.png)
Line Graph
Paragraph 1 (Introduction)
Sentence 1- Paraphrase Question
Paragraph 2 (Overview)
Sentence 1- Overview of first main feature
Sentence 2- Overview of second main feature
Sentence 3- Make general comparison, if appropriate
Paragraph 3 (Details of significant feature 1)
Sentence 1- Supporting details
Sentence 2- Supporting details
Sentence 3- Supporting details/comparison details, if appropriate
Paragraph 4 (Details of significant feature 2)
Sentence 1- Supporting details
Sentence 2- Supporting details
Sentence 3- Supporting details/Comparison details, if appropriate
We will now look at each paragraph in more detail.
Paragraph 1 (Introduction)
Sentence 1- Paraphrase Question
This paragraph should be one sentence long and demonstrates your ability to paraphrase. You do this by using synonyms and we will look at it in more detail below.
Paragraph 2 (Overview)
Sentence 1- Overview of first main feature
Sentence 2- Overview of second main feature
Sentence 3- Make general comparison, if appropriate
An overview is a general statement, highlighting the most important information in the table. It should not include any numbers. This is just a summary of the main features. You can use numbers to support your answer in paragraphs 3 and 4.
The examiner is testing your ability to identify the most important information and then summarise it. Important information could include general trends, increase/decreases, differences, comparisons etc.
More on how to identify significant features and write an effective overview below.
Paragraph 3 (Details of significant feature 1)
Sentence 1- Supporting details
Sentence 2- Supporting details
Sentence 3- Supporting details/comparison details/exceptions, if appropriate
In this paragraph, you take the first general statement from paragraph 2 and support it with details from the graph. The examiner is looking for your ability to choose the correct data and ability to describe data, trends, comparisons etc..
You then repeat this process for paragraph 4, only this time you describe the second sentence in paragraph 2.
Paragraph 4 (Details of significant feature 2)
Sentence 1- Supporting details
Sentence 2- Supporting details
Sentence 3- Supporting details/comparison details/exceptions, if appropriate
That’s it. Four paragraphs and 9-10 sentences. Obviously, you need to be flexible and write 8-12 sentences depending on the question. There may also be three significant features, in which case you can adjust the structure slightly.
You should not write a conclusion. Conclusions are for opinion or discursive essays and we are not expected to do this in task 1.
This structure will allow you to practice this kind of question over and over, giving you confidence and a consistent model in the exam.
Identifying Main Features
This is often the area most students struggle with and it is because of one main reason. Students need to prioritise. Prioritising means you should choose two or three significant features and just write about these. The examiner expects you to do this and the question will often specifically say ‘select main features.’ There should be 2 or 3 main features for you to comment on.
When students don’t do this they write about every single piece of data they see. This results in them not summarising (this is a summarising task), not writing an effective overview and spending too much time on this task. How many students do you know who spent too much time on task 1 and didn’t finish task 2?
Things that you should be looking for include:
- High/low values
- Erratic values
- Biggest increase/decrease
- Volatile data
- Unchanging data
- Biggest majority/ minority (pie charts)
- Biggest difference/similarities
- Major trends
- Notable exceptions
Looking for these things should allow you to pick out the most important features.
Another thing students often do is overthink the question. They think that the answer is too obvious and therefore don’t write about it. A common main feature is a general increase or decrease. Some students see this as too simple and ignore it all together. Don’t do this, reporting obvious or simple features is fine.
Sample Answer
The diagram shows the levels of charitable donations of people living in Britain, separated by age, between 1990 and 2010.
Overall, there was a general decrease in the percentage of people who donated money over the two time periods. However, the pattern differs between the three age groups before 50 and the two age groups after the age of 50.
The highest decrease was in the 18-25 category, which saw a decrease of 10%, from 17% in 1990 to 7% in 2010. 42% of people in the 36-50 age group gave to charity in 1990, the highest on the chart, and this fell to 35% in 2010. There was also a significant decline in donations among 26-35 year olds, from 31% to 24%.
The exception to this general trend downwards was among the 51-65 year olds and over 65s. In 2010, the 51-65 year olds gave the highest percentage with nearly 40 percent and this rose from 35% in 1990. Finally, those over 65 displayed a slight percentage increase of 3 percent.
(174 words)
As you can see, this answer follows my structure I suggested above.
Step by Step Instructions
I will now take you through my thought processes and show you step by step how to answer a question like this.
Read the question twice very carefully.
Look at the data. What data is represented on the axis? What groups are represented? What time periods are shown? What are units of measurements?
What are the main features?
Can I make any comparisons? Are there any exceptions?
Make a quick plan using above structure.
Write introduction by paraphrasing question.
Write second paragraph, which is summary or overview of main features.
Support the ideas in second paragraph with more detail in third and fourth paragraphs.
Make sure I’ve not repeated any words and used a range of vocabulary.
Check for any grammar mistakes and make sure I’ve got at least 150 words.
After writing, I should be able to hand this to a stranger and they would be able to draw the graph.