The maps below show recent changes in the town of Kimsville.
Sample Response
The two maps illustrate some changes which have taken place in KimsvilleKimsville town between 2002 and today. Overall, it can be clearly seen that the town of Kimsville was greener, with lots of trees, but today, many new projects have been added to the city.
Looking at the maps in more detaildetails, the trees on both the north-westNorth West and the south-westsouth west sides of Kimsville have been cut down and new apartments and a football stadium have been built on their locations respectively. The factory east of the city centreto the right of the city centre has been knocked down to make way for a software company.
Moreover, the building that used to be an old cinema in 2002 has been converted intoto a pub. In addition, a newly built train stationanew train station has been constructed to the west of the city centre. However, the shopping centre in the north of the town has remained unchangedremained the same with no changes.
Why this response received Band 7.0
The report covers nearly all major transformations accurately and uses a clear overview plus logically grouped detail paragraphs. Its strongest feature is precise description of replacements, including the factory’s redevelopment and the conversion of wooded areas, while minor wording and grammar slips occasionally reduce polish. The highest priority is to refine collocations, articles, spacing, and directional phrasing so the otherwise comprehensive account reads more naturally and precisely.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The overview captures the town’s development, and the report accurately covers nearly every major change and the unchanged shopping centre.
Make the overview more specific by summarizing the shift from wooded and industrial land toward residential, transport, leisure, and technology uses.
Coherence and Cohesion
The response is logically organized into an overview and two well-focused detail paragraphs, with clear progression around the map.
Group changes even more systematically by area or function and reduce reliance on additive linkers such as ‘Moreover’ and ‘In addition’.
Lexical Resource
Varied redevelopment vocabulary, including ‘cut down’, ‘knocked down’, ‘make way for’, and ‘converted’, describes the changes precisely overall.
Refine less natural expressions such as ‘on their locations’ and ‘new projects’ by using ‘on those sites’ and more specific development terms.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Complex clauses and passive forms are generally controlled well, although minor errors in articles, spacing, plurals, and prepositions remain.
Proofread forms such as ‘in more detail’, ‘a new train station’, and ‘converted into a pub’ to improve grammatical polish.
Write this task while it is fresh
Try the same task now. It helps you remember the feedback and write better next time.
IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The maps below show recent changes in the town of Kimsville.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.