The question
The graph below shows the average number of hours per week that teenagers aged 13–17 in one country spent on four leisure activities between 2004 and 2024.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
Year
- Watching television
- Using social media
- Playing sport
- Reading for pleasure
| Year | Watching television | Using social media | Playing sport | Reading for pleasure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 14 hours | 1 hours | 6 hours | 4 hours |
| 2008 | 13 hours | 3 hours | 6 hours | 3.5 hours |
| 2012 | 11 hours | 7 hours | 5.5 hours | 3 hours |
| 2016 | 8.5 hours | 11 hours | 5 hours | 2.5 hours |
| 2020 | 6 hours | 15 hours | 4.5 hours | 2.5 hours |
| 2024 | 4 hours | 18 hours | 4.5 hours | 2 hours |
Key features to report
- Overview: time spent on social media rose dramatically while television viewing fell steadily, so social media replaced television as the most time-consuming activity; sport and reading both declined gradually.
- Television was the main activity in 2004 (14 hours a week) but fell continuously to only 4 hours in 2024.
- Social media rose from just 1 hour to 18 hours a week, overtaking television between 2012 and 2016.
- Sport stayed at 6 hours until 2008, then eased to 4.5 hours, ending slightly above television.
- Reading for pleasure halved from 4 to 2 hours and was the least popular activity by 2024.
Model answer
194 words · written by Abroadway to show band 9 features (not an official IELTS sample)
The line graph compares the average number of hours per week that teenagers aged 13 to 17 in one country spent on four leisure activities between 2004 and 2024.
Overall, there was a dramatic shift from television to social media, which went from being the least popular pastime to by far the most time-consuming one. Meanwhile, the time devoted to sport and reading for pleasure fell gradually.
In 2004, teenagers watched television for 14 hours a week, far more than any other activity, while social media accounted for only one hour. Over the following two decades, these figures moved in opposite directions. Television viewing declined steadily to just 4 hours by 2024, slightly less than the time spent on sport, whereas social media use climbed rapidly, overtaking television between 2012 and 2016 and reaching 18 hours a week at the end of the period.
By contrast, changes in the two non-screen activities were far less pronounced. Time spent playing sport remained stable at 6 hours until 2008 before easing to 4.5 hours, and reading for pleasure halved from 4 hours to just 2 hours a week, making it the least common activity by 2024.
Useful language
- social media
- television
- teenagers
- leisure activities
- overtaking
- declined
- halved
- hours a week
- overall
Step-by-step method in the free lesson Line graphs and the language of trends.
Write your own report and get a band estimate
Free, no account needed. Aim for 20 minutes and at least 150 words.