Speaking

Self-study
Programme

takeielts.org
Speaking week
The aims of the Speaking Self-study Programme are that you . . .
• Understand the format of the Speaking Test
• Understand how your speaking is assessed
• U
 nderstand the type of topics you will be asked about
and how you should respond in each part of the test
• Develop appropriate vocabulary for the IELTS Speaking Test

Day 1

a. Make sure you know exactly what the Speaking Test is like. Go to ielts.org/about-the-
test/test-format and read the information carefully.
b. Go to takeielts.britishcouncil.org/take-ielts/prepare/free-ielts-practice-tests/
speaking and read this information carefully too. Then do the practice. Record yourself
on your phone or some other device.
c. Go to ielts.org/-/media/pdfs/speaking-band-descriptors.ashx?la=en and download
the public descriptor. These give you a good idea of what the examiner is looking for at
each Band level for Fluency
and Coherence (This means your ability to continue speaking (especially in Part 2)
and to link your ideas and language together.), for Lexical Resource (your vocabulary),
Grammatical Range and Accuracy (how well you use grammar to communicate), and
Pronunciation (how easy it is to understand you).
For more information and help with these four areas, watch these videos:
Fluency and coherence
youtube.com/watch?v=8H-WeY9GSf8&feature=youtu.be
Lexical resource
youtube.com/watch?v=LQQE2hWrl98
Grammatical range & accuracy
youtube.com/watch?v=Yq6IZBtM4IU
Pronunciation
youtube.com/watch?v=UawwTSzaZzk
 Day 2

The Speaking Test consists of 3 parts. In Part 1 the examiner will ask you about ordinary,
everyday things such as how you spend your free time, your holidays and travel, food and
restaurants etc. Part 1 always begins with questions about either your work/studies or
your home/hometown. Part 1 lasts from 4 to 5 minutes.
a. It is important that you have the vocabulary to discuss everyday topics. List 5 key words
or expressions for each of these ‘typical’ Part 1 topics. Check in a dictionary how to
pronounce them correctly. Mark the word stress.
Example: Your home / flat / quiet neighbourhood / small balcony / sunny living room /
friendly neighbours
1. Your home
2. Your hometown
3. Your studies or your job
4. Shopping
5. The things you do with friends
6. The food you like
7. The music you like
8. What you do on your holidays
9. The sports or exercise you do
10. How you communicate with people

b. For more vocabulary practice go to bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/intermediate-

vocabulary and choose an area that will be useful to you. For example, practise
learning synonyms at https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/course/
intermediate/unit-23/session-1
c. You should try and answer these Part 1 questions with 2 or 3 sentences.
Think about giving a reason for why you like or dislike something, give an example.
Now go to ielts.org/-/media/pdfs/115041_speaking_sample_task_-_part_1.
ashx?la=en and practise answering these questions again. Record your answers
on your phone. Listen to your recording.
Ask yourself:
• Did I have to think about some words that I needed?
• Did I give reasons for things?
• Did I give examples?
Compare your answers to Part 1 here with theanswers you gave on Day 1.
d. Watch a test taker do Part 1 of the test. Go to youtube.com/
watch?v=cAf41I68HD8&list=PLSAx4faA_rjNEb16E7FGDnQTSn9dAuDPv&index=14&t=41s
• What did he do well or less well?
• What topics was he asked about?
• Look at the examiner’s comments.
e. Now practise Part 1. Read the questions and record your answers.
Let’s talk about what you do. Are you a student or do you work?
What do you like about your work/studies?
Is there anything you don’t like? Why?
What do you plan to do in the future?
Now let’s talk about shopping. Do you prefer to shop online or go to real shops? Why?
Do you like shopping alone or with friends?
What sort of things do you most enjoy buying?
Do you find it difficult to buy presents for friends and family?
Let’s turn to sport. Do you do any sport? Why?
What do you enjoy most about this activity?
What are the good things about doing a sport with other people?
Are there any sporting activities you would like to try in the future?
f.  Look at the timer on your phone. Did answering the questions take between 4 and 5 minutes?
• If yes, well done.
• If no, how could you have said more? Did you give reasons and examples where appropriate?
Answer the questions again, giving more information.
 Day 3

In Part 2 you are given a card with a topic on it. You will have to talk about that topic
for up to two minutes. You will have one minute to prepare your talk. Use this time to
make brief notes – one or two words – to help you while you are speaking.
a. Look at this topic card. Time yourself and make notes for one minute, then talk
for two minutes.

