Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · 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 5.0)

The Diagram is showing how a rain-shadow desert is formes, so firstly the wind approach coast from the sea and winds pushed upward by colliding the coast. After the wind is pushed upward, it rise moist in air and also cool it and deu to increasing moist in air, clouds are formed. Then the rain falls. The dry air continues over mountain going from Windward side to Leeward side. The dry air reaches the inland areas where the rain-shadow desert located. The core process of rain-shadow creation is basically the wind that comes from sea approaches the coast and move upwards by colliding with mountains which creates the risen of moist in air and cools the air. From which the clouds are formed, after the formation of clouds the rain falls and the dry air contineusover the mountain to Leeward side and the air take particles from moutain to the inland areas. when the dry winds reach the inland areas, it create the whole Rain-Shadow Desert.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main sequence: winds arrive from the sea, rise over the mountains, cool, form clouds and produce rain, before dry air moves inland. This is relevant and broadly matches the diagram. However, the account does not clearly explain the overall contrast between the wet windward side and the dry leeward side, which is central to how the desert forms. Some details are unclear or unsupported, especially the claim that the air “take particles from moutain” and that the wind rises by “colliding the coast”; the diagram shows air being forced upwards over the mountains. A clearer overview and more precise explanation of the mountain’s role would make the key features more fully addressed and developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response follows the process in roughly the correct order, and words such as “After” and “Then” help signal sequence. However, the organisation is repetitive: the second half restates much of the first, including the wind rising, clouds forming, rain falling and dry air moving inland. This limits the sense of progression and makes the account feel like one extended explanation rather than a clearly structured report. Some links are also awkward or unclear, such as “From which the clouds are formed,” while the shift from the initial sequence to “The core process” does not add a distinct stage. Group the stages into a concise overview and a logically ordered description, using references such as “this air” clearly.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “moist air,” “clouds,” “rain falls,” “Windward side,” “Leeward side” and “inland areas,” so the reader can generally follow the topic. However, the range is limited and several word choices or forms are inaccurate, sometimes making the meaning less clear. For example, “the wind approach coast” and “the air take particles from moutain” are not natural descriptions of the process; “formes,” “contineusover” and “moutain” also show spelling or word-form problems. Aim for precise collocations such as air being “forced upwards” and “dry air descending” on the leeward side. Avoid repeating “dry air” and “clouds are formed” when a clear reference or alternative phrasing is available.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt to connect stages with longer structures, for example, “After the wind is pushed upward…” and “when the dry winds reach the inland areas…”. However, complex sentences are often faulty, and errors in basic sentence construction and agreement occur throughout. Examples include “the wind approach coast,” “it rise moist in air,” and “it create the whole Rain-Shadow Desert”; these need appropriate verb forms and clearer subjects. The sentence beginning “From which the clouds are formed” is a fragment, and the final sentence has an inappropriate capitalisation after a full stop. There is some use of passive forms, but greater control of subject–verb agreement, articles and complete sentence boundaries is needed to make the process consistently easy to follow.

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