of the total. smallest Pizza was the most food. Law was the second/third most popular major. Fords were the least common cars. 2
Non-Temporal Charts - Vocabulary & sentence structure 1. Starting with the amount Describing Two Parts of a Non-Temporal Chart As many Twice as many Three times as many Not as many More/Far more Much/Many more A lot/a few more Considerably more Significantly more Slightly more Fractionally more Landcruisers students shopping malls were sold came from Oman were in Dubai as than Nissan Patrols. from Yemen. in New York. 2. Starting with the topic Drinking coffee was Nokia phones were Swiss watches were as just as nearly as almost as not as more much more far more considerably more slightly more less slightly less fractionally less far less common popular as than drinking tea. iphones. Japanese watches. Look at the sentences below. Underline the noun/noun phrase at the beginning of each sentence. What does each sentence start with: amount or topic? * circle one The smallest percentage of children went to pre-school. Amount / Topic * Boys made up the largest percentage of the total. Amount / Topic * 3
Non-Temporal Charts- Grammar Revisiting Comparative and Superlative Adjectives Comparatives are used to show the differences between two things. Superlatives are used to show how one thing is different from two or more things. For short adjectives, we usually add -er to the word and use than to compare two things. If the word ends in y, change y to i and add -er or -est. For the superlative, add -est. Don t forget the! Base Word high low Comparative higher The percentage of tourists for Al Ain was higher than for Doha. lower Level Three classes had a lower number of students than Level Two classes. Superlative the highest Beirut had the highest percentage of tourists. the lowest Level One classes had the lowest number of students. For longer adjectives, we cannot use er and est. More and less are used to make the comparative and the most/the least are used for the superlative. Base Word Comparative Superlative popular common more/less popular than Pepsi was a more popular drink than Sprite. more/less common than Cancer was less common than heart disease. the most/the least popular The least popular drink was Red Bull. the most/the least common The most common disease was diabetes. The difference between popular and common Popular is used to describe people or things that many people like, such as Ahlam, smartphones, or ice cream. Popular has a positive meaning. Common is used to describe things that happen a lot. It can have a positive or negative meaning. For example, Twitter is a common way for people to communicate. Diabetes is common among obese people. 4
Non-Temporal Charts Review of fractions Vocabulary to describe common fractions 10% a tenth (1/10) 20% a fifth (1/5) 25% a quarter (1/4) 33% a third (1/3) 50% a half (1/2) 66% two thirds (2/3) 75% three quarters (3/4) (A) Focus on fractions Listen and spell the fractions. Then, colour in the triangle(s) to show the fractions. a) b) c) d) e) f) 5
(B) Focus on exactly / just over/under fractions. Circle the correct answer. 1. 24% = exactly / just over / just under a quarter 2. 33% = exactly / just over / just under a third 3. 76% = exactly / just over / just under three quarters 4. 11% = exactly / just over / just under a tenth Write the number as a fraction. Use exactly, just under or just over. 25% 35% 78% 50% 65% 18% 73% 21% 30% 54% Non-Temporal Charts Review of vocabulary The words below have spelling mistakes. Write them correctly. 1. presentages 11. respectivly 2. wich 12. togather 3. overal 13. populer 4. largeast 14. higherst 5. exctly 15. persent 6. a fith 16. prportion 7. comon 17. wer 8. loweast 18. a haf 9. scond 19. numbre 10. a quater 20. moast 6
Non-Temporal Pie Chart Review of structure Fill in each gap in the introduction and body paragraph with one word only. The pie chart shows the percentages of people from the UAE who travelled to five countries, which were Saudi Arabia,,, and in 2014. Overall, the greatest percentage of travellers visited, while the Organisation 1. 2. smallest percentage went to. Looking at the pie chart, it is clear to see that the highest percentage of travellers went to, at just under half. The second highest percentage travelled to, at exactly a fifth. Together, and made up exactly a quarter, at 17% and 8% respectively. This was higher than the percentage of 1. 2. 3. 4. people who visited, which was the lowest, at just 6%. 7
Non-Temporal Pie Chart Review of sentence types Fill in each gap with one word only. Sentence starting with amount 1. The largest percentage of UAE travellers went to. Sentence starting with topic 2. made up the largest percentage of the total. Sentence starting with amount 3. The of UAE travellers went to France. Sentence starting with topic 4. made up the smallest percentage of the total. Sentences starting with topics 5. Malaysia was the most popular destination country. 6. Turkey was most popular country. 7. France was the country for travellers. 8
