IELTS SPEAKING

PART 1
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For your Speaking Test make sure you …
• Feel confident, speak naturally
• Relax and enjoy the conversation
with the examiner
• Listen carefully to the questions
• Use fillers and hesitation devices
if they need ‘thinking time’
before answering •
• Realize it is your language level
not their opinions which are
being evaluated
• Are aware of the time allowed
for each section and include
timed practice in class
• Are familiar with the
assessment criteria
 For your Speaking Test make sure you …
• Try to speak as much as you are able to.
• Speak as fluently as you can and try to be spontaneous.
• Try to remain confident and enjoy using your English skills.
• Expand upon your answers as much as you can.
• Make sure that you talk more than the examiner does.
• If you need to, you can ask the examiner to clarify a question.
• Don’t memorise prepared answers, examiners have the ability to recognise this and will change your
question as a result.
• Remember that you will be marked on your ability to effectively communicate your opinions.
• The questions that the examiners ask often tend to be quite predictable, so make sure you practice at
home but do not memorise your answers.
Speaking Test format:
Every test is digitally recorded and consists of 3 parts

Part 1 Topics
• Candidate answers general • Part 1 Test takers answer
questions on familiar/wide general questions about
range of topics themselves and a range of
familiar topics, such as their
• about 4 to 5 minutes home, family, work, studies and
interests.
• Answers  2 to 3 sentences only
for each question
 Speaking Test Overview
Speaking Descriptors

Examiners use detailed performance descriptors to award a band score

for each of 4 assessment criteria:
Speaking Test format:
Every test is digitally recorded and consists of 3 parts

• Make your own IELTS phrasebook.

Collocations list. Vocabulary Jotter Remember to:

• Don't use a synonym, if you are not Practice connectors &

100% sure. fillers/signposting language &
discourse markers
• Create a book for helpful synonyms. Build on your existing vocabulary

• Use advanced and topic-related

words.
 Speaking Test format:
Every test is digitally recorded and consists of 3 parts

Part 1 about 4 to 5 minutes

Candidate answers general questions on familiar/wide range of possible topics

Study Food/ Cooking Reading

Work Going Out Music
Hometown/ Living place Hobbies Shopping
Home/ Accommodation Internet Sport
Family Leisure time TV
Friends Music Transport
Clothes Neighbours & Travelling
Gifts Neighbourhood Weather
Daily routine Newspapers Culture
Daily activities Pets Traditions/Customs
 For a Band 7 and above you need a wide range
of connectors and fillers...

We need to give opinions,

add information,
emphasize,
clarify,
compare and contrast,
conclude…

and we'll have to use different language to do this

 How can we expand your fillers? When Giving opinions

Do you like going to museums?

If the answers are no, we can say… If the answer is a yes/positive …

• Well, to be honest, I'm not a • Wow, I love to …

big fan of museums
• Honestly, I'm not a big fan of
museums.
• Well, to be honest, I don’t
really like to visit museums…
* Don’t forget : the rising, falling
intonation
• I'm a big fan of museums
• Absolutely!
• Absolutely, I'm really into
museums
• Without a doubt…
* Show the emotion on your face !
 And here's another question...
Do you think history is important?

Not sure Yes

• Not sure ! I guess so or I • In my eyes, it's really

suppose so
• I suppose history gives us a
sense of identity.
• I guess history shapes our
present-day culture and
identity.
important, because without
it…
• Yes, I'd say it's pretty
important, because without
it.
• yeah, I reckon it's essential!
• for sure/in my eyes/in my
view/ I'd say.
 What are the advantages of traveling by plane?
• Well, first of all, it's fast and
really convenient.
• First of all, it makes sense to
travel by plane, right?
• It definitely has many
advantages
• Well, to kick off, it's faster
than most other means of
transport.
• For starters, it's faster than
most other means of
transport.
How can we add information?
• as far as I know,/to my
knowledge/ apparently
• flying is the safest way to
travel, On top of that, flying
is said to be the safest way to
travel
• To my knowledge, flying is
the safest way to travel
besides taking you to your
destination fast as possible
 Why do some people choose to live in the city rather than
in the countryside?

