O N

A TI
A R
E P T
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P TA N
S
T SIS IELTS
L
E AS
I
BY Speaking Preparation
Full Course
VIRTUAL EDUCATION

www.ielts-assistant.net iOS App Android App

 Hello!
Your preparation for the IELTS speaking test
starts HERE

This course takes you step by step through what you need to do in order

to get fully prepared for your IELTS speaking test. First of all, you’ll get a

clear-cut step-by-step IELTS speaking preparation plan. You

will know exactly WHAT you should do in order to complete

each step successfully. What’s more, and what’s important,

you’ll have an opportunity to get your IELTS speaking skills

evaluated by experienced IELTS experts in order to know what IELTS

speaking band score you can expect if you decide to take the test in

the near future. Finally, you will learn how to improve your score (if

necessary).

2
 The course includes both theory and practice

In the ebook, you will find a step-by-step preparation plan and

all the study materials that you need to prepare for your IELTS

speaking test and get the desired band score without sacrificing

work and rest! In addition to the comprehensive review in this

ebook, we’ve included practice online, accessible through our

app. The more you take advantage of the resources we’ve included

in this ebook and the online student tools that go with it, the better you’ll

do on the test.

To sum up, in order to get fully prepared for your speaking test,

you will need:

1. The Complete Guide to IELTS Speaking (this ebook)

2. IELTS Speaking Assistant (mobile app for IOS and Android

devices)

you may need:

3. One-to-one support of our IELTS experts and consultants

3
This course format will allow you to study on your own

schedule and at your own pace and you will get

answers to all your questions related to the IELTS

speaking test.

Our students’ test scores show that our approach is the one that

works. All you need is to follow our 3-step preparation plan very

carefully. However, there is no magic pill: just downloading this ebook

and the app isn’t going to improve your scores. Score improvement

takes commitment and effort from you. But please don’t worry! We’ll

guide you all the way to the finish line!

3-step IELTS speaking preparation plan

“A good plan is like a road map: it shows the final destination and the

best way to get there.”

If you want to get the desired band score as fast as you can, make

sure you don’t deviate from this plan.

4
 STEP 1
Find out whether you are ready for the test now or
whether you need to improve your score

1.1 Find out what your target band score is and why it’s important to

determine your target band score before you start preparing for your

IELTS test.

1.2 Become familiar with the IELTS speaking test:

• Introduction to IELTS speaking

• IELTS Speaking Test Format + Example

• IELTS speaking topics

• IELTS Speaking Assessment Criteria

• Do a quiz

1.3 Find out what your current band score is

1.4 Analyze your results and make a strategic plan

• Find out whether you are ready for the test now or whether you need

to improve your score

• Determine the best test date

5
 STEP 2
Improve your IELTS speaking skills

2.1 Improve Fluency & Vocabulary

• Make a study plan

• Practise answering real exam IELTS speaking questions

• Keep track of your progress

2.2 Improve Pronunciation & Fluency

2.3 Improve your Grammar

2.4 Do an IELTS speaking post-test to find out if you are ready to achieve

the desired band score

STEP 3
Get ready for the test day

3.1 Things you are allowed to take to the test room

3.2 Things you aren’t allowed to take to the test room

3.3 What to expect on the test day

6
 STEP 1
1.1 FIND OUT WHAT YOUR TARGET BAND SCORE IS

In this lesson, we’re gonna talk about your target band score. If you already

know what your target band score is, please move to step 2. If you don’t,

please read the information in this lesson very carefully. We’re gonna tell

you what IELTS band scores are and what you should do to determine

your target band score. Please don't underestimate the importance of this

information.

What are IELTS band scores?

IELTS results are reported on a 9-band scale. It’s a special scale that

IELTS uses to measure your level of proficiency:

Band 9 - expert user

Band 8 - very good user
Band 7 - good user
Band 6 - competent user
Band 5 - modest user
Band 4 - limited user
Band 3 - extremely limited user
Band 2 - intermittent user
Band 1 - non-user
Band 0 - did not attempt the test

7
For each section of the test (for Listening, Reading, Speaking and Writing)

you will receive a band score from 1 to 9. These scores are reported in

whole bands or half bands, for example, band 6 or band 6.5

IELTS listening and reading scores are calculated by the number of

correct answers you have out of the 40 questions in the test. Scores

out of 40 are then converted to the IELTS 9-band scale.

IELTS listening and reading scores are calculated by the number of

correct answers you have out of the 40 questions in the test. Scores

out of 40 are then converted to the IELTS 9-band scale.

The average of your four individual test section band scores produces

your overall band score:

Listening score + Reading score + Writing score + Speaking score) / 4

If the average of your four individual test section band scores ends

with .25 or .625, round up to the nearest half score, and if it ends with .75

or .125, round up to the nearest whole band score.

8
• Example 1: if you’ve received Listening 6, Reading 7, Writing 7,

Speaking 7, your overall score will be (6+7+7+7)/4 = 6.75, which

means you get 7.0

• Example 2: if you’ve received Listening 6, Reading 6, Writing 6,

Speaking 7, your overall score will be (6+6+6+7)/4 = 6.25, which

means you get 6.5

• Example 3: if you’ve received Listening 6, Reading 6.5, Writing 6,

Speaking 7, your overall score will be (6+6.5+6+7)/4 = 6.125,

which means you get 6.

• Example 4: if you’ve received Listening 6.5, Reading 6.5, Writing

6.5, Speaking 7, your overall score will be (6.5+6.5+6.5+7)/4 =

6.625 (round down to the nearest half band score) which means

you get 6.5

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 What is your IELTS target band score?

Your target band score is the minimum result required by your

program. Each immigration body, university, workplace or institution

will have specific IELTS score requirements.

Also, it is very important to take into account the following thing: some

programs require an overall band score only. For example, you need to

get an overall band of 6.5 This means it doesn’t matter how you achieved

this result. Let’s imagine you have good listening and reading skills, but

you have poor speaking and writing skills. So you can get high band

scores in listening and reading and relatively low scores in writing and

speaking. So if your program requires an overall band score only, you

have a chance to get the desired result even if you get relatively low

scores in writing and speaking. For example, if your individual sub-scores

for each of the four test components are Listening 7, Reading 7, Writing

5.5, Speaking 5.5, you’ll get an overall band score of 6.5 and thus meet

the requirements of your program. However, the same result won’t be

satisfactory if your program requires an overall band score of 6.5 with

no band score lower than 6.0 In this case, even if you get 5.5 5.5 8 8

which will give you an overall band score of 7 (not even 6.5), you won’t

get enrolled in college.

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 What if you don’t know what your IELTS target
band score is?

If you are going to study abroad, you are probably curated by an

advisor. Ask them what the admission requirements of your educational

institution are. If you are planning to submit all these documents on your

own, please visit your educational institution’s website. The information

about IELTS requirements will be available in one of the following

sections: Admissions > English Proficiency or Admission Requirements >

English Requirements

As far as immigration is concerned, each country sets its own IELTS

requirements. In most cases, this depends on an immigration program

that you’ll follow. So, first, you’ll have to find out what immigration

programs you can apply for. You will probably have to find an

immigration lawyer\immigration attorney who will help you choose the

right immigration program. However, while looking for an immigration

expert, you may explore visa options on your own and try to choose the

one that suits your needs:

11
If you want to immigrate to Australia, please visit this website https://

immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-finder

If you want to immigrate to Canada, visit this website https://

www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/

immigrate-canada/express-entry/documents/language-

requirements/language-testing.html

If you want to immigrate to New Zealand, visit this website https://

www.immigration.govt.nz/new-zealand-visas

If you want to immigrate to the UK, please visit this website https://

www.gov.uk/guidance/prove-your-english-language-abilities-with-

a-secure-english-language-test-selt

YOUR TASK:

You need to find out what band score on a 9-band scale you need to

achieve and which is more important in your case, an overall band

score, or sub-scores (or single test scores), or both.