Name ID Section Non-Temporal Pie Chart Writing practice The following chart illustrates the proportion of people with different diseases in Ireland in 2013. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. 9
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Non-Temporal Chart Types What kinds of charts can you see below? Popular snacks 2006 Cake 15% Cheese 5% Worldwide Chocolate 50% Popcorn 20% Chips 10% Cheese 8% China Cake 10% Chocolate 40% Popcorn 30% Chips 12% Japan Chocolate 5% Cheese 20% Chips 15% Cake 25% Popcorn 35% Popular snacks, 2006 Chocolate Chips Popcorn Cake Cheese Worldwide 50% 10% 20% 15% 5% Japan 5% 15% 35% 25% 20% China 40% 12% 30% 10% 8% Would you write the same or different reports for each of these? 11
Non-Temporal Charts - Mixed Types Report Structure Writing about mixed non-temporal charts looks difficult, but it is quite easy if you remember the steps you learned for the other types of charts. The main difference is that the organization of a report changes when you have two charts to write about. Introduction paragraphs. You still must have an introduction paragraph. This tells the reader what both charts show and gives an overall statement about both charts. Body paragraphs. You should write one paragraph for each chart shown. Within these body paragraphs, you must make comparisons and correlations. No conclusion needed. No opinion. There could be predictions in IELTS. Popular snacks in two Asian Countries in 2006 Country Chocolate Popcorn Cake Cheese Chips Japan 5% 35% 25% 20% 15% China 40% 30% 10% 8% 12% 12
Mixed Non-Temporal Charts - Introduction Look at the charts and answer the questions. 1. What kinds of charts do you see? 2. What was the most popular snack worldwide? 3. What was the most popular snack in Japan? 4. What was most popular snack in China? 5. Circle which two are similar for the most popular snack. Worldwide / Japan / China 6. Circle which one is different for the most popular snack. Worldwide / Japan / China.. Fill in the gaps with the correct answers. Write only one word for each gap. The shows the most popular snack foods, which were chocolate, popcorn, cake, cheese and chips, in the world in 2006 in percentages, whereas shows the popularity of the same snacks in and in the same year. Overall, the most popular snack and in was chocolate, while in it was popcorn. Body 1 Pie Chart Information only 7. What was the most popular snack worldwide? 8. What was the second most popular snack worldwide? 9. How much did the third and fourth most popular snacks make together? 10. What was the least popular snack worldwide?.. Fill in the gaps with the correct answers. Write only one word for each gap. Looking at the pie chart, it is clear to see that the most common snack in the world was, at exactly half. The second most popular snack was, which was at 20%. Together, cake and chips made up exactly a quarter, at 15% and 10% respectively. This was than the popularity of cheese, which was the lowest at. 13
Body Paragraph 2 Similar information from the Table compared with the Pie Chart 11. Circle which two are similar for the most popular snack. Worldwide / Japan / China 12. What was the most popular snack in China? 13. What was the least popular snack in China? 14. How does its percentage in China compare with the percentage in the world?.. Fill in the gaps with the correct answers. Write only one word for each gap. to the, in the most popular snack was, at. On the other hand, the least popular snack was, at 8%, which was slightly higher than in the world. Body Paragraph 3 Different information from the Table compared with the Pie Chart 15. Circle which one is different for the most popular snack. Worldwide / Japan / China 16. What was the most popular snack in Japan? 17. How does its popularity in Japan compare with its popularity in the world? 18. What was the least popular snack in Japan? 19. How does its percentage in Japan compare with the percentage in the world?.. Fill in the gaps with the correct answers. Write only one word for each gap. in the and in, in the most common snack was, which was popular than in the world, at 35%. In contrast, the popular snack in was, at, which was much lower than in the rest of the world. 14
MIXED NON-TEMPORAL CHARTS REVIEW 1. What does the first sentence of the introduction tell you? Introduction Topic information of the and topic information of the 2. What information is in the overall sentence of the introduction? Circle one answer: most popular / least popular 3. What is the topic of body paragraph 1? The Body Paragraph 1 4. What information do you start this paragraph with? Circle one answer: most popular / least popular 5. What information do you finish this paragraph with? Circle one answer: most popular / least popular 6. Do you need to give all the pie chart information? Yes / No 7. What do you need to do with this information? Circle one answer: describe and compare it / just describe it 8. What is the topic of body paragraph 2? Circle one answer: table information similar to / different from pie chart Body Paragraph 2 9. What information do you need to give? Circle one answer: all the information / most and least popular only 10. What do you need to do with this information? Circle one answer: compare it with the pie chart info / just describe it 11. What is the topic of body paragraph 3? Circle one answer: table information similar to / different from pie chart Body Paragraph 3 12. What information do you need to give? Circle one answer: all the information / most and least popular only 13. What do you need to do with this information? Circle one answer: compare it with the pie chart info / just describe it 15
