Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · 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 4.5)

The diagram illustratrs the process, how rain shadow deserts are formed in a type of desert.

Overall rain shadow is a unidirectional process where see water crocess thousands of kilometers to form it. it has seven stages where it starts with wind that approaches sea coast and that wind reaches inland areas.

To begin the wind which moves towards sea coast moves up as they reaches mountain

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

The response identifies the topic and recognises that the diagram has seven stages, which is a relevant starting point. However, it reports very little of the process: only winds approaching the coast and moving upwards towards the mountains are mentioned, while cooling, cloud formation, rainfall, the dry air crossing the mountain, and the inland desert are not explained. The overview is also inaccurate in saying that “sea water” travels thousands of kilometres; the diagram shows winds moving across the landscape, and the distance label indicates scale rather than a process stage. The response is substantially below the required 150 words. To improve, give a clear overview and describe the full sequence accurately, including the contrast between the wet windward side and dry leeward side.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

There is a basic attempt to organise the response: an opening sentence is followed by an overview and then a beginning-stage detail introduced with “To begin”. This gives the reader some sense of sequence. However, the progression stops after the first stage, and the overview combines several ideas unclearly, particularly “where see water crocess thousands of kilometers to form it.” The final sentence is incomplete, so the description has no developed ending or transition to later stages. Use separate paragraphs for the overview and process details, then connect each stage with clear sequencing expressions such as “As a result” and “After crossing the mountain.” Ensure each sentence is complete and that references such as “it” have a clear meaning.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The response uses some relevant process vocabulary, including “stages,” “wind,” “coast,” “mountain,” and “inland areas,” and “unidirectional process” shows an attempt to use more formal language. However, the range is narrow because most of the diagram’s key actions and features are not named. Several spelling and word-choice errors make the meaning less clear, including “illustratrs,” “crocess,” and “see water”; the diagram concerns moist air and winds, not sea water. “Rain shadow” should also be used consistently as the name of the desert type. Build a more precise vocabulary set for this process, such as “moist air,” “rises,” “cools,” “precipitation,” “leeward side,” and “dry winds,” and check spelling carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 4.5

The response attempts both simple and more extended sentence forms, for example, “Overall rain shadow is a unidirectional process where…” and “To begin the wind which moves towards sea coast…”. However, control is uneven. The opening has an awkward clause structure (“illustratrs the process, how…”), and the overview contains sentence-boundary and capitalisation problems: “it has seven stages” begins with a lowercase letter after a full stop. In the final sentence, “the wind … moves up as they reaches” has faulty agreement, and the sentence ends without completing the idea. Articles and sentence punctuation also need attention. Practise writing complete, clearly punctuated sentences, checking subject–verb agreement and using a consistent present tense to describe each stage.

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