For example, you need to take IELTS Academic with an overall

minimum score of 6.0 (with no single test score below 5.5)

12
 1.2 BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THE IELTS
SPEAKING TEST

You may have enrolled in our course because you know nothing about

IELTS speaking, or perhaps you took the test once and want to improve

your IELTS score. Either way, it’s important to know about the test. Let’s

take a second to discuss some IELTS facts: some of them may surprise

you.

Introduction to IELTS speaking

IELTS Speaking Test Format + Example
IELTS speaking topics
IELTS Speaking Assessment Criteria
do a quiz

13
 Introduction to IELTS speaking
The IELTS speaking test is a face-to-face interview between a
test taker and an IELTS examiner.

The Speaking test lasts between 11 and 14 minutes (not more

and not less) and consists of 3 parts.

The Speaking test can be completed up to a week before or

after the other components of the IELTS test.

The IELTS speaking test covers a really wide range of topics.

Some of them are pretty weird ‘cause IELTS test makers want
to make sure you can carry on a conversation regardless of the
topic.

14
 IELTS Speaking Test Format + Example

Now familiarise yourself with the IELTS speaking test format to know

what to expect during your real IELTS speaking test.

The IELTS speaking test consists of 3 parts. Before the part 1 questions

start, the examiner will introduce themselves and ask you several

questions. The purpose of asking these questions is to identify a

candidate. Your answers to these questions are NOT rated. You should

give very quick and short answers. This brief introduction lasts about 30

seconds.

In Part 1, the examiner will ask you general questions about yourself and

a range of familiar topics such as bags, music, travelling, etc.

The examiner will choose three (sometimes just two) topic

areas, and you'll have about four questions on each. The first
topic area will be about your daily life. The examiner will
choose one of the following topics: work or studies, your
country, hometown, family, home. After that, the examiner will
choose two more (or just one more) Part 1 IELTS speaking
topics. So you'll have around 10-12 questions, depending on
how long your answers are.

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 This part lasts between 4 and 5 minutes.

Don’t give one-word answers and don’t give too long answers.
Allow 15-30 seconds per answer.

All Part 1 IELTS speaking topics are available in the

corresponding section of the IELTS Speaking Assistant App.

In Part 2, you will be given a card which asks you to talk about a

particular topic. For example, you may be asked to describe an occasion

when a child made you laugh.

You will have 1 minute to prepare your answer and up to 2

minutes to speak. The examiner will then ask one or two
questions on the same topic to finish this part of the test.

If your story is very long, the examiner will stop you because
your answer mustn’t exceed 2 minutes. If they asked you to
stop, please, stop talking immediately.

This part lasts between 3 and 4 minutes (including 1 minute

preparation time).

All cue cards are available in the corresponding section of the

IELTS Speaking Assistant App.

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In Part 3, you will be asked further questions connected to the topic in

Part 2. These questions will give you the opportunity to discuss more

abstract ideas and issues.

Part 3 IELTS speaking questions will require you to compare

and contrast ideas, speculate on something, agree or
disagree with something.

This part of the test lasts between 4 and 5 minutes.

Allow 40-60 seconds per answer.

All Part 3 IELTS speaking topics are available in the

corresponding section of the IELTS Speaking Assistant App.

17
Example:

Introduction (not rated):

Examiner: My name is John Johnson. What is your full name?

You: I’m Sunita Singh.

Examiner: What shall I call you? (comment: give the name that friends

and relatives call you by)

You: Sunita.

Examiner: Sunita, where do you come from?

You: I’m from Delhi in India.

Examiner: Can I see your identification?

You: Here you are.

(comment: if the examiner did not ask you all of these questions,

don’t worry, it’s ok)

Examiner: Thank you.

Note: Sometimes examiners want to speed up the process, so they

omit some of the questions above.

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Part 1:
Examiner: Now I’m going to ask you a few questions about yourself.

Do you work or are you a student?

You: I’m a student and this is my final year at school. Now I’m

working hard in order to get passing grades to enter college in

Canada. If everything is ok, six months from now I’ll already be

studying there. I want to major in Journalism as I like writing essays

and articles and want to work for some famous magazine or

newspaper. I’m going to do a three-year course at Seneca college.

Examiner: Please, describe your hometown.

You: Well, I come from Delhi which is the capital of India and by far

the largest city in the country. It’s a densely-populated place, so the

city is always crowded and noisy. Also, Delhi has the highest number

of vehicles, therefore traffic congestion is a norm here. Also, it has a

very rich history. For this reason, it’s really popular with tourists who

come to visit our wonderful temples and experience Indian culture.

It’s never boring to live here as the city provides a wide array of

entertainment options. It is also home to our government and all

major institutions.

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Examiner: Is that a big city or a small place?

You: Oh, it’s a huge sprawling city. No, to say ‘huge’ is to say nothing.

Well, if you manage to view the city from a tall building, you get the

feeling that it doesn’t end. It just takes hours to go from one side of

the city to the other.

Examiner: Thank you. Now let’s talk about swimming. Do you like

swimming?

You: bla-bla-bla

Examiner: How can children learn to swim?

You: bla-bla-bla

Examiner: What is the difference between swimming in the pool

and swimming in the sea?

You: bla-bla-bla

Examiner: Thank you. Now let’s talk about noise. Do any noises

bother you?

You: bla-bla-bla

Examiner: Are there any sounds that you like?

You: bla-bla-bla

Examiner: Are cities becoming noisier?

You: bla-bla-bla

Examiner: Thank you.

20
Part 2:
Examiner: Now, I'm going to give you a topic and I'd like you to talk

about it for 1-2 minutes. Before you talk you'll have one minute to

think about what you are going to say and you can make notes if

you wish. Do you understand?

You: Yes.

Examiner: Ok, here's some paper and a pencil to make notes, and

here is your topic. I'd like you to describe a piece of clothes that you

received as a gift. (comment: then the examiner gives you the

booklet with written prompts; you have 1 minute to think about what

to say)

Cue card:

Describe a piece of clothes that you received as a gift recently

You should say:

• when you received the clothes

• what the piece of clothes was like

• who gave it to you

• explain how you feel about it

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(comment: after 1 minute is over) Examiner: Ok. You will have one

or two minutes for your talk, so don’t worry if I stop you. Please,

start talking now.

You: Oh, there’s a crazy story behind my go-to pair of jeans. Once I

saw cool jeans in a shop window of a high-street shop and fell for

them. However, I didn’t dare to go and try them on because

everybody knows that this shop is for people with deep pockets.

Once my mom and I were passing by this shop window. She noticed

the way I looked at the jeans and asked me whether I wanted to pop

in and try them on. I tried to pretend not to be in the mood for

shopping, but she insisted and we entered the shop.

It was an amazing pair of skinny jeans, the ones you have to fight to

put on, but the torment is forgotten as soon as you see yourself in the

mirror. These were dark wash blue jeans with sanding. One might

think there was nothing special about them as they were stripped of

all details which could justify the price. There were neither zippers nor

welts. But they elongated the line of my legs and felt like a second

skin. They were perfect because I could match them with anything,

be it formal, casual or street style. I looked at the price tag,

understood they cost a fortune and made my mom quickly leave the

shop.

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However, I couldn’t help thinking about these jeans. One day I

realised that I had to buy them no matter what. Well, I took all the

money from my money box and couldn’t wait to purchase them.

Much to my disappointment, when I came to the shop, I was told that

the jeans had been sold a few days before. I was upset, but I had to

put up with this fact somehow. Gradually I stopped thinking about

them.

Several weeks later on my birthday I found a gift box near my bed.

Guess what was inside! Those jeans! It was my mom who bought

them and prepared a surprise which definitely was a success.

Follow up questions (comment: the examiner may or may not ask

you these follow up questions)

Examiner: Do you often go shopping for clothes?

