In the second part of your introduction, you should give an overview of the main trends, features or data points in the chart/ table/ diagram/ map.
You should look for the most obvious trends or features in the data. At this point you should not describe any aspects of the data in detail, but instead, give a very general overview of the data. Ask yourself what do I immediately notice when I look at the chart/ diagram etc.? Where are the biggest increases or decreases? Where are the biggest or smallest changes over time?
Let’s look at a few examples:
Example 1: Line Chart
In this chart, you can immediately see that more tickets are sold between 9am and 12pm, and on weekends than at other times. Thus, my overview would be:
Overall, it can be seen that the largest number of tickets are usually sold between 9am and 12pm and that the weekends are far busier than weekdays.
Notice the use of a superlative “the largest” and a comparative “far busier”. It is common to use these in overviews as they should always describe the biggest or most noticeable changes.
Example 2: Diagram
In this task it makes sense to divide the process into two main stages; in the first stage the weather information is collected and processed, and in the second stage it is turned into a report and broadcast.
So, the overview would be:
Overall, information is gathered from multiple sources, processed and used to prepare a forecast, which is then broadcast in various ways.
Notice that we are grouping a process with many stages into two main stages. In this way, we can write a general overview.
It's now time for some practice. Choose 2 appropriate overview statements for each chart, or diagram:
1. Table
A In the first two years shown in the data, there is an increase in spending by consumers in all four countries.
B The largest decrease in expenditure occurred in Spain in 2020.
C Norway experienced the smallest fall in consumer spending in 2020.
D There was a drop in consumer spending in every country in 2020.
2. Pie Chart
A The proportion of people working in Service and Sales jobs in 2001 was approximately double the proportion of 1991.
B The most significant changes occurred in the Service and Sales and Other categories.
C The largest percentage of people were working in the Other sector in both years.
D There was approximately the same percentage of Professionals in 1991 as 2001.
3. Line Chart
A The amount of orange juice consumed rose steadily between 1990 and 1996.
B There was a jump in the consumption of cranberry juice between 200 and 2001.
C The amount of apple juice and pomegranate juice consumed in 2010 was approximately the same as in 1990.
D There was a clear increase in the consumption of orange juice and cranberry juice over the period shown.
4. Map
A The main school building was the only area that did not change in any way between 1990 and 2010.
B Between 2000 and 2010 a large car park was added in front of the main school building.
C The farmland which was adjacent to the school was turned into a sports field between 1990 and 2000.
D The territory around the school was significantly redeveloped in order to accommodate new school facilities.
Check your answers:
A & D, 2. B & C, 3. C & D, 4. A & D
Final comments:
Notice how the most general statements were suitable for the overview. The overview should not talk about only one data point without referring to the others.
Put your overview after paraphrasing the task rubric. This completes your introduction paragraph. For example number 1 (bar chart) the introduction would be:
The bar chart provides information about the mean number of tickets sold each day of the week in a theme park over three parts of the day. Overall, it can be seen that the largest number of tickets are usually sold between 9am and 12pm and that the weekends are far busier than weekdays.
Thanks for reading and good luck with your Academic IELTS Writing Task 1 tasks. Don't forget to check out model answers to task 1's with useful academic vocabulary here.
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