Part 1 – Wild Animals

Have you ever seen a wild animal before?

Yes, I have and oh… what an incredible experience. When I was
visiting Australia, we were driving down a pretty isolated road and
suddenly a kangaroo hopped in front of the car. We were going
slowly so stopped the car and just stared at this amazing creature.
It really took my breath away*.
*to take your breath away = astonish or shock you, with pleasure, surprise, or some
other emotion

Which wild animal do you like the most?

Oh gosh, that’s a tricky question because I’m an animal lover so
it’s tough to pick just one… I guess if I had to choose, I’d go for
the panda. They’re incredibly cute animals and endangered** so
it’s virtually impossible*** to see one in the wild.

**endangered = in danger of extinction ***virtually impossible = almost impossible

Do you like going to zoos?

Yes and no, it’s not something I do as a rule*; however, if I’m on
holiday then I might go to a zoo to pass the time**. I’m not a massive
fan of keeping animals in cages in zoos, to be perfectly honest;
however, if they have a breeding programme*** for endangered
species, then I support that.

*as a rule = If you say that something happens as a rule, you mean that it usually
happens.

**to pass the time = to let time or a period of time go by especially while doing
something enjoyable

***a breeding programme = the planned breeding of a group of animals or plants,

usually involving at least several individuals and extending over several generations
Part 1 – Jeans

Do you wear jeans?

Yes, I do. I think they’re probably one of the most used items of
clothing in my wardrobe.

No, I don’t. I used to wear them when I was younger, but I don’t

anymore.

How often do you wear jeans?

As often as I can really. They are my go-to item so I wear them

anytime I can dress casually. I live in them*, to be perfectly honest.

*To live in something means to wear it all the time

Do you like wearing jeans?

Yes, I do because they’re comfy and trendy. Admittedly, they’re
not great to wear in hot weather, but I love wearing them when
it’s chilly because they keep me warm.

Why do you think jeans are popular in your country?

I guess that one of the main reasons is that they come in many

different styles/fits so there is a style/fit to suit everyone. So, if

you prefer tight trousers/pants, you can wear skinny or slim
jeans, whereas if you are into baggy clothes, you can wear

regular or boot-cut jeans.

Part 1 – Litter/Garbage

Why do some people throw litter/garbage on the street?

The only explanation/reason I can give is laziness. They can’t be

bothered to* look for a bin or take their rubbish home with
them.

What do you do with your litter/garbage?

Well, first of all I look for a bin to put it in but if I can’t find one
then I take it home with me. I absolutely cannot throw it on the

ground, it is not in my nature**.

**be unwilling to make the effort needed to do something

**it is not something I would do

How do you feel when you see people throw litter/garbage?

Oh, this is one of my pet hates. It infuriates/annoys me so much
when I see the streets littered with rubbish. It really drives me

insane/crazy.

Do you think your city is clean or not?

It’s far from perfect, but I’ve seen dirtier places. There are fines

in my country so this keeps it clean to a certain extent, but

people still drop litter.
PART 2
Describe a short trip you often take but do not like

You should say:

• Where you travel from and to

• How often you make this trip
• Why you make this trip
• And explain why you dislike this trip
It didn’t take me long to narrow down what I’m going to talk about because there are not many journeys that I
make on a regular basis** aside from my daily commute****. It takes roughly three hours there and back.
*to narrow down = to reduce **on a regular basis = ***aside from = apart from; ****commute = a journey you take from home
the number of possibilities regularly; often except for; other than to work and back again

I’ve been making this trip from home to work and back again day in day out* for the
past five years. First of all, I have to walk to the bus stop and wait from 5 to 10
minutes to get a bus. It’s rush hour so the bus is usually jam-packed** and it is
virtually impossible*** to get a seat. Depending on when the bus arrives, then I
need to leg it**** from the bus station to the train station so I don’t miss my
connection*****. I have a season ticket so luckily I don’t need to queue to get a
ticket, but the train is generally overcrowded as well so it’s standing room
only******. It’s an absolute nightmare!
*day in day out = every day **jam-packed = full ***virtually impossible = almost impossible

****leg it = run ******standing room only = you can only stand *****connection = If you get
up a connection at a station or airport, you
Fluency and Coherence - Organisation catch a train, bus, or plane, after getting
Grammatical Range and Accuracy - Grammar off another train, bus, or plane, in order
Lexical Resource - Vocabulary to continue your journey.
During lockdown, I was fortunate enough* to be able to work from home and it was just the best thing ever. My
commute from my bed to my desk took around 30 seconds. I wish I could work at home all the time. I envy**
those who work from home or can walk to work.

