Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-29

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 diagram illustrates how a rain shadow desert is formed as moist air travels from the sea across a mountain towards inland area.

Overall, the process consist of seven main stages, begininng with wind approaching coast and ending with air reaching inland areas, where a rain shadow desert develops. The wind ward side receives rain falls, whereas the leeward side remains dry.

Initially, the winds produce from the sea coast and forced upwards to the mountain. Here, moist is allowed to mix with environment and clouds are formed for generate rain and the windward side receive the rain, therefore atmosphere be a cool.

Because of the rain, air becomes dry and moved over mountain. That dry air formed rain shadow desert in nearby inland areas. Here, air travels thousands of kilometer to make rain shadow desert.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the diagram as a process and give a relevant overview: it begins with winds approaching the coast and ends with dry air reaching inland, while the windward side receives rain and the leeward side is dry. However, the account is incomplete and some stages are unclear. In particular, it does not clearly explain that moist air rises and cools, clouds form, and rain falls before the air crosses the mountain. The claim that the air “mix[es] with environment” is not shown in the diagram, and the desert’s development is described only briefly. The response is also 14 words below the required minimum. Add accurate detail about the sequence and explain how the dry air creates the inland rain-shadow desert.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview, and a description of the process in sequence. Time and cause links such as “Initially” and “Because of the rain” help the reader follow the stages. However, progression becomes less clear in the final paragraph, where “Because of the rain” does not precisely explain the transition to dry air, and “Here” is used twice without a clear reference. Some links also connect ideas inaccurately, as in “therefore atmosphere be a cool.” To improve, use a more consistent sequence of stages and make each reference explicit—for example, state that after rain falls on the windward side, the remaining air crosses the mountain and descends towards the inland area.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “moist air,” “windward side,” “leeward side,” and “inland areas,” which helps communicate the main subject. However, the range is limited and several word choices or combinations are inaccurate, sometimes making the process difficult to understand. “Winds produce from the sea coast” should describe winds approaching from the sea, while “moist is allowed to mix with environment” does not express the diagram’s rising and cooling air. There are also spelling and form errors, including “begininng,” “wind ward,” and “kilometer.” Use precise process verbs and standard forms, such as “rise,” “cool,” “condense,” and “precipitation,” and avoid adding actions not shown in the diagram.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a contrast with “whereas” and a cause link with “Because of.” However, errors in verb forms, agreement, articles, and sentence construction are frequent enough to make some stages unclear. For example, “the process consist of seven main stages, begininng” needs a correctly formed verb phrase, and “the windward side receive” has a subject–verb agreement error. The clause “therefore atmosphere be a cool” is also grammatically incomplete, while “air becomes dry and moved” shifts verb form. Practise accurate past or present passive forms for process descriptions, such as “the winds are forced upwards” and “the air cools,” and check agreement and articles in each sentence.

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