Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-21

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 6.5)

The diagram outlines the stages of formation of the rain-shadow desert.

Overall, the entire process happens across thousands of kilometres. The process has 7 steps and starts with the winds approaching the coast and ends with dry winds forming rain-shadow desert. The most important steps include rain fall and dry air continuing over the mountain.

The process begins, when the winds from across the sea approaches the coast, where the winds are pushed upward towards windward side. Subsequently, when the wind is moving upward the moist air rises and cools before it forms clouds.

Furthermore, after reaching the top, the clouds become heavy with mosit air and finally, when the clouds can not hold anymore it starts raining. After this, the dry air continues over the mountain and starts coming down at Leeward side. Finally, the dry winds reach inland areas forming rain-shadow desert. The entire process happens across thousands of kilometres.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response successfully covers all key stages of the rain-shadow desert formation diagram, from the initial winds approaching the coast to the creation of the desert inland. An overview is provided, noting the scale of 'thousands of kilometres' and summarizing the sequential nature of the process. Main features such as coastal winds, rising moist air, cloud formation, precipitation, and the dry leeward descent are all reported accurately. The student selects appropriate information and makes logical connections between steps, meeting all requirements for Task Achievement at a Band 7.0 level.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The response is arranged logically with a clear introduction, an overview sentence, and a developing sequence of body sentences. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'The process begins', 'Subsequently', and 'Finally' are utilized to guide the reader through the stages of the diagram. However, paragraphing is somewhat cramped and could be better structured with distinct separations between the overview and the sequential details. Referencing is generally clear, though transitional flow occasionally feels slightly mechanical, placing this comfortably at Band 6.5.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for describing a geographical process, using terms like 'coast', 'moist air', 'precipitation', 'leeward side', and 'inland areas'. There are some minor lexical errors and awkward word choices, such as 'mosit air' (spelling slip) and repeating 'rain-shadow desert' without an article. Less common vocabulary is attempted with reasonable success, but precision is occasionally lacking, leading to a Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The text contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'The process begins, when the winds from across the sea approaches the coast...' Grammatical accuracy is inconsistent; there are noticeable subject-verb agreement errors ('winds... approaches', 'clouds can not hold'), missing articles ('forming rain-shadow desert'), and unnecessary commas. While these errors do not severely impede communication, they restrict the grammar score to a Band 6.0.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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