You: Oh, not as often as I want. (comment: give a short answer)

23
Part 3:
Examiner: We've been talking about a piece of clothes that you

received as a gift, and I'd now like to ask you some questions related

to this. What kinds of clothes do people wear after work?

You: Well, to my mind it depends on where people spend this time after

work. If they first go to the gym or play tennis and then meet friends for

a cup of tea or just to have a chat, they can have jogging suits or warm-

ups or any other active casual clothes on. If they plan to have an

informal dinner with friends in some upscale restaurant, then girls can

put on some blouse or turtle-neck, crisp jeans and a fashionable belt as

well as flats or mid-heel shoes and men some long-sleeve shirt and

dress trousers with a tipped belt and leather loafers or dressy slip-ons. If

people go to some event in an art gallery or theatre and then to dinner

with friends, they should stick to dressy casual clothing like a dress or

coordinated separates in semi-dressy fabrics for women and a dress or

silk sport shirt and dress trousers for men. The shoes should take on a

dressier tone both for male and female. If somebody just plans to run

errands or go for a massage, they can wear something like cotton pants

and a button-down or polo-style shirt with some sneaker-type shoes just

to feel comfortable.

24
Examiner: What kinds of clothes should people wear at work?

You: bla-bla-bla

Examiner: Do you think students need to wear school uniforms?

You: bla-bla-bla

Examiner: Where do people in your country buy clothes?

You: bla-bla-bla

Examiner: Thank you. That's the end of the IELTS speaking test.

25
 IELTS Speaking Topics

At any given moment, there are 130 speaking topics in total

(30 part 1 topics, 50 cue cards, 50 part 3 topics)

IELTS speaking topics aren’t the same throughout the year.

They change 3 times a year, at the beginning of January, May
and September.

IELTS speaking topics don’t change all at once. Every time

only 50% of topics are replaced.

Each set of speaking topics is used during two 4-month

periods, then it becomes ‘old’ and is replaced by a new set of
speaking topics.

IELTS speaking topics change according to the following

schedule:

1. 65 IELTS speaking topics (15 part 1 topics, 25 cue cards

and 25 part 3 topics) appear in the first week of January.
These topics are in use for two 4-month periods: from
1st January till 31st August. After 31 August, these 65
topics become old, and they are no longer asked during
the speaking test.

26
2. 65 IELTS speaking topics (15 part 1 topics, 25 cue
cards and 25 part 3 topics) appear in the first week of May.
These topics are in use for two 4-month periods: from 1st
May till 31st December. After 31 December, these 65 topics
become old, and they are no longer asked during the
speaking test.

3. 65 IELTS speaking topics (15 part 1 topics, 25 cue

cards and 25 part 3 topics) appear in the first week of
September. These topics are in use for two 4-month
periods: from 1st September till 30th April. After 30 April,
these 65 topics become old, and they are no longer asked
during the speaking test.

27
To sum up, we have 3 four-month periods (January - April, May -
August, September - December) during which topics remain the
same. We also have 3 sets of topics (January to August,
September to April, May to December). Each period always
includes 2 sets of topics:

• January - April: 65 topics for September to April + 65 topics

for January to August
• May - August: 65 topics for January to August + 65 topics
for May to December
• September - December: 65 topics for May to December + 65
topics for September to April

How do we know?

Several years ago we read on one reliable IELTS portal that

topics change every 4 months. The only way to understand
whether this claim was true or false was to do some research
and make long-term observations. It took us almost 2 years of
observation, collecting and comparing data shared by our IELTS
students as well as searching the Internet to make sure that this
rule exists.

28
 IELTS Speaking Assessment Criteria
There are 4 assessment criteria which IELTS examiners use in
evaluating your speaking performance:

1. Pronunciation
2. Fluency and coherence
3. Grammatical range and accuracy
4. Lexical resource

• IELTS Speaking scores are reported in whole and half

bands, for example, band 7.0 (reported in whole bands) or
band 6.5 (reported in half bands).
• First, you get 1 - 9 for each of the 4 criteria. Then these
scores are added together, and the final score is divided
by 4. For example, pronunciation 6, fluency 6, grammar 7,
vocabulary 7. You will get (6+6+7+7)\ 4 = 6,5
• Scores ending in .25 or .75 are rounded up to the nearest
0.5 For example, if a student’s overall speaking score is
an average of 6.25, so the score will be increased to 6.5
• If a student’s overall speaking score is 6.125, the score
will go down to 6.0

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25% - Pronunciation

What is pronunciation? It’s the way you say words. You make
some sounds which English speakers recognize as words.
So good pronunciation is important for speaking and
understanding spoken English.

To get a high band score for pronunciation,

1. you don't have to sound like a native speaker (though it
would be perfect)
2. you should speak so that you could be easily understood
3. you should pronounce all the words correctly and clearly
4. you should put the stress in words properly
5. you should be able to use intonation (you shouldn’t
speak like a robot)

Very poor performance (band 4): the accent is so strong that

it’s very hard or even impossible to understand what you say
Poor performance (bands 5-6): the accent is quite strong; you
mispronounce some words

30
25% - Fluency and coherence

What is fluency? Fluency in a language means speaking

easily, reasonably quickly and without having to stop and
pause a lot. Speaking fluently does not mean speaking fast.
Speaking fluently means speaking as naturally as possible.
Recall the way you speak when you chat with your friends in
a cafe.

To get a high band score for fluency & coherence,

1. you should show your ability to speak at length
2. you should speak without hesitations and pauses; you
may make some pauses occasionally like you do in
everyday life when you talk to someone, but these
pauses are not long and not frequent
3. you should speak without self-correction
4. connect your sentences and ideas using linking words,
phrases and linking devices
5. Here's the link to a video featuring a band 9 answer
https://youtu.be/fzkanKkljZc

Poor performance (bands 5-6): you make long or very long,

frequent pauses after each word, phrase or sentence
because you don’t know what to say next or how to say that.
The answers are short, without details.

31
25% - Grammatical Resource

To get a high band score for grammatical resource,

1. you should use grammatical structures correctly
2. you should try to use a variety of structures, otherwise
an examiner will never guess that you know a lot
3. you shouldn’t overuse advanced structures as this will
not sound natural and you will be marked down on
fluency

You will get Band 5 for Grammatical Resource if you use the
following grammatical structures:
• simple tenses
• basic modal verbs
• degrees of comparison
• there be
• quantifiers such as many and a lot of

Sample sentence 1: Nowadays many people try to lead a

healthy lifestyle. That's why they go to the gym and do not
eat fast food that is bad for their health.

My comment: This sentence is simple but correct.

Sample sentence 2: Many people think that it is better to

work from home.

Sample sentence 3: People should use public transport to

reduce the level of pollution in cities.

32
Sample sentence 4: This issue can be solve by ... or Children
has never played computer games as much as now…

My comment: Here there are attempts to use modals, the

passive voice, and the present perfect tense, but these are used
incorrectly. The correct sentences would be 'this issue can be
solved' and 'children have never played...'

You will get Band 6 for Grammatical Resource if you use the
following grammatical structures:

appr. 50% simple structures + appr. 50% complex structures

• active tenses
• passive tenses
• modals + modals in the past
• comparisons: as... as..., the... the...., far + comparative
degree, by far + superlative degree
• gerund + infinitive
• both... and...
• either ... or \ neither ... nor...
• not only.... but also...
• conditionals 0, 1, 2
+ some grammatical errors are ok

33
You will get Band 7 for Grammatical Resource if you use the
following grammatical structures:

appr. 60-70% complex grammar structures from the list above

+ appr. 40-30% simple structures
+ a few mistakes are ok

You will get Band 8 for Grammatical Resource if you use the
following grammatical structures:

Band 7 structures + emphatic structures

• cleft sentences
• inversion
• conditional 3, mixed
• + 1-2 minor grammatical errors (with articles, for example)

Inversion:
‘Only if such information is available in advance, will there be
time to take measures to prevent any possible collisions or
exposure of people to solar radiation.’