*to be fortunate enough = to be lucky **to envy = to be jealous

If I could get a seat on the bus or train then it wouldn’t be such a chore*. I
would be able to catch up on** my emails, read a book, watch a film and
suchlike***, but I can’t do any of this. I just have to stand for nearly an
hour so by the time I get to work my back is killing me**** and I am in a
horrendous***** mood. In the future, the near future, I’m going to have
to find a job closer to home.

*a chore = a tedious but **to catch up on = to do something you haven’t ***and suchlike = and similar ****my back is killing me =
necessary task been able to do things my back really hurts

*****horrendous = very bad

Fluency and Coherence - Organisation

Grammatical Range and Accuracy - Grammar
Lexical Resource - Vocabulary
DESCRIBE different types of holidays which people choose
Student: Firstly, I think it’s important to say that for the majority of the world’s
population, a holiday is probably an unattainable luxury. If you are living in poverty
and hardly have enough money to put food on the table, then you’re not going to
spend a lot of time thinking where to go for a break. The best you can probably do is
visiting a relative or friend. For more affluent people though, there are lots of types of
holidays to choose from. Many people fly to other continents where they can do some
exotic sight-seeing or sunbathe on a tropical beach. Others go on adventure holidays
or hike round the countryside with a rucksack on their back, staying in youth hostels
or camping. I’ve heard of some people doing house swapping, so they live in
somebody else’s house, probably in a foreign country, and somebody stays in their
home. And some people go on spiritual retreats or working holidays. Of course, there
are those who just carry on working and say they don’t need a holiday at all.

EXPLAIN why some people prefer not to take holidays

Student: Some people seem to see it as a waste of time. These are probably high-
flying business executives who are keener on making money than spending it. If they
take time off, they are worried sick that something will go wrong at work. Other
people just hate the hassle of travelling: long queues at the airport, stress over the
plane being late, eating dodgy foreign food, getting sun-stroke. You hear all sorts of
nightmare stories from travellers and some just prefer to avoid it. Personally, I know
there are stresses and strains involved in going on holiday, but I just love the chance
to experience new destinations.

DESCRIBE the benefits of travelling to another country

Student: They say that travel broadens the mind and I think it’s absolutely true.
When you go abroad, you get the chance to see how other people do things, how
they have a different outlook on life and a different perspective on living. You get the
opportunity to see amazing sights and try out wonderful new foods. Lots of people
who visit foreign countries make life-long friends with the locals. When I was a bit
younger, I went back-packing round the world and it was an eye-opening experience
for me. It really changed the way I felt about myself and the world around me.
DESCRIBE the dangers of travelling abroad
Student: Obviously things can go terribly wrong when you’re travelling in foreign
countries, because you don’t know your way around, you can’t recognise danger signs,
you are an easy target. Some of the problems which travellers have in other countries
are because of things like food poisoning, diseases, sun-burn and that sort of thing.
Sometimes they just get lost or do things which local inhabitants find offensive or
inappropriate. It’s generally a pretty good idea to prepare yourself well, arm yourself
with knowledge and information, before visiting a foreign country. Learning a few key
phrases in the local language or dialect makes a lot of sense as well.

COMPARE the types of holidays people take now with holidays taken in the past
Student: Nowadays people from my country, at least those rich enough, often go
extremely long distances to seek out something new, exotic, entertaining and novel.
For a lot of them, holidays seem to be something to boast about and show off about
later. Half the point of the holiday appears to be to collect photos or video shots or
souvenirs to show the neighbours. Maybe it’s always been like that but I feel holidays
have become less about relaxing, winding down and taking it easy, and more about
status and social position. I’m probably being a bit cynical but I think that in the past
when people went away they wanted to have some fun, spend time in each other’s
company, mess about and do things that didn’t really matter, take a break from the
monotonous daily routine. All that seems to have changed now.

SPECULATE on the type of holidays people might take in the future

Student: It’s difficult to say really. I was reading a few months ago about space
tourism and I suppose that will be a definite possibility for really well-off people.
They might like the idea of blasting off into space and looking down on our planet
from thousands of miles away. I have to say, it doesn’t appeal to me much. I would
imagine that rich people will continue looking for even more exotic holiday
destinations here on Earth and I can imagine some developing countries being really
spoilt by tourism. The problem is that tourists always seem to want something new,
unspoilt and different. For the average person, I don’t suppose holidaying will
change too much. People love going to the sea-side, to mountains and lakes to
places where the weather is warm. Visiting famous cities has become more popular
recently and I suppose that trend might continue.