The diagram below shows the development of the cutting tool in the Stone Age.
Sample Response
The pictures describe the cutting tools created by our ancestors at two different points in the Stone Ageat two different ages.
Tool A was made approximately 1.4 million years ago. It was like an animal tooth about 8 cm long with a rough surface. It may be easy to hold but it was barely sharp enough. As is shown, the front part of the cutting tool was rather broad, and its upper section was narrower than its basetop area was a little smaller than the bottom. Seen from the side, it was very narrowjust as narrow as a stick. Moreover, the back part was much flatter than the front part.
Tool B dates fromwas widely used 0.8 million years ago. Both toolsBoth of the two tools were made of stone. However, Tool B was more refinedhad been better developed than the previous one. It was about 1012 cm long. Its front part was smootherhad been smoother with a more regular, sharpened edgemany little points, giving it a more regular, symmetrical appearancewhich made it similar to the surface of a diamond. Observed from the side, it had a much sharper pointhad got a very acute top, making it more suitable for cuttingwhich was very useful for slicing meats. In addition, the back part was even much flatter than that of the older tool.
Why this response received Band 6.0
The response is clearly organized around the two tools and makes several useful comparisons, especially regarding Tool B's more refined and sharper form. However, it lacks a distinct overview and introduces unsupported measurements, functions, and impressions that cannot be confirmed by the diagram. The priority is to summarize the main visual development first, then compare only observable features across the front, side, and back views.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The response identifies the dates and some visible differences, but it has no clear overview and includes invented lengths, uses, and subjective claims.
State that Tool B is more symmetrical, refined, and sharply edged, then support this only with features visible in the three views.
Coherence and Cohesion
The introduction followed by separate paragraphs for Tools A and B creates clear progression, with comparisons linking the descriptions effectively.
Add a brief overview after the introduction so the main development is established before the detailed tool-by-tool account.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is sufficiently varied for shapes and comparisons, though several choices such as "acute top," "slicing meats," and "two different ages" are unnatural or imprecise.
Prefer precise visual language such as pointed tip, straighter edges, symmetrical outline, thinner profile, and more refined surface.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A range of sentence structures is used with generally clear meaning, but tense choices, participial clauses, articles, and comparatives are not consistently controlled.
Use simple past forms consistently for the historical tools and check comparative structures before adding more complex clauses.
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The diagram below shows the development of the cutting tool in the Stone Age.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.