‘Never before have people been bombarded by as many

advertisements as now.’

‘Only by working hard can people achieve success.’

34
Mixed conditional:
‘Had it not been for the invention of the telephone, nowadays
people would still have to arrange face-to-face meetings in
order to discuss whatever issues they have.’

Cleft-sentences:
‘Planting trees is what should be done to neutralize dire
effects of carbon dioxide emissions.’

‘It is swimming that is considered by far the most effective

exercise.’

‘To boost sales is the reason why companies advertise their

products.’

‘It was not until the plane was invented (past simple) that
people started (past simple) being able to cover long
distances almost in no time.’

You will get Band 9 for Grammatical Resource if you use the
following grammatical structures:
Band 8 structures + NO grammatical errors

ATTENTION: Please remember that the most important thing

is to sound natural. In our everyday life, we don’t really use a
lot of long and complex sentences. You must be very careful
using them.

35
25% - Lexical Resource

1. you should use topical vocabulary, idioms and phrasal

verbs
2. you should avoid repetition (using the same words); you
should use synonyms instead
3. you should use collocations (Collocations are two or
more words that naturally go together. They sound
'correct' to a native speaker.)
4. you should avoid redundancy (Redundancy happens
when the repetition of a word or idea does not add
anything to the previous usage, for example,
inexperienced beginners)
5. you should use words appropriately

You will get Band 5 for Lexical Resource if you:

use basic words such as want, need, help, money etc.

You will get Band 6 for Lexical Resource if you:

use topic-related vocabulary (these are the words that are

used when discussing specific topics or subjects) such as
‘exhaust fumes’ if you write about pollution or ‘academic
performance’ if you write an essay about education + basic
words

36
You will get Band 7 for Lexical Resource if you:

use less common vocabulary (topical vocabulary + more

advanced synonyms of basic words). For example, ‘financial
resources’ instead of ‘money’, ‘assist’ instead of ‘help’

use some less common and idiomatic vocabulary and show

some awareness of style and collocation, with some
inappropriate choices (Idioms are expressions that aren't
meant to be taken literally. Example: to work one’s fingers to
the bone (to work very hard)

use phrasal verbs (for example, to reflect on = to influence)

Examiner: Do you work or study?
You: Currently, I’m unemployed. The thing is I expect my
experience to reflect on my remuneration package, but
nowadays it’s somewhat difficult to find such a vacancy. And
I’m not ready to work for less money that I think I deserve to
get.

37
You will get Bands 8-9 for Lexical Resource if you:

use uncommon vocabulary (some words that you will only

find in the articles on www.economist.com or in the tests
called GRE or SAT). For example, ‘pecuniary’ instead of
‘financial’ or words like predilection, dire, noxious, innocuous

use idiomatic language naturally and accurately (Example:

Well, I’m between jobs right now (It’s a clever and discreet
way of saying you are unemployed. This means that you had
a job, you are not currently working, but will be working in the
near future)

use phrasal verbs naturally and accurately

ATTENTION: Please remember that you won’t get a higher band

score if you use uncommon vocabulary incorrectly, if you use
one uncommon word per interview or if you use uncommon
vocabulary just for the sake of it. First and foremost, your
answers should sound natural.

How much do you know about the IELTS speaking test?

Do our quick quiz to find out whether you've read the information
about the IELTS speaking test carefully and whether you're ready
to take the next step in your IELTS preparation.

Visit our website www.ielts-assistant.net/quiz and test yourself

now!

38
 1.3 FIND OUT WHAT YOUR CURRENT
BAND SCORE IS
In order to help you get the desired band score or improve
your IELTS speaking score, we should know what we start
from. This will allow you to make more or less accurate
predictions about the amount of time you’ll need to get fully
prepared for the test and therefore plan your time and other
resources. So we’ll start by testing your speaking skills.

INSTRUCTIONS:
We've prepared a set of real test IELTS speaking questions.
Please follow the instructions carefully:
1. Answer the following questions and record your answers.

QUESTIONS:
Part 1 (Answer the following questions without preparation.
Allow 15-30 seconds per answer.)

 Do you work or are you a student?

 Do you use headphones? In what situations do you use
headphones?
 What type of headphones do you use?
 In what situations would you NOT use headphones?
 What apps have you used recently?
 How much time do you spend on these apps?
 What apps would you like to use in the future?

39
Part 2 (Take paper and a pencil. You can make some notes
while preparing your answer. Read the prompts below. You
have 1 minute to prepare your answer and 2 minutes to
speak. Record your answer.)
Describe an item on which you spent more than expected.
You should say:
• what it is
• how much you spent on it
• why you bought it
• why you spent more than expected

Part 3 (Answer the following questions without preparation.

Allow up to 1 minute per answer.)
 What kinds of things do people like to buy in your
country?
 Do you think people buy a lot of things they don’t
need?
 Is it important to save money?

2. Find out what your current band score is. There are 2
options available:
• do it yourself
• get your pre-test graded by IELTS experts

40
How to do it yourself

You can use the information about IELTS speaking

assessment criteria to analyze your recording to understand
what band score you can get now. Even if you think you won’t
be able to grade your answer accurately, you should do a pre-
test because this will allow you to see if it's difficult or easy
for you to produce answers fast, if you have what to say, and
if you make a lot of pauses while speaking.

How to get your test graded by IELTS experts

You can have an opportunity to get your speaking test graded

by our experts. Buy our ‘IELTS tips and secrets’ self-study
course or IELTS speaking grading service on
www.ielts-assistant.net

Send the recordings to edu@ielts-assistant.com in one email.

Remember to attach your receipt. We will assess your
speaking skills in terms of the IELTS band score.

41
 1.4 Analyze your results and
determine the best test date
There are several factors to consider before choosing the test
date:
time you need to prepare for the test
rule about the change of IELTS speaking topics
deadlines
test availability in your location, your learning style, your
schedule, budget, test preparation options within your
reach, etc.

First of all, you should estimate the amount of time that you
need to prepare for the test. For this, determine the difference
between your target band score and your current band score.
Your current band score is where you are now. It’s your
starting point. Your target band score is where you want to be,
it’s the band score that you are aiming to achieve. In other
words, you need to determine the distance between the
starting point and the desired result. So, the general rule is
that the farther away you are from the target, the more time
you’ll need to reach it. Check out our statistics on www.ielts-
assistant.net/time This will allow you to make more or less
accurate predictions about the amount of time you’ll need to
get fully prepared for the test.

The second important factor to take into account when

choosing the test date is the rule about the change of IELTS
speaking topics. Hope you remember that IELTS speaking
topics change 3 times per year.

42
 What is the best date to take the IELTS test?

The closer to the end of April, August or December, the better.

The best dates to take the test are right before the topics change,
and that is at the end of April, August or December. This will allow
you to know 100% topics, and you will have more time to prepare
answers to ALL the questions. Even if your current band score is the
same as (or higher than) your target band score, you may want to
prepare all the speaking topics just to be sure you will have what to
say during the test regardless of the topics.

If you want to take the test at the first test of January, May or
September, you will not know all the 130 speaking topics before the
test. You will know just 50% of topics because the other 50% of
topics will first appear in your test. And these 65 topics will be a
complete surprise to you. Of course, if you are lucky, you will get the
questions from those 50% of topics that appeared earlier and didn’t
change in January, May or September. If you aren’t lucky, you will be
asked some of the questions that you didn’t have an opportunity to
review before the test. So taking the test in January, May or
September is the worst option of all.

If you want to take the test in the middle or at the end of January,
May or September (right after topics change), you will have VERY
LITTLE TIME to review all the topics (just a few weeks or less). And
it will be very difficult to prepare all 130 topics in a few weeks,
especially if you go to work, school or university every day and
cannot spend all day preparing for IELTS.

43
If you want to take the test in February or March, you’ll have
more time to prepare all the topics, especially those that appear
in January. It’s definitely easier. The same applies to taking the
test in June, July, October and November.