Mixed Non-Temporal Charts - Model Answer Popular snacks in two Asian Countries in 2006 Country Chocolate Popcorn Cake Cheese Chips Japan 5% 35% 25% 20% 15% China 40% 30% 10% 8% 12% The pie chart shows the most popular snack foods, which were chocolate, popcorn, cake, cheese and chips, in the world in 2006 in percentages, whereas the table shows the popularity of the same snacks in China and Japan in the same year. Overall, the most popular snack worldwide and in China was chocolate, while in Japan it was popcorn. Looking at the pie chart, it is clear to see that the most common snack in the world was chocolate at exactly half. The second most popular snack was popcorn, which was at 20%. Together, cake and chips made up exactly a quarter, at 15% and 10% respectively. This was higher than the popularity of cheese, which was the lowest at 5%. Similar to the world, in China the most popular snack was chocolate, at 40%. On the other hand, the least popular snack was cheese, at 8%, which was slightly higher than in the world. Unlike in the world and in China, in Japan the most common snack was popcorn, which was much more popular than in the world, at 35%. In contrast, the least popular snack in Japan was chocolate at 5%, which was much lower than in the rest of the world. 16
Mixed Non-Temporal Charts Writing Practice The following chart and table illustrate the popularity of five forms of music in Europe and in France and Italy in 2012. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. You should write at least 150 words. Most Popular Forms of Music in 2 Countries in 2012 Country Classical Rock Country R&B Rap France 23% 30% 22% 20% 5% Italy 40% 11% 16% 14% 19% 17
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Mixed Non-Temporal Charts Error Correction Most popular forms of music in France & Italy in 2012 Country Classical Rock Country R&B Rap France 23% 30% 22% 20% 5% Italy 40% 11% 16% 14% 19% Find the error in the lines that are numbered. Correct the mistake. You cannot add or delete words, you can only change one word/number. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 The pie chart shows the most popular type of music, which were rock, classical, country, R & B and rap, the Europe in 2012 in percentage, whereas the table shows the popularity of the same kinds of music in France and Italy in the same years. Overall, in Europe and in France the moust popular music was rock, whil in Italy it was classical. Looking at the pie chart, it is clear to see for the most common music in Europe was rock at 38%. The second more popular music was country, at exactly a quarter. Together, R & B and classical made up just under a quarter, at 15% and 12% respectively. This was lower than the popularity of rap, which was the lowest at 19%. Similar in Europe, in France the most popular music was rock at just under a quarter. On the other hand, the least popular music was rap, at 5%, which were lower than in Europe. Unlike to Europe and in France, in Italy the most common music was classical, which was much less popular than in Europe, at 40%. In constrast, the least popular music in Italy was rock, at just over one fifth, which was much lower than in Europe. 20
Teachers Answers (B) Focus on exactly / just over/under fractions. Circle the correct answer. 1. 24% = exactly / just over / just under a quarter 2. 33% = exactly / just over / just under a third 3. 76% = exactly / just over / just under three quarters 4. 11% = exactly / just over / just under a tenth Write the number as a fraction. Use exactly, just under or just over. 25% exactly a quarter 35% just over a third 78% just over three quarters 50% exactly half 65% just under two thirds 18% just under a fifth 73% just under three quarters 21% just over a fifth 30% just under a third 54% just over half NON-TEMPORAL CHARTS: REVIEW OF VOCABULARY The words below have spelling mistakes. Write them correctly. 1. presentages 1. percentages 11. respectivly 11. respectively 2. wich 2. which 12. togather 12. together 3. overal 3. overall 13. populer 13. popular 4. largeast 4. largest 14. higherst 14. highest 5. exctly 5. exactly 15. persent 15. percent 6. a fith 6. a fifth 16. prportion 16. proportion 7. comon 7. common 17. wer 17. were 8. loweast 8. lowest 18. a haf 18. a half 9. scond 9. second 19. numbre 19. number 10. a quater 10. a quarter 20. moast 20. most 21
