Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-11

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 pictorial representation illustrates, how one type of desert known as rain-shadow desert, and how it is formed. Overall wind comes from sea and go upwords to the desert and dry winds reach inland areas.

To begin with, the winds approach coast up on the sea and winds pushed upwards to the mountains. After go to the up direction the wind temperature goes high and it convert into moist air and cools. Next cool air convert it into clouds form in windward side, and rain falls on the mountains. Dry air continues over the mountain into leeward side the weather is cool. After that dry winds reach in rain-shadow areas. The sea and rain-shadow desert has a thousands of kilometers away from each other and the mountain is in the middle of sea and desert. The formation starts from wind and do some formations and end with dry winds reach inlands areas of desert.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main process and include several relevant stages: winds approach the coast, rise over the mountains, clouds form, rain falls, and dry air continues inland. The overview also recognises that the desert forms beyond the mountains. However, some key relationships are unclear or inaccurate. In particular, “the wind temperature goes high” reverses the diagram’s point that rising moist air cools, and “the weather is cool” on the leeward side is not shown. The description of the distance as “thousands of kilometers away” is also imprecise: the diagram indicates a horizontal scale of thousands of kilometres, not a measured separation. A clearer account of the cooling and drying sequence, without adding unsupported details, would make the summary more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response follows the broad order of the process, and sequencing phrases such as “To begin with,” “Next,” and “After that” help the reader track the stages. You also attempt an overview before describing details. However, the progression is weakened by unclear links and repetition: the final sentence repeats that the process ends with dry winds reaching inland, while “After go to the up direction” makes the transition difficult to follow. The overview combines several points in one sentence without clearly distinguishing the overall pattern from individual stages. Organise the response into a concise overview and a step-by-step account, and use references such as “this air” or “the leeward side” clearly to improve flow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “windward side,” “leeward side,” “moist air,” “clouds,” and “rain-shadow areas,” which shows some awareness of the topic’s terminology. However, the range is limited and several choices or forms are inaccurate or awkward, sometimes making the meaning less precise. For example, “wind temperature goes high” does not express the diagram’s cooling process, and “do some formations” is vague. “Upwords” is misspelled, and “inlands areas” is not a natural phrase. Aim for precise process verbs and collocations, such as air “rises,” “cools,” and “loses moisture,” and check spelling and word forms carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and linked sentences, and the sequence is generally understandable. However, the range of structures is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to make some relationships difficult to interpret. Examples include “wind comes from sea and go,” where subject–verb agreement is inconsistent, and “After go to the up direction,” which lacks a correctly formed clause. In “it convert into moist air and cools,” the pronoun reference and verb forms are unclear; the sentence also reverses the process described. Articles and plurals are often missing or inconsistent, as in “from sea” and “a thousands.” Practise accurate past or present simple process descriptions and build longer sentences around clear subjects and verbs.

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

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