Answers and an explanation for each question appear once you add this activity to your own library.

📋 How to use this lesson

For the Teacher

Use these four quick parts as a 10-minute warm-up before learners write their full report.

Check answers together using the automated checks to clear up tricky word choices and prepositions.

For the Learner

First, complete each vocabulary and sentence task on your own to refresh your reporting phrases.

Next, review your answers and note down the patterns that help you describe numbers clearly.

Module 1 · Build-up

Weekly Cafe Opening Hours & Customer Trends

Get ready for writing by practicing these useful words and phrases.

💡 Pattern example:

"The cafe operates seven days a week, most of which bring steady morning foot traffic."

Why this works: it links the overall schedule to a specific daily habit in one smooth sentence.

A Word Forms

Complete each sentence using the correct form of the word in brackets.

1. Daily customer turnout tended to [fluctuation] across the week, ranging from 45 patrons on Monday to over 280 on Saturday.

____

2. The manager observed a [significance] increase in morning coffee sales between 7:30 AM and 9:00 AM.

____

3. Friday evening revenue showed considerable [vary] depending on nearby theater performance times.

____

4. Takeaway orders represented a large [proportionate] of total weekday takings.

____

5. Weekend breakfast trade grew [steady] after opening hours were moved one hour earlier.

____

B Data Collocations

Choose the single word that best completes each sentence naturally.

6. The cafe witnessed a ________ drop in foot traffic at 3:00 PM once the lunchtime rush ended.

____ a. steep ____ b. tall ____ c. wide ____ d. high

7. Customer numbers remained relatively ________ across Wednesday afternoon, hovering near twenty an hour.

____ a. balanced ____ b. stable ____ c. fixed ____ d. tidy

8. Saturday recorded a ________ peak in hot drink orders, touching 140 cups between 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM.

____ a. pointed ____ b. keen ____ c. sharp ____ d. fierce

9. From Tuesday through Friday, sandwich orders demonstrated a ________ upward trend.

____ a. gradual ____ b. narrow ____ c. soft ____ d. stepped

10. The extended Friday night opening hours produced a ________ increase in weekly dinner sales.

____ a. heavy ____ b. dense ____ c. highlighted ____ d. marked

C Phrases for Describing Figures

Fill in each blank using the best phrase from the word bank.

Word Bank

accounted for leveled off at stood at hit a low of reached a peak of

11. On Monday morning, early customer volume ________ fourteen visitors between 6:00 AM and 7:00 AM.

____

12. Weekend table occupancy ________ ninety-two diners during Sunday lunchtime.

____

13. Outdoor patio seating ________ six customers during a rainy Thursday afternoon.

____

14. Lunch meal deals ________ forty percent of total weekday turnover.

____

15. After rising swiftly until midday, hourly revenue ________ £220 between 1:00 PM and 3:00 PM.

____

D Paraphrasing Data Statements

Choose the sentence that conveys the exact same meaning using different words.

Original statement:

"The cafe experienced a dramatic surge in pastry sales on Saturday morning."

Which sentence says the same thing?

____ a. Saturday morning pastry demand stayed relatively consistent with weekday numbers. ____ b. Patrons bought marginally more pastries on Saturday morning than on Friday. ____ c. Pastry purchases on Saturday morning increased substantially.

Original statement:

"Customer numbers remained unchanged between 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM on weekdays."

Which sentence says the same thing?

____ a. There was no variation in weekday patron counts from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM. ____ b. Weekday customer attendance fluctuated notably between 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM. ____ c. Customer visits reached an unexpected low point during early weekday afternoons.

Original statement:

"Hot tea accounted for nearly a third of all afternoon beverage orders."

Which sentence says the same thing?

____ a. Exactly half of the drinks ordered in the afternoon were hot tea. ____ b. Hot tea comprised almost 33% of drink sales during afternoon service. ____ c. Afternoon tea orders doubled the combined total of every cold drink sold.

Module 2 · The Task

Academic Writing Task 1: Language Survey

Now, apply what you know to this specific writing task.

Writing Prompt

The table gives data on how many languages people speak in one town in 2022, split into four age groups. Report the main features of the data and make comparisons where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

Age group	One language (%)	Two languages (%)	Three or more languages (%)
18–29	20	55	25
30–44	30	52	18
45–59	45	42	13
60 and over	62	31	7

(Figures are fictional.)

Row by row (One language, Two languages, Three or more languages): 18-29: 20, 55, 25 | 30-44: 30, 52, 18 | 45-59: 45, 42, 13 | 60 and over: 62, 31, 7

☑️ What every Task 1 report needs

Use this checklist before and after drafting your response:

____ An overview that summarizes main trends ____ Key features highlighted and grouped logically ____ Relevant comparisons across categories ____ Accurate figures cited from the data ____ At least 150 words in length

✍️ Your Task 1 Report

Minimum 150 words · AI Graded

Write your complete report in the box below. When finished, submit for feedback assessed on official Task 1 criteria.

____ (Write your report here...)

Module 3 · Model Answer

Sample Report & Useful Phrases

Check your work against this model answer to see how a top-scoring report looks.

Model Answer

IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 · 182 words

✓ Model answer

The table compares the proportions of residents speaking one, two, or at least three languages across four age groups in a single town in 2022.

Overall, younger people were noticeably more multilingual, with bilingualism being the dominant category for those under 45. By contrast, speaking only one language became progressively more common with age, peaking decisively among seniors.

Turning to monolinguals, just 20% of people aged 18 to 29 spoke one language. This figure rose steadily through the 30 to 44 and 45 to 59 brackets, standing at 30% and 45% respectively. It then reached 62% among those aged 60 and over, which was more than three times the rate of the youngest group.

Conversely, speaking two languages was the most widespread pattern for the youngest two demographics, accounting for 55% of 18-to-29-year-olds and 52% of 30-to-44-year-olds, before declining to 31% in the oldest cohort. Meanwhile, people speaking three or more languages represented a quarter of the youngest age group. This share dropped consistently across each successive group, recording 18% and 13%, before hitting a low of just 7% among the elderly.

💡 Why these phrases work

Here is why each bold phrase from the model answer is worth using in your own writing:

1. "proportions of residents speaking"

Why this works: It cleanly paraphrases the prompt's "how many languages people speak" into natural, formal survey language.

2. "being the dominant category for"

Why this works: It highlights the largest number in a section without simply repeating "the biggest percentage".

3. "progressively more common with age"

Why this works: It summarizes a clear step-by-step upward trend across age brackets in just five words.

4. "standing at ... respectively"

Why this works: It pairs two data points to their categories in the correct order without wasting words.

5. "more than three times the rate of"

Why this works: It gives an exact comparison rather than a vague one: 62% is strictly greater than 3 × 20% (60%).

6. "the most widespread pattern for"

Why this works: It gives variety when describing the highest share across several columns.

7. "accounting for"

Why this works: This is the standard, natural reporting verb used before stating a percentage of a total group.

8. "hitting a low of just"

Why this works: It clearly marks the bottom figure in the entire table while emphasizing how small it is.

Writing: Bilingualism and the Bilingual Brain

📋 How to use this lesson

Weekly Cafe Opening Hours & Customer Trends

A Word Forms

B Data Collocations

C Phrases for Describing Figures

D Paraphrasing Data Statements

Academic Writing Task 1: Language Survey

☑️ What every Task 1 report needs

✍️ Your Task 1 Report

Sample Report & Useful Phrases

Model Answer

💡 Why these phrases work

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