NON-TEMPORAL PIE CHART: REVIEW OF STRUCTURE Fill in each gap in the introduction and body paragraph with one word only. The pie chart shows the percentages of people from the UAE who travelled to five countries, which were Saudi Arabia, France, Oman, Malaysia and Turkey in 2014. Overall, the greatest percentage of travellers visited Saudi Arabia, while the smallest percentage went to France. Looking at the pie chart, it is clear to see that the highest percentage of travellers went to Saudi Arabia, at just under half. The second highest percentage travelled to Malaysia, at exactly a fifth. Together, Turkey and Oman made up exactly a quarter, at 17% and 8% respectively. This was higher than the percentage of people who visited Organisation 1. Chart information -who/what/when/where 2. Overview -highest & lowest only 1. Highest 2. Second highest 3. Together third + fourth 4. Lowest France, which was the lowest, at just 6%. 22
NON-TEMPORAL PIE CHART: REVIEW OF SENTENCE TYPES Fill in each gap with one word only. Sentence starting with amount 1. The largest percentage of UAE travellers went to Saudi Arabia. Sentence starting with topic 2. Saudi Arabia made up the largest percentage of the total. Sentence starting with amount 3. The lowest proportion of UAE travellers went to France. Sentence starting with topic 4. France made up the smallest percentage of the total. Sentences starting with topics 5. Malaysia was the second most popular destination country. 6. Turkey was the third most popular country. 7. France was the least popular country for travellers. 23
NON-TEMPORAL PIE CHART WRITING PRACTICE ACTIVITY MODEL ANSWER The pie chart shows the percentages of people in Ireland who had five diseases, which were diabetes, kidney disease, cancer, heart disease and arthritis, in 2013. Overall, the greatest percentage of people had diabetes, while the smallest percentage had arthritis. Looking at the pie chart, it is clear to see that the highest percentage of people had diabetes, at just over half. The second highest percentage of people had cancer, at just under a fifth. Together, kidney disease and heart disease made up exactly a quarter, at 15% and 10% respectively. This was much higher than the percentage of people who had arthritis, which was the lowest at just 2%. 24
Mixed Non-temporal Charts: Introduction (Answers) Look at the charts and answer the questions. 1. What kinds of charts do you see? Pie chart and table 2. What was the most popular snack worldwide? Chocolate 3. What was the most popular snack in Japan? Popcorn 4. What was most popular snack in China? Chocolate 5. Circle which two are similar for the most popular snack. 6. Circle which one is different for the most popular snack. Worldwide / Japan / China Worldwide / Japan / China. Fill in the gaps with the correct answers. Write only one word for each gap. The pie chart shows the most popular snack foods, which were chocolate, popcorn, cake, cheese and chips, in the world in 2006 in percentages, whereas the table shows the popularity of the same snacks in China and Japan in the same year. Overall, the most popular snack worldwide and in China was chocolate, while in Japan it was popcorn. Body 1 Pie Chart Information only 7. What was the most popular snack worldwide? Chocolate 8. What was the second most popular snack worldwide? popcorn 9. How much did the third and fourth most popular snacks make together? 15% + 10% = 25% 10. What was the least popular snack worldwide? cheese. Fill in the gaps with the correct answers. Write only one word for each gap. Looking at the pie chart, it is clear to see that the most common snack in the world was chocolate, at exactly half. The second most popular snack was popcorn, which was at 20%. Together, cake and chips made up exactly a quarter, at 15% and 10% respectively. This was higher than the popularity of cheese, which was the lowest at 5%. 25
Body Paragraph 2 Similar information from the Table compared with the Pie Chart 11. Circle which two are similar for the most popular snack. Worldwide / Japan / China 12. What was the most popular snack in China? Chocolate 13. What was the least popular snack in China? Cheese 14. How does its percentage in China compare with the percentage in the world? Slightly higher. Fill in the gaps with the correct answers. Write only one word for each gap. Similar to the world, in China the most popular snack was chocolate, at 40%. On the other hand, the least popular snack was cheese, at 8%, which was slightly higher than in the world. Body Paragraph 3 Different information from the Table compared with the Pie Chart 15. Circle which one is different for the most popular snack. Worldwide / Japan / China 16. What was the most popular snack in Japan? Popcorn 17. How does its popularity in Japan compare with its popularity in the world? much more popular 18. What was the most popular snack in Japan? Chocolate 19. How does its percentage in Japan compare with the percentage in the world? much lower. Fill in the gaps with the correct answers. Write only one word for each gap. Unlike in the world and in China, in Japan the most common snack was popcorn, which was much more popular than in the world, at 35%. In contrast, the least popular snack in Japan was chocolate at 5%, which was much lower than in the rest of the world. 26