If you choose to take the test in April, August or December

(especially at the end of April, August or December), after the
change of topics you’ll have more than 3 months to prepare
answers to 130 topics. It’s, of course, the best option of all as
you’ll have the most time.

To sum up, the worst time to take the test is during the first week
of May, September or January because you will not be able to
know 50% of the topics in advance. The best time to take IELTS
is during the last week of April, August or December because you
will have enough time to review all the 130 speaking topics.

Finally, make sure your scores will be reported in time for your
application deadlines. Of course, if you have an application
deadline, and there is only one suitable test date left, you’ve got
nothing to lose. So, it probably makes more sense to make an
attempt to pass the test than do nothing even if the chance of
getting the desired score is small.

For example, if you need band 7.0, but you only got band 5.0 in
your IELTS pre-test, you are not ready for the test now and you
need time to increase your score. Thus, you need to take into
account all the factors given above in order to choose the best
date to take the test.

44
Let’s consider another common situation. You need to achieve
an overall band of 6.0. Your current speaking band score is 6.0
or higher. This means you are ready to get the desired speaking
score right now. However, it might be that you need to work on
one of the other three skills or all the other three skills. In this
case, you will also take into account all the factors given above
in order to choose the best date to take the test.

ATTENTION: If you need to achieve an overall band of 6.0, and

your current speaking band score is 6.0 or higher, and your
current band scores for writing, listening and reading are also as
high as you need, you can select the test date asap. But even if
this is your case, and you obviously don’t need to spend time (or
a lot of time) on test preparation, we do recommend you to pay
attention to the rule about the change of topics.

45
 STEP 2
IMPROVE YOUR IELTS SPEAKING SKILLS

2.1 Improve your speaking skills:

Fluency & Lexical Resource

• Make a study plan

• Practise answering real exam IELTS speaking questions
• Keep track of your progress

What do you need to do in order to get a high band score for

Fluency & Coherence in IELTS speaking? You have to
demonstrate your ability to speak at length (=make extended
answers) without pauses (=without much hesitation). You have
to produce content effortlessly.

Why do many students FAIL to achieve the desired score in

IELTS speaking? There are two common reasons. When asked
IELTS speaking questions, some students don’t know WHAT to
say (or don’t have much to say). Some students know WHAT to
say, but don’t know HOW to say what they want to say in English.
But whatever the case may be, this causes students to make
pauses, sometimes really long pauses, in their answers.

Is there any solution to it? We are sure that the best thing to do
is prepare all the 130 topics before the test. Thus, you will not
dry up in the middle of the test. You will not feel lost when asked
IELTS speaking questions because you will be familiar with all of
them. If you follow our plan, you will always know WHAT to say
and HOW to say that in English.

46
 2.1.1: MAKE A STUDY PLAN
Get the list of all the current real exam IELTS speaking
topics.

Option 1: You may want to collect all the 130 topics yourself.
But it will take a lot of time. You will have to visit different
websites and forums. You will have to collect a lot of
information to be able to understand which of the topics that
you’ve come across on the web are real exam ones. You can
only say that some topic is one of the current real exam topics if
this topic was shared by hundreds of IELTS test takers. If you
see that some topic was shared by 1 or 2 IELTS test takers, you
can’t add it to the list of current IELTS speaking topics. But it’s
not that easy for an ordinary person to talk to hundreds of IELTS
test takers after they complete the test. And even if you manage
to do it, it will take a lot of your precious time. We bet you can
spend this time much more effectively. Well, in any case, this
option is available to you, but we wouldn’t recommend you to go
for it.

Option 2: You can download the IELTS Speaking Assistant app

and get the whole list of topics in an instant because we have
hundreds of thousands of students all over the world, so we’ve
already done the data collection process for you. And we do it
every time IELTS speaking topics change. What’s more, we are
constantly looking for more questions to have the most
complete list. One more important thing is that you don’t have to
be a premium user of the app to get the whole list of current
IELTS speaking topics. It is obvious that option 2 is much better
than the first one as it’s fast and free. Download the app on
www.ielts-assistant.net/app If you need help determining
which of the topics to learn, please visit www.ielts-
assistant.net/topics

47
 Determine your daily workload.

1. Depending on your test date, identify the number of days

that you have left for preparation. If you know that there will
be some days during which you won’t be able to study,
exclude those days from a count. For example, it’s 1st
October. I’m planning to take the test on 19th December.
I’m going to study every day, so I have 79 days left before
the test. If I don’t want to study on weekends, I will deduct
18 days. So I will have 61 days left.

2. Determine the number of topics that you need to prepare

each day. This is a very serious step. And you should
remember that 50% of topics change in January, May and
September. And this rule will have a big impact on your
study plan. Please read the examples carefully, and try to
understand which one best describes your situation.

Possible scenario 1: It’s 1 December today. I am planning to

sit the test on 19th December. I have just 18 days to prepare
for the test. The topics won’t change. So I have the whole list
of 130 speaking topics available. I will divide 130 topics by 18
(that’s the number of days left before the test date) and get
the rate of 7,22. This means that I need to prepare more than
7 topics per day. That’s gonna be really stressful. And I will
have to study all day every day. Also, I shouldn’t forget that
speaking is not the only component of the test. I will only
consider this scenario if it's absolutely necessary.

48
Possible scenario 2: It’s 1 October today. I am planning to sit
the test on 19th December. I have 79 days to prepare for the
test. The topics won’t change. So I have the whole list of 130
speaking topics available. I divide 130 topics by 79 days. And
I get the rate of 1,64. This means that I need to prepare 2
topics per day for 51 days. And then 1 topic per day during 28
days. Not really hard, but I won’t have time to relax. Easier
than scenario 1.

Possible scenario 3: Let’s imagine it’s 1st October now. But I

want to take the test at the end of February. Topics will
change on 1st January. So before 31 December I can only
learn 65 topics. After 1st January new topics will appear, and
I will be able to learn the other 65 topics. So now I have 3
months to prepare 65 topics that are available at the moment.
This means I don’t have to practice speaking every day. I
may choose to prepare 1 topic per day during 65 days. And
then review them for 25 days.
Then, in January, 65 new topics will appear. And I will have 2
months to prepare them. We’ll start adding new topics after
the first students complete their speaking tests during the
first test of the period. As soon as we get statistically
significant data which we can rely on, we add these new
topics to the list. Usually it takes us about a week to collect
enough information. So you should take into account that in
January (May and September) you’ll have 3 weeks for
preparing new topics. Hope you remember that I’m planning to
take the test at the end of February. This means I’ll have about
3 weeks in January and 4 weeks in February to prepare 65
new speaking topics. This means I’ll have to prepare 1 topic
per day for 33 days and 2 topics per day for 16 days. To sum
up, I won’t have to study really hard and I will be able to
prepare all the topics. A little harder than scenario 3, but not
so hard, actually

49
3. Make your ideal study plan. Use our free printable IELTS
speaking progress charts for planning your preparation. Set a
date for each topic and write it down in the corresponding box
on the progress chart. You can download our free study
planners on www.ielts-assistant.net/download

4. Adjust your plan if necessary. Look at your plan and

change it a little, if necessary, depending on the amount of
time you can make for preparation each day. Make a realistic
study plan. For example, I may want to prepare more topics
per day on weekends in order to make some days during the
week free from IELTS preparation.

Remember that you should try to stick to your plan, but if you
don't manage to do so, you will have to adjust it. Erase the
previous date and write down a new one. For example, I
always use a soft pencil to fill in the information in the study
planner because I often have to change the dates when I’m
too busy.

ATTENTION! If you don’t have much time left before the test,
we recommend you to use what we call an emergency
preparation plan.

50
 You should take a list of all actual IELTS speaking topics with
questions. Remember that you will find them in the IELTS
Speaking Assistant app.

