Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-09

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The diagram below shows how one type of desert, known as a rain-shadow desert, is formed.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The formation of rain-shadow deserts

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The diagram illustrates how one type of desert, as a rain-shadow desert, is formed in multiful stages.

Overall, it is clear that the formation of rain-shadow deserts is begining from wind approach coast from the ocean after that runed in seven different satages end with Dry winds reach inland areas.

initially, the formation of rain- shadow deserts beginning from Wind approach coast from the sea side than winds pushed upward through mountain for Moist air rises and creates a cools wind for the cloud. Futhermore, the fouth stage the Mosit air converted to cloud in tap of mountain after that cloud start the rain on top of mountain.

however, dary air continues over mountain significally climbed the leeward side of mountain before that reach the end of mountain area. finally the dry wind reach inland areas and converted to inland rain- shadow dersert. overall process take a huge time and exceed thousand of kilometers.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the diagram as a process and include its broad sequence, from winds approaching the coast to dry winds reaching inland. You also mention the mountain, cloud formation, rainfall and the leeward side, so the response is relevant to the task. However, the overview is unclear and does not accurately summarise the key cause-and-effect pattern. Some stages are misreported: the air rises and cools before clouds form, rather than creating a “cool wind for the cloud,” and the dry wind does not convert into the desert. The claim that the process takes “a huge time” is unsupported; the scale label refers to thousands of kilometres. Describe the stages more precisely and give a clear overview of how rainfall on the windward side leaves dry air to create arid conditions inland.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has an opening, an attempted overview and a description of the process, and it generally follows the diagram from the coast towards inland areas. This gives the reader some sense of sequence. However, progression is weakened by unclear or mechanical links such as “after that,” “Futhermore,” and “however,” which do not always show the relationship between stages accurately. The overview repeats the sequence rather than highlighting its main pattern, and the final “overall” sentence introduces an unsupported point instead of concluding the description. Capitalisation at the start of paragraphs and sentence boundaries is also inconsistent. Organise the body into clear stages and use linking expressions only where they clarify sequence or cause and effect.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use several relevant process terms, including “windward side,” “leeward side,” “moist air,” “cloud,” and “rain-shadow desert,” showing some task-specific vocabulary. However, the range is limited and word choice or spelling errors sometimes make the meaning difficult to follow. Examples include “multiful,” “runed,” “Mosit,” “dary,” and “dersert.” Some combinations are also unnatural, such as “creates a cools wind” and “converted to inland rain-shadow desert.” Use the diagram’s labels accurately and choose verbs that describe the process, such as “rises,” “cools,” “condenses,” and “continues.” Proofreading spelling and checking whether words naturally combine would make the description clearer and more precise.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt to connect stages in longer sentences, but the response relies heavily on basic structures and many sentences contain errors that make relationships between events unclear. For example, “the formation … is begining from wind approach coast” has problems with verb form and sentence structure, while “the formation … beginning from Wind approach coast” lacks a finite verb. Articles and prepositions are also often missing or inaccurate, as in “through mountain” and “on top of mountain.” Sentence boundaries and capitalisation are inconsistent, particularly where a new sentence begins with “initially” or “however.” Practise writing one complete sentence for each stage, using accurate present simple passive or active forms, and check articles, agreement and punctuation.

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