IELTS Writing Task 1: Body Paragraphs That Score Band 8

Priya Sharma

Priya Sharma writes English learning guides for ESL students. Pune-based language enthusiast.

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Quick answer: Write two body paragraphs, not three. Paragraph one covers the biggest or fastest-changing group; paragraph two covers everything else, grouped by shared behaviour. Each paragraph uses the same four sentences: name the group, give the opening figure, give the closing figure or peak, then make one comparison.↗ Share on X

A Band 8 body paragraph in Writing Task 1 does three jobs and nothing else: it names a group, it gives two or three exact figures with their units, and it makes one comparison. Two body paragraphs is the right number for almost every task. If your paragraphs list every number in the chart with no grouping, you are writing a Band 6 answer, no matter how good your grammar is.

Below is the structure, the sentence patterns, and the exact mistakes that hold most students at 6.5.

How many body paragraphs should you write?

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Two. Not three, not one.

Task 1 asks for 150 words minimum. A safe answer runs 170 to 190 words. That gives you roughly 40 words for the introduction, 25 for the overview, and about 55 to 65 for each body paragraph. Three body paragraphs squeeze each one down to 35 words, and you stop having room for comparisons. One long paragraph hides your structure from the examiner.

So: introduction, overview, body 1, body 2. Four paragraphs on the page.

What goes in the first body paragraph?

The biggest thing, with its numbers.

Look at your chart and ask: which category is highest, or which one moved the most? That category and anything that behaves like it goes in paragraph one. This is called grouping, and it is the single skill that separates Band 8 from Band 6 in the Task Achievement score.

A first body paragraph has this shape:

1. Name the group and say why it belongs together (1 sentence).

2. Give the opening figure with its unit and its date (1 sentence).

3. Give the closing figure, or the peak (1 sentence).

4. Add one comparison inside the group (1 sentence).

Example with an invented line graph about coffee sales:

"Coffee and tea followed the same upward path across the period. Coffee sales began at 20 million units in 2005 and climbed steadily to 55 million by 2015, almost tripling. Tea rose more gently over the same years, from 30 million to 42 million. Although tea started higher, coffee had overtaken it by 2011."

Four sentences. Five figures. One comparison. That is a Band 8 paragraph.

What goes in the second body paragraph?

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Everything else, grouped by what it has in common.

The second paragraph is not "the leftovers dumped in order". Look for a shared behaviour: the flat ones, the falling ones, the small ones. Name that shared behaviour in your first sentence.

"The remaining two drinks moved in the opposite direction. Fruit juice fell from 18 million units to 11 million, a drop of roughly a third. Milk was the only product to stay level, hovering between 8 and 9 million throughout. Neither came close to the volumes reached by coffee."

Same shape. Same four moves.

Which numbers belong in which paragraph?

Use this table when you are planning. Spend three minutes planning before you write anything.

How do you choose which figures to quote?

You cannot quote all of them. Band 8 means "selects and reports the main features". Selecting is the skill.

Quote these four types of number:

• The start value and the end value of each thing you mention.
• Any peak or lowest point.
• Any moment when two lines cross.
• The gap between the highest and lowest at one date.

Skip the rest. A chart with 5 lines and 10 years has 50 data points. You should quote about 8 to 10 of them.

Always attach the unit. "Sales reached 55" is vague. "Sales reached 55 million units" is precise. Examiners notice missing units.

Which sentence patterns are safe?

You need variety, but you do not need rare grammar. These six patterns cover almost every Task 1 and they are easy to control:

1. X rose from A to B. — "Rent rose from $400 to $950."

2. X rose by C. — "Rent rose by $550." (Note: *from... to...* uses two values, *by* uses the difference. Mixing these up is the most common Task 1 grammar error.)

3. There was a [adjective] [noun] in X. — "There was a sharp increase in rent."

4. X, at A, was the highest/lowest. — "Germany, at 62 percent, was the highest."

5. While X did one thing, Y did another. — "While rent climbed, wages stayed flat."

6. X was twice/half/three times as high as Y. — "Rent was twice as high as it had been in 2010."

Use each pattern once or twice. Repeating pattern 1 six times caps your Grammatical Range score.

For the speed of a change, pair an adjective with an adverb so you do not repeat yourself:

How long should each body paragraph be?

Four to five sentences, around 55 to 70 words.

A paragraph of two sentences looks undeveloped. A paragraph of eight sentences usually means you failed to group and are listing. If you find yourself writing sentence seven, stop and check: are you describing something that belongs in the other paragraph?

What drops a good answer from Band 8 to Band 6?

These five, in the order examiners see them most:

1. No grouping. The writer walks through categories one by one in chart order. Fix: decide your two groups before you write a word.

2. Numbers with no meaning. Long strings of figures with no comparison between them. Fix: every paragraph needs at least one comparison word — *higher, lower, twice, whereas, in contrast, by comparison*.

3. Opinions. "This is because people became health conscious." Task 1 has no room for reasons or opinions. Report what is on the page only.

4. Copying the question. The introduction must paraphrase the prompt. If the prompt says "the amount of money spent", write "expenditure" or "how much was spent".

5. Overview buried inside a body paragraph. The overview must be its own paragraph, with no specific figures in it, stating the two or three biggest patterns.

What about the overview — does it go in the body?

No. Keep it separate, and keep numbers out of it.

The overview is where you say the big picture: what went up overall, what was highest throughout, what changed position. Two sentences. Start it with "Overall," so the examiner cannot miss it. Then your body paragraphs supply the evidence with figures.

An answer with no clear overview is capped at Band 5 for Task Achievement, however well it is written. This is the most expensive single mistake in Task 1.

A 20-minute routine you can practise this week

Task 1 should take 20 minutes, leaving 40 for Task 2. Split it like this:

Do this three times a week with three different chart types. Use the same four-sentence shape every time until it is automatic. Under exam pressure you will not invent a structure; you will fall back on the one you have drilled.

Your next step

Take any chart you already have from a practice book. Do not write the full answer. Instead, spend three minutes doing only the planning step: write down your two group names and the eight figures you would quote. Then compare your grouping with the model answer's grouping.

Do that with five charts before you write another full essay. Grouping is the skill being tested, and it is the one you can practise fastest.

FAQ

Can I write three body paragraphs in IELTS Task 1?

You can, but it rarely helps. With a 150-word minimum and 20 minutes, three body paragraphs leave about 35 words each, which is not enough room for figures and a comparison. Two well-grouped paragraphs are easier to control and show your grouping skill more clearly.

How many numbers should each body paragraph contain?

Two or three figures per paragraph, always with their units and dates. Quote start values, end values, peaks, and any point where two lines cross. Skip the rest. Listing every data point is a reporting error, not a strength.

Should I explain why the numbers changed?

No. Task 1 asks you to report what is shown, not to give reasons or opinions. Sentences that begin with 'This is because' cost you marks in Task Achievement. Save explanation and opinion for Task 2.