Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-11-03

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 shows the process how rain-shadow desert formed.

Overall, formatation rain-desert includes seven main stages that begin with the wind approach to coast and end with the formation of rain-shadow desert at other side of mountain.

Initially, there is thousands of kilometres distance between sea and inland area, at beginning of desert formation process the wind push hot air from the surface of sea with high presure and when air collied with mountain the wind push air upward. After that, hot air become cold and ratio of moister in atmosphere increases and at next stage clouds form that float upward and at sixth step start raining, as well as wind at top of of mountain the dry air continues and start flowing downward towards land.

After that, after flowing from top of hill dry air reach to inland areas and collied with the sand and form rain shadow deserts.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover the main sequence and provide an overview, noting that the process has seven stages and ends with a desert inland beyond the mountain. The account also correctly mentions upward movement, cooling, cloud formation, rainfall and dry air continuing inland. However, some details are unclear or inaccurate: the diagram does not say that the wind pushes hot air from the sea, that pressure is high, or that the air collides with sand to create the desert. The rainfall occurs on the windward side before the air crosses the mountain, but your phrase “at sixth step start raining” confuses the order; stage six is dry air continuing over the mountain. Clarifying these points and explaining the windward/leeward contrast would make the key features more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview and a chronological description. Sequencing expressions such as “Initially,” “After that” and “at next stage” help the reader follow the process. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical, particularly with repeated uses of “After that,” and the long body sentence combines several stages without clear boundaries. This makes the order of rainfall and the movement of dry air difficult to follow. Some references are also unclear, such as “at sixth step” and “the other side of mountain.” Use separate sentences for the stages and refer explicitly to the windward side, leeward side and inland area to make the progression clearer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use several relevant terms for describing a process, including “stages,” “coast,” “mountain,” “clouds,” “dry air” and “inland areas.” These give you an adequate foundation for the topic, but inaccurate word forms, spelling and collocations reduce precision. Examples include “formatation,” “moister,” “presure” and “collied”; “ratio of moisture” is also not a natural way to describe the air becoming moist. Some phrases, such as “wind push hot air,” do not clearly express the diagram’s information. Aim for accurate process vocabulary and natural combinations, such as “moist air rises,” “cools,” and “precipitation falls on the windward side.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a sequence linked with “when” and “after,” and the overall meaning can generally be followed. However, control is uneven, especially in the long sentence describing the early stages. Errors include “the process how … formed,” “there is thousands,” “the wind push,” and “hot air become cold”; these involve sentence construction, agreement and verb forms. Missing or incorrect articles and plurals also appear in phrases such as “at beginning” and “top of mountain.” Break the process into shorter sentences, check subject–verb agreement and use consistent present simple forms for the stages. This would make your meaning more reliable while retaining some complex structures.

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

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