Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-31

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 pictorial diagram illustrates the process about formation of rain-shadow desert at thousand of kilometers away from sea area.

Overall, it is clearly seen that this process contains seven stages starts with winds approached from the marine area to coast side and ended with formation of rain-shadow desert around thousand of klilometers far from marine area.

Initially, Marine winds are flowed towards the coast line. As winds approach to the mountains, it will pushed from ground level to top side of mountains. Once, Winds are approached to at certain level above towards the peak, it will became densed and formed moisture at windward side. At that level of mountain air became colled because low temperature compare to bottom. Subsequently, Clouds formed by mixture of moisture at almost peak of the mountains.On the top of mountains various clouds happened rainfalls.

In sixth stage, All moisture will be done empty by raining and remaining dry air flow continueously over the mountains at Leeward side. Then, winds flowed gradually towards the ground level and will became more dry in nature.Eventually, Dry air approached to the inland area and made moisture-free Rain-shadow desert.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

You cover the main stages and give a clear overall account: winds move from the sea towards the coast, rise over the mountains, produce rain on the windward side, and continue inland as dry air, creating a rain-shadow desert. The sequence is broadly consistent with the diagram, and the overview identifies the process’s beginning and end. However, some explanations are imprecise: the diagram shows moist air rising and cooling before clouds form and rain falls, whereas “formed moisture” and “mixture of moisture” do not clearly describe this. The reference to the desert being “around thousand of kilometres” away also overstates what the scale indicates; it shows a horizontal span of thousands of kilometres, not a precise distance from the sea. Clarifying these details would make the account more precise.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall progression, with an overview followed by stages in sequence. Paragraphing separates the summary from the detailed process, and markers such as “Initially,” “Subsequently,” “In sixth stage,” and “Eventually” help the reader follow the order. This organisation is effective, but cohesion is not always smooth: “Once” is used awkwardly to introduce the next event, and the repeated “At that level” makes the middle section feel less controlled. Some links between events are also unclear, particularly the transition from cooling to cloud formation. Use a consistent sequence of stages and connect each cause to its result more directly; this would retain the clear structure while making progression more natural.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant process vocabulary, including “windward side,” “Leeward side,” “inland area,” and “dry air,” which helps communicate the diagram’s key features. There is also an attempt to vary wording with “approached,” “flow,” and “formation.” However, inaccurate word choice and collocation are noticeable and sometimes obscure the process: “formed moisture” does not express the formation of clouds, “air became densed” is not idiomatic, and “moisture-free Rain-shadow desert” is an awkward description. Spelling errors such as “klilometers” and “continueously” also reduce control. Aim for precise process terms and natural combinations, such as “moist air rises,” “cools,” “condenses,” and “precipitation falls.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt a range of sentence forms, including sequencing clauses and cause-and-effect structures, as in “As winds approach to the mountains…” and “Once… above towards the peak…”. However, control is limited: errors occur frequently in verb forms, agreement, articles, and sentence construction. For example, “this process contains seven stages starts” needs a relative clause or a separate verb, while “it will pushed” and “it will became” use incorrect verb forms. Tense shifts between present and future also make the process less consistent. Punctuation and capitalisation are uneven, as in “mountains.On” and the unnecessary capitals in “Winds” and “All.” Practise describing processes consistently in the present simple and check each clause for a complete, correctly formed verb.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.