Describe a person who you like or admire.

You should say
• Who the person is
• What they have done in their life
• Why you like or admire them
And say how they have affected you.

b. Go to takeielts.britishcouncil.org/take-ielts/prepare/free-ielts-practice-tests/
speaking/part-2 and practise a Part 2 topic. Follow the instructions and when
you have finished speaking, listen to the audio recording.
Did you
• Speak for 2 minutes?
• Hesitate trying to think of words you needed?
• Correct grammar mistakes as you were talking?
• Repeat yourself?
• Connect your talk and ideas with linking words?
Notes:
If you can’t think of the exact word(s) you need, try to paraphrase, that is, think of
another way of saying the same thing. Don’t over-correct if you hear yourself making
grammar mistakes because this will interfere with the fluency of your talk. Compare
your Part 2 talk here with the talk you gave on Day 1.
c. Watch a test taker do Part 2 of the test. Go to youtube.com/watch?v=m0UGhSufSJk
&list=PLSAx4faA rjNEb16E7FGDnQTSn9dAuDPv&index=3&t=5s
• What did she do well or less well?
• What topic was she asked to talk about?
• Look at the examiner’s comments.
d. In the Speaking Test you can use less formal words and expressions than in the
Writing Tests. To learn more about phrasal verbs, which are used a lot in speech,
go to learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/grammar/intermediate-to-upper-intermediate/
phrasal-verbs
e. To learn more informal expressions, watch the podcasts on
learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/general-english/podcasts
 Day 4

In part 3 you will discuss issues loosely connected with the topic you spoke about in
Part 2 of the test. In this part of the test, you need to generalise more rather than talk
about personal experiences, express opinions and support them, speculate about the
future and make comparisons.

This part lasts between 4 and 5 minutes:

a. In Part 2 you spoke about something that was important to you, something you valued.
Go to https://takeielts.britishcouncil.org/take-ielts/prepare/free-ielts-practice-tests/
speaking/part-3 and practise answering the Part 3 questions that follow on from this
topic. As before, record your answers.
• Did you answer the questions about people in general rather than about yourself?
• D
 id you use different tenses to talk about status in your parents’ time (past simple/
used to/would), how that has changed (present perfect) and how things are now
(present simple)?
• Did you use comparatives to compare things in the past with now?
• Then listen to the recording of a test taker. How doyour answers compare with him/her?
Compare your Part 3 answers here with the answers you gave on Day 1.
b. To get a better Band Score for Grammatical Range and Accuracy, try to vary the tenses
and verb forms you use. There are different ways to talk about the past. As well as using
past tenses, you can use ‘would’ and ‘used to do’. Go to learnenglish.britishcouncil.
org/grammar/intermediate-to-upper-intermediate/past-habits-used-to-would-and-
the-past-simple and do the exercises.
You will also need to speculate about the future. Go to www.bbc.co.uk/
learningenglish/english/course/intermediate/unit-17/session-2/activity-3
c. Watch a candidate do Part 3 of the test.
To watch and listen to a Band 6 test taker, go to youtube.com/watch?v=lBkffRImTwE
&list=PLSAx4faA_rjNEb16E7FGDnQTSn9dAuDPv&index=4&t=0s
• What did he do well or less well?
• What general topics was he asked questions about?
• Look at the examiner’s comments.
To watch and listen to a Band 7 test taker, go to youtube.com/watch?v=STR6tv_
VkCY&list=PLSAx4faA_rjNEb16E7FGDnQTSn9dAuDPv&index=8&t=50s
• What did she do well or less well?
• What general topics was she asked questions about?
• Look at the examiner’s comments.
To watch and listen to a Band 8 test taker, go to youtube.com/watch?v=GebKN7OV
org&list=PLSAx4faA_rjNEb16E7FGDnQTSn9dAuDPv&index=11&t=0s
• What did he do well or less well?
• What general topics was he asked questions about?
• Look at the examiner’s comments.
 Day 5

On the last day, you will put everything together.