Answer the questions from each part of the app one by one
without preparation. If you feel that the answer is more or less
ok, skip that question and get back to it later if you have time
after you’ve prepared good answers to all the difficult
questions.

Mark all the questions you find difficult (use the ‘bookmark’
feature of the app)

Divide the number of the difficult questions by the number of

days you have for preparation to identify the minimum
number of IELTS speaking questions you have to review every
day.

Use our free study planners to make a study plan.

2.1.2 PRACTISE ANSWERING REAL EXAM IELTS

SPEAKING QUESTIONS

If you follow our instructions carefully, you’ve already got a list of

real exam IELTS speaking topics, and you’ve made a study plan. So,
you know WHAT topics you should prepare and you know WHEN
you’re gonna prepare each of them.

Now it’s time to prepare top-scoring answers to each question.

Here is what you should do for this. There are 3 options available.

51
OPTION #1 You can make all the answers yourself.
You should remember that your answers should be relevant and
extended. They should contain topical vocabulary. You should try
to use a variety of grammatical structures. It would be good if
some of your answers contained idioms and phrasal verbs. We will
provide a few sample answers for you to know what a good answer
looks like. You should use these answers as a model for your
answers.
Part 1 model answer
Is your handwriting easy to read for other people?
Well, in my opinion, my handwriting is legible, at least it’s clear
enough to read, but many people say it isn’t. When I studied at
school, my teachers would say something like ‘Your handwriting is
impossible to decipher’ or ‘Your handwriting looks like ‘chicken
scratch’. Now my colleagues say that the notes I leave to them are
either illegible or they have to put effort in order to guess whether a
particular letter is an ‘a’ or an ‘o’.

Part 2 model answer

Describe a risk you have taken that had a positive result
• what it was
• why you took it
• what the result was
• how you felt about it

Once I was waiting for my friend at the bus stop when a young
good-looking man approached me and asked me if I could help
him.

52
He asked me to let him use my mobile phone to make a call
‘cause he had just had his bag stolen, and he needed to call the
bank urgently to cancel his credit cards and ask someone to pick
him up as all his documents, money, mobile phone. and car keys
were in that bag.

To be honest, I didn’t know what to do. On the one hand, I felt

really sorry for him ‘cause I put myself in his place. And
understood that he had to ask someone for help. On the other
hand, he could take my phone and run away. And I realized I would
never be able to catch him. I can’t run fast. Also, I have heard of a
trick people can use to charge massive amounts to your phone
under the guise of making a short simple call by way of calling
some service numbers. So I was afraid my phone bill would be
higher than normal because calling certain numbers you are
charged an access charge and a service charge. I vacillated for a
while about whether to help him. Just like any other person in a
similar situation would do. Finally, I got up the nerve to let him use
my phone.

That moment seemed to last forever. My heart was pounding. I

was still thinking of whether it was the right thing to do. I was
afraid he would turn his back and run away. But this didn’t happen.
After making several phone calls, the person returned my phone
and said ‘Thank you’. He called the bank to cancel his cards. He
called the police to report a theft. And he called his wife and asked
her to bring him a spare car key. Of course, I felt relieved. And I
was happy he didn’t appear to be a thief.

53
Part 3 model answer
Do you think failures help people feel happy?
Well, it all depends on how people approach setbacks. In most
cases, failure makes people feel depressed and frustrated. All
they do is beat themselves up, thinking about the things that went
wrong, which, obviously, doesn’t make them feel happy. Also, some
people conclude that they aren’t good enough and, as a result,
give up on a dream, stay inside their comfort zone and therefore
never achieve things that would make them genuinely happy.
However, in some cases, failure can lead to happiness. I mean
those cases when people rise above obstacles and continue
pursuing their goals. Usually if people manage to overcome
failure and achieve success, they realise that they are tougher
than they think and they can handle more than they imagine. On
very rare occasions, failure helps people understand that they
should stop pushing themselves to their limits and that they
should start enjoying what they have. They stop creating
unrealistic expectations for themselves, which makes them less
stressed and more happy.

What should you do to create similar answers yourself?

If you are an expert in a certain topic, it will be easy. You will quickly
come up with several ideas. And it won’t be hard to make an
answer. However, there are not so many topics that one person can
know much about. And there are 130 topics in the IELTS speaking
test.

54
So, it’s likely that most questions will be hard for you to answer.
This means you will have to do some research to collect relevant
ideas and examples. You will need to read articles, blogs, posts on
social media. You will have to find good topical phrases. Then you
will have to write down the lists of ideas and make your answers.
After that you will have to record your answers and listen to them
to make sure delivery is natural. If your answers sound natural, you
can move to the next topic. If you make lots of pauses or if your
answers sound like you’ve memorised them, spend more time on
practice.
But what if you don't have a rich imagination and you don't have
time to surf the net and collect ideas for your perfect answers? You
may want to go for OPTION #2

OPTION #2 Use the IELTS Speaking Assistant app.

If you can’t spend all day surfing the Internet and looking for ideas,
you can use ready-made lists of ideas and model answers in the
IELTS Speaking Assistant app. Here are the instructions.

HOW TO PRACTISE ANSWERING PART 1 AND PART 3 QUESTIONS

OVERALL STRATEGY
When you prepare part 1 and part 3 IELTS speaking questions, I
recommend you, first, to read the ideas and try to make your own
unique answers. Then read our model answers if it was difficult to
make your own answers using the ideas. Let’s imagine you want to
review the following question: Is your city big?

55
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

• Answer this question without preparation. Record your

answers. Use these recordings to compare the answers that
you produced before using the app and after.

• Look at the list of ideas in the app and choose those that you
like the most. Answer the question again. Record your answer.

You will see the following list of phrases in the IDEAS section of
your IELTS Speaking Assistant App:
 if you view the city from a tall building, you get the feeling that
it doesn't end
 t's by far the biggest city in my country
 it's a huge sprawling city
 it's immensely larger than X
• If you don’t understand how to use the ideas to make your
perfect answer, read the answers. Again, choose those that
contain the ideas you liked.

It's a huge sprawling city. No, to say 'huge' is to say nothing 'cause
if you view the city from a tall building, you get the feeling that it
doesn't end. And it takes hours to go from one side of the city to
the other.
• After you’ve read the answers several times, try to retell them
and then record your answer. Listen to it. If you like it, move to
the next question. If you don’t like it, practise answering this
question until you like what you say.

56
 HOW TO PREPARE CUE CARDS
OVERALL STRATEGY
When you prepare cue cards, we recommend you to read only
answers. And you should do it many times, slightly changing
them if you need. If you want to make a completely different
story or add some details, use the IDEAS section. Let’s imagine
you want to review the following cue card: Healthy activity

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
• Take paper and a pencil. Look at the prompts. Prepare your
answer. Make notes if you want to. Try to speak for 2
minutes non-stop. Record your answer. Use these recordings
to compare the answers that you produced before using the
app and after.

Describe an activity you do to keep healthy. You should say:

what the activity is

when and where you do it

how you do it

how it helps you keep healthy

• Read our model answer in the app several times.

57
In my opinion, by far the best way to maintain good health is to
work out in the gym, which I do every week, at least twice a
week. Of course, I wish I could do it more frequently, but I just
don't have that much free time.
What’s important is that I always mix strength and cardio
training. Strength training exercises help me work out my
muscles, increase metabolism and build stamina. So they
generally make me stronger. Cardio exercises help me burn
calories, and therefore maintain a healthy weight.
To make the most of each workout session, I start it with a
warm-up. This is usually a combination of some light
cardiovascular exercises and stretches, which helps me to
prevent the injury and prepare my body for more vigorous
exercises.
If I have strength training, I sometimes perform exercises with
free weights such as dumbbells or medicine balls. To be
honest, I used to think that weights were something for
bodybuilders. But now I realise that light lifting exercises are
really good for anyone. Sometimes I use elasticized bands or
specialized machines. But in most cases, I do bodyweight
exercises. I mean everyone’s all time favourites such as sit
ups, squats, lunges and pull ups. For me, bodyweight
exercises are more difficult to do than weights, but my fitness
instructor doesn't care about it and makes me do several 25-
rep sets of each exercise. When I have a cardio workout, I
either swim or run on a treadmill.
Then, at the end of each workout I do some stretching
exercises again, which helps me keep a heart rate and blood
pressure from dropping rapidly.