• If we're talking about young • If we're talking parents, I

people, I reckon they move to
the city in search of better
job opportunities.
That said, many people who
work remotely choose to live
in the suburbs or even the
countryside.
suppose they want better
schooling for their kids.
• Mind you, nowadays, there
are lots of good quality
schools found in rural areas,
too.
Function: 1 Sequencing - Ordering Information

• First • later
• The first thing • After this
• First of all • Finally
• Firstly • To summarize
• The next one • In conclusion
• To begin with • In a nutshell,
• Moving on • Overall
• Now, to the next reason • All in all
• Secondly • At the end of the day
• Thirdly
• Subsequently
Function: 2 Adding Information

• Another thing that comes to mind

• Also
• And
• Besides
• Additionally
• Another good example of this is
• Another reason for this
• And one more thing
Function: 3. Indicating Opinion & Attitude

• Unfortunately • I'm afraid

• However • If you ask me
• Actually • Sadly
• To be honest • Thankfully
• Definitely • In fact
• Essentially • Seriously
• Frankly • As a matter of fact
• Basically
• Clearly
Function: 4. Expressing Ideas

• I think one important thing

• I guess one difference is

• I suppose the main difference/similarity

between A & B is
Function: 5. Compare & Contrast
Comparing Contrasting

• Similarly • However
• In the same way • Although
• Equally • Instead of
• Likewise • Despite
• In a similar fashion • On one hand
• If I compare it to my • On the other hand,
country • In the opposite way
• In contrast
• Whereas
Function: 6. Giving Examples…

• A great example of this is

• For example
• For instance
• A personal example is
• In other words
• A striking example of this
• A classic example is
• A clear example of this can be seen
• Such as
Function: 7. Being Clear

• What I mean is

• What I mean to say

• As I was saying
Function: 8. Stalling & Result

Stalling Result

• Let me think about that..., • As a result,

• That's a difficult/interesting • Because of this,
question, • Therefore,
• I haven't thought of that • Consequently,
before, • So,
• Well..., actually, • Then
• Basically
Function : 9. Causes & Solutions

• I guess it’s because,

• I guess the reason for this is,
• The main reason is,
• It was caused by,
• Because,
• I suppose the best way to deal with this
problem,
• I reckon the only answer is to,
• The best way to solve this is
Function: 10. Time Phrases

• Now, • In the past,

• At the moment, • Before,
• At present, • Then,
• Right now, • At that time,
• These days, • Years ago,
• Now a days, • When I was younger
Function : 11. Generalizing

• Generally, • It is often said that...,

• Broadly speaking, • In most cases,
• As a rule, • The vast majority of,
• On the whole, • A small minority of
PART 1 – IELTS SPEAKING
Q1

Tell me about your friends.

● Do you spend a lot of time with them?
● What do you do together?
● Where do you meet?
● How do you keep in contact with your friends?

• Tell me about transport on your hometown.

• How do you usually travel around your town?
• Is the public transport system good? In what ways?
• How could it be improved?
PART 1 – IELTS SPEAKING
THE ANSWER FORMULA

THE ANSWER FORMULA

Main Idea
How should you +
approach these topics Explain
+
Reason/Example
PART 1 – IELTS SPEAKING
THE ANSWER FORMULA

THE ANSWER FORMULA

Main Idea
How should you +
approach these topics Explain
+
Reason/Example
 PART 1
IELTS SPEAKING CLASS PRACTICE
First set of Questions
Work and Study
 Q (A candidate who works)

● What do you do? Do you work or are you a student?

● Where do you work?

● What are some of your responsibilities?

Q (A candidate who works) ● Oh! Actually ~~ I am a Teacher for almost 5 years.

● I work in a school, ~~ which is located in Jakarta. It’s

● What do you do? Do you
work or are you a
student?
● Well, I would say my main responsibility is to organize
● Where do you work?
● What are some of your
responsibilities?
quite near the local Train station and it’s quite a big
building ~~ with lots of offices in it.
classes, ~~ to think about the syllabus that I am
teaching the students and also I have a lot of contact
time with the students in the classroom. ~~ In addition
to that I have to mark a lot of essays and occasionally
there are meetings with the other faculty members.
 Q (A candidate who works)

● Who was the first person you met at work?

