URBAN & RURAL LIFE

Ielts speaking

PART 1
1/Where do you live?

I was born and raised in Ho Chi Minh city. I’m living in District 1 with my two other friends. It is right in the heart
of the city (trung tâm thành phố) with a lot of hustle and bustle. At night the streets are flooded with (tràn
ngập) people from all over the city.

2/ Is it a house or an apartment?

I’m currently living in an apartment located in the vicinity of (gần) the town center. It’s not very spacious but
there is enough room for me to study. We are very close. We hang out all the time and usually go to nearby
places to relax. We live together in harmony (sống trong hòa thuận).

3/ What kind of accomodation do you prefer?

Although a house can offer more privacy, I prefer living in an apartment because there are security guards to
ensure my safety. Moreover, there are great services in close proximity for free like the gym, swimming pool,
and convenience stores. Last but not least, it’s definitely more affordable (đáp ứng được) than houses.

4/ Do you plan to live there for a long time?

Yes, I think I won’t leave this apartment in the foreseeable future. Housing prices in HCMC have gone through
the roof (giá cả leo thang) and it would cost me a fortune to own one right now.

Other questions:

• How is your apartment decorated?

• Do you have a garden?

• What’s the difference between where you are living now and where you have lived in the past?

PART 2

DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL HOUSE

YOU SHOULD SAY:
 WHERE IT WOULD BE
 WHO YOU WOULD LIVE WITH IN THIS HOUSE
 WHAT IT SHOULD LOOK LIKE
AND WHY YOU WOULD LOVE TO LIVE HERE.

When it comes to a place that i would love to live in, the first thing that pops up in my mind is a cottage located
in the countryside, although i am currently working in Ho Chi Minh which is a really big city.

The reason why i choose to live far away from the urban jungle (chốn thành thị xô bồ, thị phi ) is that i am
tired of traffic jam and travelling long distance to work . Sometimes, i couldn’t have a good sleep because there
is too much noise from my neighborhood. If i could, i would love my house to be built near a lake where i can
go fishing and immerse myself in tranquility (đắm chìm trong sự bình yên).

It is pretty hard to say who i would live with in this house since i haven’t got married yet. However, im still
thinking of giving birth to a football team when i settle down (định cư), which means that this house should be
spacious enough to accommodate (chứa, cung cấp chỗ ở ) all of my family members. Mod-cons (thiết bị tiện
nghi) or any modern facilities would not be neccessary since i am fan of minimalism (chủ nghĩa tối giản), so
the decoration should be simple but aesthetically pleasing (mãn nhãn). I am also an artistic person who loves
to learn about art, so there would be a room where i can indulge myself with painting.

Although i don’t see a chance of buying a house which costs me an arm and a leg (đắt đỏ) in forseeable future,
i always feel a strong urge to (cảm thấy một sự thôi thúc ) put aside some money to accomplish this dream.
The rat race (cuộc sống xô bồ, mệt mỏi) prevents me from taking some time out, and living in such peaceful
atmosphere would help me do that.

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PRACTICE

TASK 1/ Read the questions. Which ones would probably NOT be asked in Part 1 of the Speaking test?

TASK 2/ Listen to three candidates answering three of the questions in exercise 3. For each question, what
does the candidate do wrong?

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TASK 3/ Listen to an answer to given task card. Does the candidate cover all the prompts in equal detail?
What effect would this have on his score?

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TASK 4/ Listen to a candidate giving good answers to Part 3 questions. For each answer (1-5), choose the
corresponding question (A-E), and write the letter.

TASK 5/ Read these comments on the candidate's performance.Write the correct marking criteria they
correspond to: Fluency and Coherence (FC); Lexical Resource (LR); Grammatical Range and Accuracy (GRA);
Pronunciation (P).

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