Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-30

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 illustrates the process of rain-shadow desert formation.

Overall,the process invovles seven important steps .Starting from the winds blown in the coastal area over the sea. Winds then goes through a series of events and eventually the rain -shadow forest is formed.

In the beginning,winds approch coastal areas and travel through the sea .These winds then move upwards and when it moves further it gets moist because of elevated altitude and get cold.These cold winds transform into clouds and the rain falls.

The rain travels through thousands of kilometers ,covering a range of mountains.

Then the rain moves from windward side towards leeward side and becomes dry again .The dry winds continue over mountain and ultimately reach inland areas.

The dry winds ,when reach inland becomes rain-shadow forest.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.5

You identify the process and give a basic sequence from coastal winds to inland conditions, including rising air, cloud formation, rainfall and dry winds. However, several details are inaccurate or unclear: the air becomes moist as it rises, rather than because of altitude, and it is the air—not the rain—that travels thousands of kilometres. The final feature is a rain-shadow desert, not a “forest,” a misidentification repeated in the overview and conclusion. The overview also does not clearly explain the key cause-and-effect pattern between rainfall on the windward side and dry conditions inland. The response is 21 words below the required minimum, which further limits its coverage. Develop the stages more accurately and include a clear summary of the overall process.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview and paragraphs describing the stages. The sequence is generally easy to follow, with markers such as “In the beginning,” “then” and “ultimately.” However, progression is weakened by unclear links between events. For example, “The rain travels through thousands of kilometers” interrupts the process and confuses rainfall with the movement of air. The overview’s “Starting from…” is also an incomplete sentence, and the final two sentences repeat the same outcome. Improve cohesion by describing each stage in order and using clear references to the air or winds, rather than repeating “rain” and “dry winds.” Check spacing after commas and full stops to make paragraphing and sentence boundaries easier to read.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant process vocabulary, including “coastal,” “elevated altitude,” “windward side,” “leeward side” and “inland areas.” These terms show an attempt to describe the diagram specifically. However, word choice and spelling errors sometimes make the account imprecise: “rain-shadow forest” names the wrong feature, while “rain travels” misidentifies what moves across the mountains. There are also noticeable spelling errors such as “invovles,” “approch” and “kilometers.” Some expressions are awkward or repetitive, including “winds blown in the coastal area over the sea” and repeated references to “dry winds.” Use accurate terms consistently and choose collocations that describe air movement and precipitation clearly.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a sequence of clauses joined with “and” and the conditional-style phrase “when reach inland.” However, control is uneven, and errors occur in basic sentence construction as well as longer sentences. “Overall,the process invovles seven important steps .Starting…” has faulty punctuation and an incomplete sentence. Subject–verb agreement is inconsistent in “Winds then goes” and “when it moves,” while “when reach inland becomes” lacks a clear subject and has an incorrect verb form. Articles and sentence boundaries also need attention. Aim first for accurate complete sentences, then connect them with varied structures; proofread agreement, verb forms and punctuation.

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