58
• Try to make a short summary of this story so that you can
remember what happens at each stage, for example, a
sequence of events or important points that you need to
describe in detail. You may omit some details, but it’s
important to remember the main points. This will help you
not to forget important parts of your story.

To be healthy, I work out in the gym -> I mix strength and

cardio training. Strength training gives me something, cardio

training is for something -> I start with with a warm-up and

explain why I need it -> After that I do the following exercises

and describe what exercises I do -> At the end of each

workout I do stretching and explain why I do it

• Using the summary, answer the question again. Record

your answer. Listen to your answer. If you like it, move to
the next question. If you don’t like it, practise narrating the
story until you like what you say.
• If you want to make a completely different story, visit the
IDEAS section. But it is better to use ours as it has been
written according to the requirements of the IELTS test and
will guarantee you a high band score.

Download the app on www.ielts-assistant.net/app

You may buy a subscription in the BUY section of the app.
Alternatively, you can buy a subscription on our website
www.ielts-assistant.net (almost 70% of our students prefer
this option)

59
OPTION #3 You can make some of the answers yourself + you can
use the IELTS Speaking Assistant App if you have difficulty in
making a relevant and extended answer.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

FAQ 1: If I learn answers from the IELTS Speaking Assistant app,

does that mean that I memorise answers? Will I have a lower band
score because of that?

Well, everyone says that you should avoid memorised answers in

IELTS speaking because examiners can spot such answers easily.
That's right. But don't be so afraid. It is clear that all learning
requires memorisation. Just don't confuse memorising answers
with learning words, phrases, and even parts of the answer which
you can easily adapt and change while you speak.

BAD APPROACH: If you learned the whole answer by heart, but you
don't understand what you are talking about. You just learned a
sequence of sounds. As a result, you won't sound natural, you will
sound mechanical. If you forget some part of the answer and
continue from some point, your answer will make no sense. For
example, I learned the answer in some fictional language: 'Thjiihb
jjjiiu dsagm bhjkll kkiiufc llpppoh jj hffdd sss dsdfhb hhhh' I don't
have any idea of what this answer is about. All I can do is learn all
these sounds by heart. If I forget any part, I don't even know how
that will influence the meaning. Any experienced tutor and examiner
will easily recognise such answers.

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GOOD APPROACH: You read some answer in the app, learn some
good phrases, some parts of the answer, even the whole answer.
But the most important thing is to understand what each
expression or phrase means, which words to emphasize, where to
make pauses. Thus, you will sound natural even if you tried to learn
the whole answer because you will change and adapt your answer
while you speak. Also, even if you forget some part, you will say
something appropriate because you will understand what exactly
you are saying. So, it’s okay to learn answers as long as you
understand them!

FAQ 2: Is it bad to use fillers in the IELTS speaking test?

Fillers are the words such as "well", "um", "like", or "you know",
frequently combined in the phrase “like, you know . . .” These words
are essentially meaningless, but they help you avoid hesitation
while answering questions. And they are frequently used by people
in their everyday conversations. Therefore these words will help you
sound more natural, which is good. However, you will definitely
have a lower band score if you overuse them.

FAQ 3: Can speaking too fast affect my IELTS speaking band

score?

Absolutely! It can, and not for the better. Pronunciation accounts

for 25% of your mark. One aspect of it is intonation. If you speak
too fast, you are likely to sound MECHANICAL. As a result, you
might be marked down.

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2.1.2: KEEP TRACK OF YOUR PROGRESS

• USE OUR FREE STUDY PLANNERS

Use our free printable IELTS speaking progress charts to

keep track of your progress. When you’re done with the
topic, take a highlighter and mark this topic on your
progress chart. Thus, you’ll clearly see how many topics
you’ve already covered and how much work has to be
done. This will help you control your progress and be
disciplined.

We update study planners 3 times a year, every time

when new IELTS speaking topics appear, namely in
January, May and September. You can always download
an updated study planner on
www.ielts-assistant.net/download

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 2.2: Improve your speaking skills:
Pronunciation&Fluency
Improve pronunciation
Hope you remember pronunciation accounts for 25% of your
speaking score. Bad news is that pronunciation is hard to
improve: if you’ve pronounced some sound or sounds
incorrectly for many years, you are now used to pronouncing
the sound or sounds this way. It’s already an old habit. The
problem is that habits are hard to break. And it takes a lot of
time. This means it’s hard to improve, but not impossible.
There’s no trick that I can give you except practice. And there’s
no substitute for just pure practice. So, pronunciation practice
exercises should become your everyday routine, just like
brushing your teeth or morning exercise. You’ll have to build
the muscles of your articulation organs, the tongue, the lips
and the jaw so that you are more in control of the sounds that
don’t exist in your native language. If you do it every day, you
will feel the improvement.

Aspects of English pronunciation:

• creating correct vowel and consonant sounds
• word stress
• sentence stress > rhythm HOW > connected speech
(linking, contractions)
• intonation (rising and falling pitch)
*Sentence stress is the music of spoken English. Sentence
stress is what gives English its rhythm or "beat". Sentence
stress is accent on certain words within a sentence.

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Common pronunciation problems:
• creating sounds incorrectly (dropping consonants, adding
vowels, simplifying diphthongs (dragging the first sound
without shifting to the next sound), etc)
• making the wrong word stress
• making emphasis on all structure words*
• sound over formal, pompous and at times stilted
• carefully articulated words

*Most sentences have two basic types of word:

1. content words
2. structure words

Content words are the key words of a sentence. They are the
important words that carry the meaning or sense—the real
content.Structure words are not very important words. They are
small, simple words that make the sentence correct
grammatically. They give the sentence its correct form—its
structure.

Here is the list of common pronunciation problems you might have

to fix not to be marked down for Pronunciation:
1. sounds (th, l, r, shwa, ж)
2. suffixes (d, t, id, able)
3. commonly mispronounced words - sounds (interested,
usually)
4. commonly mispronounced words - word stress
(consequences)

Here is the list of areas you may want to work on to get a high
band score:
1. relaxing your accent (pronunciation & fluency)
2. intonation
3. voice (optional)

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Difficult sounds.
Pronunciation mistakes happen when a sound in the target
language, in this case, English, doesn’t exist in the speaker’s native
tongue (for example, Russian). When this happens, speakers tend
to pronounce a different (but somewhat similar) sound that does
exist in their language. Or Slightly mispronounce the sound in
English, not knowing what exactly they need to do to pronounce it
accurately.

Attention! Your accent can impact how you deliver individual

sounds and words. Individual words need to be stressed correctly
so meaning is not confused. If we stress the wrong syllable in a
word, it can change the meaning from a verb ‘record’ to a noun
‘record’. How you deliver your words using stress, intonation and
rhythm can all be influenced by your accent.

We will use the IMITATION TECHNIQUE for our pronunciation

practice. Using this technique, you will reduce your accent and
pronunciation problems quickly. We’ll practice each difficult sound
with some words, phrases and in sentences. First, we’ll practice
each sound with common words. You will hear a word several
times, you just need to read and listen. Then you’ll hear the same
word again. But there will be a short pause after this word. This is
that you can say it aloud exactly as it was said in the recording.
Don’t just listen. Get your mouth used to saying the words the way
the native speakers do. Then you will do the same exercise with
phrases. The last stage is to practice some sound with sentences.
Finally, take the list of words that you will frequently use in your
answers during your IELTS speaking test. Read these words and
record yourself. Then listen and compare the way you pronounce
the TH sound and the way English tutors pronounce it in the
videos. First, try to pronounce the words, phrases or sentences
slowly and then try to say them again a little faster.