● Do you prefer to work alone or as a part of a Team?

Q (A candidate who works)
● Who was the first person
you met at work?
● Do you prefer to work
alone or as a part of a
Team?
● ~~ Well, it was actually my boss, I went for the
interview and I was a bit nervous. She was quite
friendly and she made me feel at ease. We had a nice
conversation about my past experience and since then
we’ve become good friends and ~~ it is quite nice
working with her.
● So here’s the thing, ~~ I’m a teacher and I am forced
to work alone so you have to be quite independent and
I quite like that. It is difficult to go from that to working
in a group, although in past jobs I have had to do that
~~ I think I prefer being independent
 Q (A candidate who works)

● When do you usually get off work?

● Do you think you will continue to do this type of work

in the future?

● How long do you usually work each day?


Q (A candidate who works)
● When do you usually get
off work?
● Do you think you will
continue to do this type
of work in the future?
● How long do you usually
work each day?
● Well, this is the thing, ~~ it really depends on the class
schedule and it could be quite late in the evening ~~
usually around 10 o’clock ~~ although on the weekend
I start off a lot earlier so I would also finish earlier sort
of in the early afternoon ~~ so yeah it really depends
on the schedule.
● Oh definitely, yeah. I have been doing this for the best
part of a decade, ~~ I don’t think I’m going to stop
unless someone else sacks me and I can’t get another
job but yeah I quite enjoy teaching ~~ and I think it is a
very rewarding experience.
● ~~Well in the classroom I ~~ I normally spend about
three hours with the students, three to four hours, But
there’s also a lot of preparation time ~~ and marking
time. So in total it’s-it’s almost a full day’s work as if I
was an office worker so, about eight hours a day
 Q (A candidate who is studying)

● What do you do? Do you work or are you a student?

● What subjects did you choose?

● Where do you study?

Q (A candidate who is studying) ● I’m currently a student. ~~ I’m studying at the
University
● What do you do? Do you
● Well, I chose History which has been a passion of mine,
work or are you a student? although ~~ I mean, when you talk to other people
they feel it is not the best thing to study as a vocation
● What subjects did you but I’ve always been very interested in ancient people
choose? and stories from the past so it seemed right, the right
thing to do.
● Where do you study?
● I study at a University, called the Gajah Mada
University in Yogyakarta, a world class research
● Will you continue to study
University. It is actually located in Central Java and is
the subject? one of the oldest Universities in Indonesia.
Q (A candidate who is studying)
● Will you continue to study
the subject?
● Definitely! This is a life-long passion for me. Once you
are a bit of a History Geek, I don’t think you can let go,
as I said before ~~ it may not pay the bills but it’s
something I’m definitely interested in and I don’t think
I’ll ever let her out of my life
 Q (A candidate who is studying)

Who was the first person you met on your course?

 Q (A candidate who is studying)
Who was the first person you met on your course?

Version 1
● Well, I’ve quite fond memories of this actually, ~~ so one of my oldest friends, a guy
called Greg who I met in my very first class on my very first day. And I was a little bit
nervous and I had a not very nice teacher, he took me under his wing . We were
friends all through Secondary school and also into University ~~ we went to the same
place and that was very nice to have a friend through that experience
Version 2
● I remember this distinctly and the first person I met was one of my very good friends
Greg who I met in my very first class on my very first day. Greg is quite a personality
he’s very out going and he is very enthusiastic about a lot of things and above all he
is very friendly. He took me under his wing, showed me the ropes and everything. ~~
To look at him probably you wouldn’t think him as very attractive, he has got a bit of
a square head I suppose and a squat nose and growing up he wasn’t really in shape
~~ he was not really a Sportsman. Apart from all these things, he is a great guy.
 Q (A candidate who is studying)

● Do you prefer to study alone or in a group?

● When do you usually get after class?