a. Watch the following test takers and read theexaminer’s evaluation.
Part 1 Aashish Nepal 7.5 youtube.com/watch?v=cAf41I68HD8
Part 2 Tina Vietnam 5 youtube.com/watch?v=m0UGhSufSJk&t=44s
Part 3 Gabriel Brazil 6 youtube.com/watch?v=PZ3WudiiZi4
Aashish
Watch this Speaking test sample, where Aashish from Nepal talks about ‘Work, friends,
food and cooking’. Here’s why this performance was given a Band 7.5: This test taker
speaks fluently and he engages with the questions without any obvious effort. There
is only occasional hesitation, repetition and self-correction, which is mostly content-
related and only rarely to search for language. His relaxed delivery is supported by his
flexible use of markers (I am both; basically; as well as; every now and then; that would
be French). His vocabulary is sufficient for him to engage with a variety of topics and he
demonstrates an ability to use idioms and collocations with some sense of style and skill.
However, he makes a number of inappropriate vocabulary choices (all over the place;
that’s not just my cup of tea; someone to confront and talk to; I haven’t got a chance),
which restrict his rating on this criterion. He has a wide range of grammatical structures
at his disposal and the majority of sentences are error-free. Even when errors do very
occasionally occur (I work part-time as well as a student; it just does not come into me),
they do not detract at all from meaning. He uses a wide range of pronunciation features
and is able to use stress and intonation effectively. There are just a few lapses and very
occasionally sounds are poorly formed (bot for ‘both’; vent for ‘went’), but overall, his
accent has only minimal effect on intelligibility.
Tina
Watch this Speaking test sample, where Tina from Vietnam talks about ‘An interest or
hobby you enjoy’. Here’s why this performance was given a Band 5: This candidate is
able to maintain the flow of speech for most of the time but there are hesitations as well
as some repetition and self-correction. This, together the fact that she describes several
interests rather than one interest, makes her hard to follow at times and leads to some
loss of coherence (before when I live in Vietnam I often go to … church and or some
association … er … I can … er … I often ask my friend to … er … to contribute … er …
er … and give a hand to help the poor people … or the old people because I think the old
people are so … er … my … is look like my grandparents so I want to take good care for
them). She can use markers accurately but within a narrow range (first; so; because; as
well; in the future). She rather limited range of vocabulary is just adequate for this part of
the test. She manages to talk at some length about these familiar topics and produces
some good items (widen my knowledge; to overcome or try to get over the problem;
contribute; take good care). She makes some errors in usage (do volunteers). She uses
a narrow range of sentence patterns, but there are a few instances of ‘if’ and ‘when’
clauses. She produces basic structures with reasonable accuracy but verb tense errors
and omissions are frequent (I can shopping; before when I live in Vietnam I often go ... ;
in picnic; I enjoy with it). She has quite a strong accent with a number of poorly formed
sounds and systematic omission of word endings (lee a han for ‘lend a hand’). Rhythm
is often syllable-timed and utterances are sometimes delivered too rapidly, which causes
some difficulty for the listener. If possible, work with a friend or family member who speaks
a little English. Ask them if they will be your examiner.
Gabriel
What speaking ability does a score of IELTS Band 6 represent? Watch this Speaking test
sample, where Gabriel from Brazil talks about ‘Hobbies’. Here’s why this performance was
given a Band 6: This test taker is able to keep going and produce answers of sufficient
length, but his performance is characterised by hesitation, repetition and self-correction.
This limits his fluency and causes some loss of coherence but, overall, he is not hard to
follow as he uses linking words and markers quite effectively (first; because; for example).
His vocabulary is wide enough to deal with the topics at some length (way to escape;
driving over the limit; day-today activities; you need to pay your bills), but there is a lack
of flexibility. In spite of some inaccurate word choices and expressions, he is generally
able to express his ideas and opinions sufficiently, if not very effectively (they need to
be pleasure; forget what’s bad; we need to have other thing to be relax). He produces
a mix of short and complex sentence forms and a variety of structures, but with limited
flexibility. Errors occur with word order, articles, redundant subject pronouns or subject
omission, but these do not impede communication (they need always have something to
do; is something that you don’t do always; if you spend too much time doing hobby there’s
something wrong; if you are doing a lot of hobby; if you do always everything). The test
taker uses a range of pronunciation features but with mixed control. Rhythm is sometimes
affected by his hesitation and some lapses into syllable-timing. Not all sounds are well
articulated and he occasionally omits syllables (activit(ie)s). Although these negative
features reduce clarity at times, he can generally be understood throughout.
IELTS Speaking
Test practice

Part 1

Examiner: Let’s talk about where you live. Is your hometown a big place or a small place?
You:
Examiner: What sort of things do you do with your friends in your town?
You:
Examiner: How do you usually travel around your town?
You:
Examiner: Is there anything you don’t like about your town? Why? / Why not?
You:
Examiner: Let’s talk about hobbies. Do you have a hobby?
You:
Examiner: How much time do you spend on your hobby?
You:
Examiner: Do you have friends who share the same hobby?
You:
Examiner: Did you have different hobbies when you were younger?
You:
Examiner: Let’s turn to pets. Do you have a pet? Why? / Why not?
You:
Examiner: Did you have a pet when you were younger?
You:
Examiner: What is the best animal to have as a pet? Why?
You:
 Part 2

Examiner: Now I will give you a topic to talk about for one to two minutes. Before you talk,
you will have one minute to think about what you are going to say. You can make some
notes if you wish. Do you understand? I’d like you to talk about a place that is special.

