Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-20

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 diagram shows the process of a desert formation named rain-shadow desert.

Overall, a rain-shadow desert is formed from seven stages, starting from winds that pushes upwards towards the mountain to the dry winds coming downwards, reaching inland areas from thousands of kilometers of a mountains.

Initially, wind reaches towards the coast and then pushed upwards to the mountain. As the wind pushes upward, it cools and moist air rises. After the wind gets cold, cloulds starts to appear and formed through cold air. As the clouds are formed and reaches a peak at a mountain, rain starts to fall from the top. These steps are occured at a windward side of a mountain.

The next steps are of leeward side of a mountain where winds approaches downward from a mountain. After the rainfall, dry air flows over the mountain and as the winds reaches totally down, it reaches the inland areas and finally, a rain-shadow desert is formed.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover the main sequence and identify the key contrast between the windward and leeward sides, including rainfall before dry air reaches inland areas. The overview also recognises a staged process and its final outcome. However, some details are unclear or inaccurate: the opening says the process starts with winds “pushed upwards,” although the diagram begins with winds approaching the coast; and “thousands of kilometres” describes the horizontal scale, not how far the winds travel from the mountains. The explanation that clouds form “through cold air” is also imprecise. To strengthen the report, state the overall cause-and-effect pattern clearly, then describe each stage accurately, including moist air rising and cooling before clouds and rain form.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction and overview are followed by the windward stages and then the leeward stages. Sequencing expressions such as “Initially,” “After,” and “The next steps” help the reader follow the process. However, some links are mechanical or unclear. For example, “As the wind pushes upward, it cools and moist air rises” does not clearly distinguish the rising moist air from the wind, and “After the rainfall” makes the transition to the final stages abrupt. The overview also repeats the idea of the process reaching inland areas. Use more precise references and connect each stage through cause and effect, while keeping the paragraph divisions that already support the sequence.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of process vocabulary, including “windward,” “leeward,” “moist air,” “rainfall,” and “inland areas,” which makes the topic recognisable. There are also attempts to describe movement and change, such as “flows over the mountain.” Some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or repetitive, however: “wind reaches towards the coast” is less natural than saying winds approach the coast, and “winds approaches downward” is awkward. “Cloulds” is misspelled, and “formed through cold air” does not express the intended process precisely. Aim for consistent terms such as “air” or “winds,” and use accurate process verbs like “rise,” “cool,” “condense,” and “descend” to make the description more precise.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, using clauses introduced by “as,” “after,” and “where,” and the sequence is generally understandable. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly with subject–verb agreement and verb forms. For example, “winds that pushes” should use a plural verb, while “cloulds starts” also has a singular verb with a plural subject. The construction “then pushed upwards” lacks a clear auxiliary, and “These steps are occured” uses an incorrect passive form. Articles and prepositions are also sometimes awkward, as in “at a windward side.” Review agreement, past participles in passive constructions, and sentence patterns for describing processes. More accurate control of these forms would make your varied sentences clearer.

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