The two plans below show the layout of a cinema in 1980 and now.
Sample Response
The two plans are showing the layout of a cinema in 1980 and now, including the location of the screening theatres, box office, Manager’s office, toilets and car park.
It can be seen that over time the number of screening theatres grew significantly; however, their size has shrunk.
In 1980 there were two screening theatres, Cinema 1 and 2. Cinema 1 was the closest to the entry, on the left. The box office was located on the right near the entrance, with the drinks counter to its right. Further away from the entrance on the right side there was the Manager’s office and Cinema 2. The toilets were located opposite Cinema 2 on the left side of the building, and along the back wall there was a car park.
Quite a few things have changed since 1980. The number of screening theatres grew from 2 to 5, with Cinemas 1 and 2 located to the left of the entrance and Cinemas 3, 4 and 5 – to the right. The car park had to go, to make room for the new theatres. A café opened to the left of the entrance, serving food and drinks, and the old drinks counter next to the box office was converted to a DVD shop. The only things whose locations didn’t change were the box office, the Manager’s office and the toilets.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use the simple present Original: are showing Suggested revision: show Why it matters: The simple present is the standard tense for describing what plans depict.
- 2. Use the plural noun Original: location Suggested revision: locations Why it matters: Several different facilities and their positions are listed.
- 3. Lowercase the job title Original: Manager’s Suggested revision: manager’s Why it matters: A common job title is not normally capitalized in running text.
- 4. Make the label plural Original: Cinema Suggested revision: Cinemas Why it matters: The plural noun is needed because two cinemas are named.
- 5. Use the map label Original: entry Suggested revision: entrance Why it matters: “Entrance” is the natural noun for the doorway shown on the plan.
- 6. Correct subject agreement Original: there was the Manager’s office and Cinema 2 Suggested revision: there were the manager’s office and Cinema 2 Why it matters: The verb must agree with the two coordinated locations.
- 7. Use precise report language Original: grew from 2 to 5 Suggested revision: increased from two to five Why it matters: “Increased” is more precise for a change in the number of cinemas.
- 8. Use formal map language Original: had to go Suggested revision: was removed Why it matters: The replacement states the physical change more directly and formally.
- 9. Sentence rewrite Original: It can be seen that over time the number of screening theatres grew significantly; however, their size has shrunk. Suggested revision: It can be seen that the number of screening theatres has increased significantly, while their overall size has decreased. Why it matters: The rewrite makes the time reference and verb tenses consistent.
- 10. Broaden the overview Suggested revision: Add that the car park was replaced and that food, drink and retail facilities were introduced. Why it matters: These are major overall changes that complement the increase in screening theatres.
Suggested Rewrites
- are showing show
- location locations
- Manager’s manager’s
- Cinema Cinemas
- entry entrance
- there was the Manager’s office and Cinema 2 there were the manager’s office and Cinema 2
Why this response received Band 8.0
The response gives a clear, well-organized account of both layouts, with an effective overview and accurate coverage of the main additions, removals, and unchanged facilities. Its main limitation is occasional slightly informal or imprecise phrasing, while the content itself is comprehensive. The highest-priority refinement is to use consistently formal map-report language and make the overview mention the loss of the car park alongside the expansion in cinemas.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The report presents a clear overview and accurately describes the principal spatial features and changes in both plans.
Refine the overview by also highlighting the car park’s removal and the addition of customer facilities.
Coherence and Cohesion
Information progresses logically from the overview to the 1980 layout and then the present layout, with effective paragraphing and referencing.
Make the final paragraph slightly more concise by grouping the new cinemas, retail facilities, and unchanged features more explicitly.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is varied, precise, and well suited to describing locations and changes, with only occasional slightly informal wording.
Replace phrases such as 'had to go' with more formal map-report wording such as 'was removed to accommodate'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of complex structures is used accurately, and the few minor awkward forms do not impede communication.
Use the simple present in the introduction, such as 'the plans show', for a more concise and conventional opening.
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The two plans below show the layout of a cinema in 1980 and now.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.