Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-08

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 5.0)

The daigram illustrates how a rain shadow desert is formed.Regarding to daigram its shown that how rain shadow desert is formed as we can in figure.Nowadays,as we know that winds approach coast and its pushed upwards to the winds.This process having distance thousands of kilometres and it would also take time to perform this process.

Overall,this process is time taken process and approxmaitely moving towards various places like moist air and rises and cools then its convertedn into the form of clouds.However,after its become into the form of clouds then its converted into rain falls from the sky and its good for dry mountains and this side also known as windwardside amd its much better side for mountains then leewardside because the windside receive rains falls and in leeward side become desert.And then all this process important for the mountains and in the end its gone towards the dry winds reach inland areas and rain shadow desert formed.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the subject and include several central stages: coastal winds rise, moist air cools, clouds form, rain falls on the windward side, and dry winds continue inland to create a desert. This gives the reader a broadly relevant account of the process. However, the overview is unclear: calling it a “time taken process” does not summarise the key cause-and-effect pattern, and the claim that the process “would also take time” is not shown by the diagram. Some relationships are also misrepresented or vague, such as saying rain is “good for dry mountains.” To strengthen the response, give a concise overview of how moisture is lost on the windward side, leaving dry air to produce an inland rain-shadow desert, then describe the stages accurately.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is a recognisable attempt to move through the process from winds approaching the coast to dry winds reaching inland areas, and “Overall” signals an overview. However, the response is difficult to follow because the stages are packed into long, loosely connected sentences. Repeated links such as “then,” “and,” and “however” do not always show the relationship between ideas clearly; for example, “after its become into the form of clouds then its converted into rain falls” is hard to interpret. The opening also repeats the task statement rather than establishing a clear structure. Use separate paragraphs for the overview and the sequence, and connect each stage with precise transitions such as “as a result” or “on the leeward side.”

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The response uses some relevant process vocabulary, including “moist air,” “clouds,” “windward side,” “leeward side,” and “inland areas,” so the topic is generally identifiable. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations make the description unclear: “good for dry mountains,” “converted into the form of clouds,” and “time taken process” are not natural ways to describe the diagram. Spelling errors such as “daigram,” “approxmaitely,” and “amd” are also noticeable. Aim for accurate process verbs and standard geographical terms, for example, “rises,” “cools,” “condenses,” “precipitates,” and “rain-shadow effect.” Proofreading spelling and avoiding repeated general words such as “process” would improve precision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

You attempt to combine stages using clauses, as in “moist air and rises and cools then its converted…,” but sentence structures are often faulty, and the reader must work to identify the intended sequence. Verb forms and agreement are inconsistent: “winds…its pushed upwards” does not match the plural subject, while “its become” and “its converted” are not correctly formed. Articles and sentence boundaries are also unreliable, particularly in the long final sentence, where several stages are joined without clear punctuation. These errors sometimes obscure relationships between steps. Build control with short, accurate sentences first—for example, “The moist air rises and cools. Clouds then form, and rain falls on the windward side”—before adding more complex clauses.

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