MIXED NON-TEMPORAL CHARTS REVIEW 1. What does the first sentence of the introduction tell you? Topic information of the pie chart and topic information of the table Introduction 2. What information is in the overall sentence of the introduction? Circle one answer: most popular / least popular 3. What is the topic of body paragraph 1? The pie chart 4. What information do you start this paragraph with? Circle one answer: most popular / least popular Body Paragraph 1 5. What information do you finish this paragraph with? Circle one answer: most popular / least popular 6. Do you need to give all the pie chart information? Yes / No 7. What do you need to do with this information? Circle one answer: describe and compare it / just describe it 8. What is the topic of body paragraph 2? Circle one answer: table information similar to / different from pie chart 9. What information do you need to give? Circle one answer: all the information / most and least popular only 10. What do you need to do with this information? Circle one answer: compare it with the pie chart info / just describe it Body Paragraph 2 11. What is the topic of body paragraph 3? Circle one answer: table information similar to / different from pie chart 12. What information do you need to give? Circle one answer: all the information / most and least popular only 13. What do you need to do with this information? 14. Circle one answer: compare it with the pie chart info / just describe it Body Paragraph 3 27
MIXED NON-TEMPORAL CHARTS Error Correction (Answers) Most popular forms of music in France & Italy in 2012 Country Classical Rock Country R&B Rap France 23% 30% 22% 20% 5% Italy 40% 11% 16% 14% 19% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 The pie chart shows the most popular type of music, which were rock, classical, country, R & B and rap, the Europe in 2012 in percentage, whereas the table shows the popularity of the same kinds of music in France and Italy in the same years. Overall, in Europe and in France the moust popular music was rock, whil in Italy it was classical. Looking at the pie chart, it is clear to see for the most common music in Europe was rock at 38%. The second more popular music was country, at exactly a quarter. Together, R & B and classical made up just under a quarter, at 15% and 12% respectively. This was lower than the popularity of rap, which was the lowest at 19%. Similar in Europe, in France the most popular music was rock at just under a quarter. On the other hand, the least popular music was rap, at 5%, which were lower than in Europe. Unlike to Europe and in France, in Italy the most common music was classical, which was much less popular than in Europe, at 40%. In constrast, the least popular music in Italy was rock, at just over one fifth, which was much lower than in Europe. types in percentages year most while that most over higher 10% to third was in more contrast tenth 28
MIXED NON-TEMPORAL CHARTS MODEL ANSWER Most popular forms of music in France & Italy in 2012 Country Classical Rock Country R&B Rap France 23% 30% 22% 20% 5% Italy 40% 11% 16% 14% 19% The pie chart shows the most popular types of music, which were rock, classical, country, R & B and rap, in Europe in 2012 in percentages, whereas the table shows the popularity of the same kinds of music in France and Italy in the same year. Overall, in Europe and in France the most popular music was rock, while in Italy it was classical. Looking at the pie chart, it is clear to see that the most common music in Europe was rock at 38%. The second most popular music was country, at exactly a quarter. Together, R & B and classical made up just over a quarter, at 15% and 12% respectively. This was higher than the popularity of rap, which was the lowest at 10%. Similar to Europe, in France the most popular music was rock at just under a third. On the other hand, the least popular music was rap, at 5%, which was lower than in Europe. Unlike in Europe and in France, in Italy the most common music was classical, which was much more popular than in Europe, at 40%. In contrast, the least popular music in Italy was rock, at just over one tenth, which was much lower than in Europe. 29
Writing Practice 1 Most popular drinks on the Men s and Women s campus in 2010 30
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Writing Practice 2 Popular make up brands in two regions in 2012 Lancome Loreal MAC Estee Lauder Clinique Asia 30% 17% 40% 10% 3% Europe 23% 15% 18% 35% 9% 33
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Writing Practice 3 Scanner sales in two Chinese cities in 2007 36
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Writing Practice 4 Mental Health Problems Old people s problems in 2006 Money Problems Loneliness Sickness Housing Problems USA 25% 2% 11% 49% 18% South America 9% 24% 35% 16% 16% 39
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Extension Task You should spend about 20 minutes on this task. The charts give information about two genres of TV programmes watched by men and women and four different age groups in Australia. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words. 43