65
Here’s what you’re gonna work on:
• the TH sound
• the L sound
• the R sound
• the SCHWA sound
• -ed

We watched tons of videos in order to find those that contain the

most useful information for your pronunciation practice. In the
end, we selected those that are short, interesting and informative.
And we will continue searching for more. So, we decided to put all
the links on a separate page on our website to make it more
convenient for you to use them. You can do pronunciation
practice on www.ielts-assistant.net/pronunciation

Remember that there are words that are commonly

mispronounced by IELTS test takers, for example, usually, cafe,
consequences, etc. You’ll find the complete list on
www.ielts-assistant.net/pronunciation

66
 FLUENCY & PRONUNCIATION

In order to increase your fluency (your ability to speak smoothly

and effortlessly) and improve your pronunciation, you should
relax your accent and improve your intonation in English.

Use linking, contractions and weak forms of words. When you

link words together and make contractions, you remove pauses
between these words, and therefore reduce your accent and
speak more fluently and effortlessly. Also, when you link words
together, make contractions, and use weak forms of words, the
less important words are unstressed (or get reduced), more
important words are stressed. This creates sentence stress
which is the music of spoken English. And this is what gives
English its rhythm or "beat".

Again, we’ll use the IMITATION TECHNIQUE but in a little

different way. Imitate a native speaker. This will allow you to
practice the rhythm, the pace, the pause, the intonation. This will
help you relax your accent and sound more natural. You can
choose whatever video you want to shadow, but I recommend
mmmEnglish. The first time you hear the script, you just need to
listen and read. Then you’ll hear the same script again, But there
will be a short pause after each clause or sentence. This is that
you can say it aloud exactly as it was said in the recording. Then
you’ll move on to step 3. The last step is the most challenging
one. Try to shadow a native speaker while they are speaking.
Perform each sentence, with the same expression and intonation
while they are speaking. You can do pronunciation practice on
www.ielts-assistant.net/intonation

67
2.3: Improve your IELTS speaking score:
Grammar

2.4 DO AN IELTS SPEAKING POST-TEST

After you’ve prepared all the current IELTS speaking topics, do
a post-test. This post-test will show you whether you worked
hard enough to improve your IELTS speaking performance.

You will make the most of this option if you did a speaking
pre-test before you started practising. If you skipped the pre-
test, you won’t be able to compare the band score you had
before you started practising and the band score you have
now, and therefore, you won’t understand if you have
improved your IELTS speaking band score or not.

INSTRUCTIONS:
We've prepared a set of real test IELTS speaking questions.
Please follow the instructions carefully:
1. Answer the following questions and record your answers.

68
QUESTIONS FOR YOU:
Part 1 (Answer the following questions without preparation.
Allow 15-30 seconds per answer.)

 Do you work or are you a student?

 Do you prefer to wear shoes that are comfortable or good-
looking?
 What’s your favourite type of shoes?
 Have you ever bought shoes online?
 Is it difficult for you to stay focused on something?
 What do you do to improve concentration?

Part 2 (Take paper and a pencil. You can make some notes while
preparing your answer. Read the prompts below. You have 1
minute to prepare your answer and 2 minutes to speak. Record
your answer.)

 Describe a successful sports person you like

 You should say:
 who this person is
 what this person has achieved
 how you know about this person
 why you like this person

Part 3 (Answer the following questions without preparation.

Allow up to 1 minute per answer)

 Why are there so few top athletes?

 What characteristics do you think an athlete should have?
 What do old people in your country do to keep fit?

69
Find out what your current band score is. There are 2 options
available:
• do it yourself
• get your pre-test graded by IELTS experts

How to do it yourself
You can use the information about IELTS speaking assessment
criteria to analyze your recording to understand what band score
you can get now. Even if you think you won’t be able to grade
your answer accurately, you should do a post-test because this
will allow you to see if it's difficult or easy for you to produce
answers fast, if you have what to say, and if you make a lot of
pauses while speaking.

How to get your test graded by IELTS experts

You can have an opportunity to get your speaking test graded by
our experts. Buy our ‘IELTS tips and secrets’ self-study course or
IELTS speaking grading service on www.ielts-assistant.net Send
the recordings to edu@ielts-assistant.com in one email.
Remember to attach your receipt. We will assess your speaking
skills in terms of the IELTS band score.

70
 STEP 3
GET READY FOR THE TEST DAY

3.1 Things you are allowed to take to the test room

3.2 Things you aren’t allowed to take to the test room
3.3 What to expect on the test day
3.4 FAQ

3.1 Things you are allowed to take to the test room

You must bring your ID (valid passport or national identity

card). You must have the same identification that you
provided on your IELTS Application form.
You may bring water in a transparent bottle (with the label
peeled off) into the test room.
Test takers may wear a face mask covering their mouth
and nose during the test as a precautionary health
measure. Test takers are welcome to bring their own
mask.

3.2 Things you aren’t allowed to take to the test room

Watches, mobile phones and other electronic devices are

not allowed in the test room.
Personal belongings such as (hat, wallet, keys, etc.) must
be left in the designated area.

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3.3 What to expect on the test day

The Speaking test can be completed up to a week before

or after the other components of the IELTS test. If you
take computer-delivered IELTS, the Speaking test will be
taken on the same day, either before, or after the other
three parts of the test.

The test is recorded. If you are not happy with your result,
you can request a re-mark at your IELTS test centre within
six weeks of the test date. The recording will be used to
re-mark your speaking performance.

You will be notified of your time slot and the location of

your speaking test in advance.

You should arrive 20 minutes before your IELTS speaking

test.

You will be requested to confirm my identity on test day

by having a finger scan taken. The finger scan is taken as
a Binary Large Object (BLOB), and no image of my
fingerprint will be held. This biometric data will be held for
60 days after my test and will not be disclosed to any
entity except the IELTS Test Partners

The examiner marks your answers and evaluates your

performance during your speaking test, but you will know
the score only when your test results have been released.
Your speaking examiner may be wearing a face mask.
A test taker or examiner cannot insist on removing the
facemask during the speaking test.

The examiner marks your answers and evaluates your

performance during your speaking test, but you will know
the score only when your test results have been released.

72
Your speaking examiner may be wearing a face mask.

A test taker or examiner cannot insist on removing the

facemask during the speaking test.

Test takers may be requested to remove mask for

identification

You will be asked to sign a health declaration.

A minor is defined as any IELTS test taker under the age

of eighteen years, or older if the age of adult majority is
over eighteen under local legislation.

A completed IELTS Minor Candidate Acknowledgement

and Consent Form must be provided to the Test Centre
on or before the test day. A minor cannot complete test
day check procedures without a signed copy of this form.

The test centre may provide a chaperone who will

accompany the minor in the speaking room during the
IELTS speaking test. Only the chaperone and examiner
will be allowed access to the speaking room with the
minor. They will just sit quietly at the side of the room to
make sure that the student is in a safe environment. The
examiner will also mention the chaperone at the very start
of the test as they record the test day information (i.e.
date, centre number, student number, etc.), but other than
that, they will take no part in the test.

73
 3.4 FAQ

Question: Can wearing a mask affect my IELTS

Speaking score?

Answer: No, wearing a mask during your IELTS test does not
affect your Speaking score. Trained language experts are able to
distinguish subtleties of the English language and linguistic
features necessary for effective communication, even when you
wear a mask.What’s more, research found that none of the face
masks interfered very much with articulation. And, they had
surprisingly small effects on speech clarity.

Have a good time preparing for IELTS! Remember that what you
do today determines your tomorrow. If you have any questions,
please send us a message to edu@ielts-assistant.com! Our
IELTS experts will be happy to help you!

74
 IELTS Speaking Preparation Full Course
by IELTS Preparation Assistant
IELTS
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IELTS Speaking
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