Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-13

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 6.0)

The given diagram shows the formation of rain-shadow deserts. On the left side, the diagram shows wind approaching the coast at the base of a mountain. As the wind touches the base of the mountain, it is pushed upwards. As it travels the length of the mountain, it causes the moist air around the mountain to rise upwards which causes it to cool. The cooling of the moist air leads to formation of clouds. As the clouds get heavier, they precipitate which leads to rainfall. All of the above occur in the windward side of the mlountain which is illustrated on the left side of the mountain in the diagram. The process continues when after the rainfall, the dry air continues to travel over the mountain and goes in the downward direction, over the leeward side, where it reaches the inland areas. The windward side of the mountian is steeper and there are more steps of the process happening here as compared to the leeward side of the mountain. Inferring from the given information, there would be more rain on the windward side than the leeward side. Futhermore, the air would be less moist on the leeward side because it looses water on the windward side of the mountain.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You describe the main sequence from coastal winds rising over the mountains to rainfall on the windward side and dry air continuing inland, so the central process is clear. The final comparison—that the windward side receives more rain and the leeward air is drier—is relevant. However, some details are not securely supported by the diagram: it does not show that the windward slope is steeper, nor does it specify that clouds become heavier before rain falls. The overview could also state more directly that the mountain causes moisture to fall on its windward side, leaving dry air to create a rain-shadow desert inland. Develop the final stage by explicitly linking the dry winds reaching inland areas with the desert shown there.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response follows the process in a generally logical order, using time and cause links such as “As,” “After the rainfall,” and “Furthermore.” This makes the movement from the coast, over the mountain, and inland understandable. However, the whole account is presented as one paragraph, and several ideas are crowded together, particularly the explanation of rising air, cooling, cloud formation, and rainfall. Some linking is repetitive, especially the repeated “which causes/leads to” constructions. The comparison and inference at the end also interrupt the step-by-step description rather than being clearly separated as an overview or concluding observation. Use a short overview followed by a paragraph for the windward stages and one for the leeward/inland stages, with clearer references to each side.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of process vocabulary, including “moist air,” “precipitate,” “windward,” “leeward,” and “inland areas,” which helps explain the diagram. Some less common terms are attempted, but word choice and spelling are not consistently controlled. “As the wind touches the base” is less precise than describing air being forced up the mountain, while “they precipitate” is awkward for clouds; rain or precipitation falls. There are also spelling errors in “mlountain,” “mountian,” “Futhermore,” and “looses.” Avoid repeating general phrases such as “the process continues” and “leads to”; more precise verbs such as “ascend,” “condense,” and “descend” would make the account more concise and accurate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentences, including subordinate clauses beginning “As” and “because,” and the sequence is usually easy to follow. Some grammatical errors remain, but they rarely prevent understanding. For example, “which causes it to cool” has an unclear reference: it could refer to the wind or the moist air. In “The process continues when after the rainfall,” the time markers are combined awkwardly; use either “After the rainfall” or “The process then continues.” The sentence beginning “Inferring from the given information” is also an incomplete introductory construction; write “It can be inferred that…” instead. Review sentence boundaries and punctuation in the long process sentences, and make pronoun references explicit.

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