The diagrams below show the lifecycle of the silkworm and the process for producing silk cloth.
Summarise the information in the charts and make comparisons where appropriate.

Answer

The two graphs show the lifecycle of the silkworm and the process for producing silk.

The lifecycle of the silkworm begins with a mature moth laying eggs on a mulberry leaf. After 8-10 days the eggs hatch producing silkworm larvae that feed on mulberry leaves. The feeding continues for 30-40 days after which the silkworm larvae spin a cocoon around their bodies. This process takes 4-7 days to complete. After a further 15 days the larvae hatch to form adult moths that reproduce by laying further eggs beginning a new cycle.

The cocoons created by the larva are carefully selected for the silk making process. Once selected, the cocoons are boiled in water allowing the thread of the cocoon to be unwound into thread that is usually in the range of 250-900 meters in length. The individual threads are then twisted together to form a stronger thread and then weaved into cloth in preparation for dyeing.

Essay Notes

The aim of a strong Task 1 response is to allow a reader who has not seen the diagram to reproduce the graphs from the text. In this question there are two distinct diagrams that allow the question to be neatly divided into two paragraphs. The focus should be on describing the individual steps in chronological (time) order.

The introduction should be a single sentence that describes the process in the two diagrams. After reading the first sentence the reader should be able to suggest a title for both diagrams.

In the first paragraph there are five sentences and each sentence covers approximately one stage of the silk making process. This is a useful strategy for ensuring that each stage is treated as a separate logical step. In this response the stages are not labelled; however, it is equally acceptable to either label or not label the individual steps. It is not acceptable to label some steps but not
others. It is important in any cycle to redescribe the first step at the end of the paragraph to demonstrate to the reader that the process is cyclic.

The second paragraph is a simple linear process. In this instance the reasons for the steps have been added, if they are not obvious. Some of the steps are simple and it is best to combine these steps in a single sentence in order to avoid a series of very short sentences.