 Q (A candidate who is ● Well, this is the tricky thing, ~~ if I’m honest probably
studying) on my own. ~~ I get a little distracted with other
people around. You have a good idea then you want to
share or ~~ you are joking around,~~ I feel I am much
● Do you prefer to study more productive working alone
alone or in a group?
● Well ~~, When I was at University I didn’t have many
● When do you usually get contact hours in fact, so my classes were normally in
after class? the mid morning so I would always get out of class
normally mid-day in time for lunch and the rest of the
day I would spend studying in my room
 Q1 (A candidate who is studying)

How long do you usually study each day?

 Q1 (A candidate who is ● Well, ~~ as a student with not many contact hours, I
studying) had a lot of reading, ~~ so ~~ I would say that I
spend anywhere between 5 and 8 hours a day. Of
course if there is an essay due, I would pull an all-
nighter and work through the night into the wee hours
How long do you usually study but the problem with that is if you burn the candle at
each day? both ends ~~ your work suffers!
 PART 1
IELTS SPEAKING CLASS PRACTICE
First set of Questions
Home

● Where are you from? ● What is/What’s the name of

● Please describe your your hometown?
hometown… ● Is that a big city or a small
● Do you like your town?
hometown? ● Please describe your
● How long have you been hometown a little
living there? ● How long have you lived
● Is there anything you dislike there?
about your hometown? ● Do you like living there?
 PART 1
IELTS SPEAKING CLASS PRACTICE
First set of Questions
Shoping

● Do you like shopping.?

● Do you compare prices when you
shop?
● Is it difficult for you to make choices
when you shop?
● Do you think expensive products are
always better than cheaper ones?
● What do you buy that you don’t buy
from ordinary shops
 PRACTICE 1.1

 Tell me about your friends.  Tell me about festivals in your country.

 Do you spend a lot of time with them?
 What days are celebrated?
 What do you do together?
 Why?
 Where do you meet?
 How are they celebrated?
 How do you keep in contact with your
friends?  Do you eat special food on these days

 Tell me about shopping.
 Do you enjoy going shopping?
 Why (not)? How much time do you
spend shopping?
 Do you shop online?
 What do you buy that you don’t buy
from ordinary shops
Tell me about your plans for the future.
Do you plan to do more studies?
What sort of job would you like? Why?
What is more important to you, job
satisfaction or a high salary? Why?
 PRACTICE 1.2
 Tell me about transport in your
hometown.
 How do you usually travel around your
town?
 Is the public transport system good?
 In what ways? How could it be
improved?
 Tell me about your hometown.
 Is it a big or a small place?
 What sort of jobs or industries are
there?
 Does it have places to spend your free
time in?
 Do you enjoy living there? Why (not)?
 Tell me about your holidays.
 Do you generally go away for your holidays?
 Where do you go?
 Who do you usually go with?
 What do you enjoy doing on your holidays?
Tell me about your hobbies and interests.
What do you do in your free time?
Why do you like doing these things?
Do your friends share the same interests?
Are there any hobbies you would like to take up?
Why
 PRACTICE 1.3
 Tell me about your reading habits.
 Do you read a lot?
 What types of books do you enjoy?
Why?
 What are you reading at the moment?
 Do you read books in English?
 Tell me about your family.
 Do you come from a large or a small
family?
 Do you spend a lot of time with your
family?
 What do you do together?
 How do you celebrate birthdays in your
family?
 Tell me about your home.
 Do you live in an apartment or a house?
 What are some good things about your home?
 Are there any not so good things?
 Which is better, living in a house or an
apartment? Why?
Tell me about your studies.
How long have you been learning English?
What do you find most difficult?
Do you think you will use English in future
studies or in a job?
 PRACTICE 1.4

 Tell me about television programmes.  Tell me about food in your country.

 Do you watch TV a lot?
 Is there a national dish? What is it?
 What type of programmes do you prefer?
 Do you enjoy cooking? Why (not)?
 What is your favourite programme?
 If yes, what sort of things do you cook?
 Do you get the news from the TV?
 Where else do you get the news?  If no, who does the cooking in your home?

 Tell me about sports. Tell me about your taste in music.

 What sports or exercise do you enjoy
Do you enjoy listening to music?
doing?
 How often do you do it? What sort of music do you listen to?
 Is there a sport you would like to take Do your friends like the same music?
up? Why (not)
What about your family? Do they enjoy your
music?