Describe a place that is special.

You should say
• Where the place is
• Who you go there with
• What you do there
And explain why it is special.

Examiner gives the test taker one minute

Examiner: Can you start speaking now, please? I’ll tell you when the time is up.
You:
Examiner gives the test taker two minutes to speak.

Examiner: Thank you. How often do you go to this place?

Examiner: We’ve been speaking about a place that is special for you. Let’s talk about
places more generally.
Examiner: Do you think most people have a place that is very special to them?
Examiner: Children often have a favourite place where they can hide or play. Why do you
think that is?
Examiner: Why do you think people get homesick when they are away from their home?
Examiner: Places obviously change over time. Do you think that the changes we see
today are positive or negative?
Examiner: Can you give me examples?
Examiner: How do you think that places such as cities and towns will change in the
future?
Examiner: Thinking about more distant places. A lot of money is spent on exploring space
and the possibility of people in the future living on different planets. Do you
think this is a good use of money?
Examiner: Do you think people will be living in space in the future?
Examiner: What would be the benefits for the human race if we could live on other
planets.
Examiner: Thank you, that is the end of the Speaking test.

b. Self-evaluation.
Listen to your recording and answer
the questions yes or no.

Questions Answer
Part 1 1 Did I have to think about some words that I needed?
2 Did I answer with two or more sentences?
3 Did I give reasons for things?
4 Did I give examples?
Part 2 5 Did I speak for 2 minutes?
6 Did I hesitate trying to think of words I needed?
7 Did I correct grammar mistakes as I was talking? (How often)
8 Did I repeat myself?
9 Did I connect my talk and ideas with linking words?
Part 3 10 Did I answer the questions about people in general rather than about myself?
11 Did I use different tenses to answer the different questions?
12 Did I use comparatives to compare things?

Analysis
1. If you answered no, well done! If you answered yes, listen carefully again and work out
and write down the words you needed.
2. If you answered yes, well done. If you answered no, listen again and think about the
extra information you could have added.
3. If you answered yes, well done. If you answered no, think of some reasons ‘why’ or ‘why
not’ you could have added.
4. If you answered yes, well done. If you answered no, think of some examples ‘why’ or
‘why not’ you could have added.
5. If you answered yes, well done. If you answered no, think about what else you could
have added. Could you have talked more about the people involved, or what something
or somewhere looked like. Remember, you should try to tell a story and paint a picture.
6. If you answered no, well done! If you answered yes, listen carefully again and work out
and write down the words you needed.
7. Correcting ourselves while we are speaking is perfectly natural but try not to do it too
often as this reduces your fluency.
8. If you answered no, well done! If you answered yes, work out why that was. Did you run
out of ideas? Did you lose your place in your talk?
9. If you answered yes, well done. If you answered no, listen again and work out where
you could have added linking words and phrases.
10.If you answered yes, well done. If you answered no, try again and speak about people
in general In my country, people ….. In the past, city dwellers would . . .
11. If you answered yes, well done. If you answered no, listen again and think about
where you should have used past tenses or future forms.
12. If you answered yes, well done. If you answered no, listen again and think about
where you could have made comparisons.
c. Study programme review.
Tick the work that you have done and then
give yourself a treat!

I looked at the format of the test and now understand it

I recorded myself answering (at least) one Part 1

I understand the marking criteria and how my speaking will be assessed

I made vocabulary records of the words and phrases that will be useful in Part 1

I improved my vocabulary by working on synonyms

I watched a test taker doing Part 1 of the test

I recorded myself answering (at least) one Part 2

I watched a test taker doing Part 2 of the test

I learnt more about using phrasal verbs and informal language in my speaking

I recorded myself answering (at least) one Part 3

I worked on varying the tenses I use

I watched a test taker doing Part 3 of the test

I watched a complete Speaking Test and used the examiner’s notes to assess it
I practised doing a complete Speaking Test and completed the evaluation
and analysis
I am now going to give myself a treat!
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