IELTS Speaking Tasks-Useful Expressions

IELTS Speaking Tasks-Useful Expressions

IELTS researchers have found that students perform 12 different tasks during the IELTS Speaking Test. The first two are easy - giving personal information and giving non-personal information. Here are the other ten, which you must practice:

1. Expressing a Preference

  I prefer A to B because...

  If I have a choice, I will... (a real possibility)

  If I had a choice, I would... (not a real possibility, just wishing)

  For me, A is much more attractive / interesting / preferable than B because...

  I would much rather do / have / eat / listen to / A than B...

2. Narrating

  When I was a high school student, I went to Mount Abu to visit some friends.

  After I graduated from high school, I ...

  During my visit to Gandhi Nagar last year, I...

  Last year during the Spring Festival, I went to Delhi to visit some friends.
(Also use "Whenever" or "While")

3. Comparing and Contrasting

  A is much better / worse than B.

  A is not nearly as good as B.

  A is not quite as important as B.

  A is almost as tall as B, but not quite.

  When I compare these two items, it's clear that...

4. Suggesting

  Maybe, Perhaps, Possibly

  One possibility that I can think of is...

  Another idea to think about is...

5. Expressing Opinions

  It seems to me that...

  This is only my opinion but...

  After a lot of thought, I have come to the conclusion that...

  I've never thought about this question much before, but it seems to me that...

6. Justifying Opinions

  The reason I believe this is...

  The most important evidence supporting my belief is...

7. Speculating

  I'm not sure what might happen, but one possibility is...

  It's hard to predict the future, but I suppose it / we might...

8. Analyzing

  There are several points to consider, first of which is...

  We can break this question down into several parts. First...

  Let's look at this step by step. To begin with...

9. Summarizing

  Altogether, there were...

  In the end, they had to...

  When we consider all the factors...

  Considering all of these ideas, maybe the best thing would be to...

10. CONVERSATION REPAIR

  Maybe I'm not making myself clear. I want to say that...

  What I mean to say is...

  What I'm trying to say is...

  Another way to put it is...

We conduct coaching for IELTS, Business English and Personality Development in our Training Center at Mani Nagar (4th Floor, Nakshatra Building, above HDFC Bank, Mani Nagar –X- Road, Ahmedabad). Please visit link http://bit.ly/sarwansingh or write to us at sarwansingh6644@gmail.com   or call (91)8866680407 for further details.

By:

Sarwan Singh

http://singhsarwan.blogspot.com

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/sarwan-singh/17/722/313

@sarwan_singh

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http://www.linkedin.com/pub/sarwan-singh/17/722/313

@sarwan_singh

SKIMMING

SKIMMING

We often have to read & comprehend large amount of material. Ability to read faster is an important skill, which will make our reading easier, & we will be able to read more in lesser time.

Skim reading is an important tool to improve our reading speed.

Skimming is a very useful skill to learn for those planning to take IELTS/TOEFL Test.

Skim Reading:

In skim reading, we just scan though the texts letting our eyes just catch the key words. This gives us the crux of the written material. Then, we read the material second time more carefully, but still at high speed.

Skim Several Times:

When reading complex & extensive material, we can first skim over the chapter, section & titles to get an idea about the material. Than scan the material second time, & maybe even third time. Finally, read the material rapidly.

Read First Sentence:

Often, the first sentence of each paragraph states the main idea of that paragraph. Other sentences simply elaborate on that idea. We can skim read by just reading the first sentence of each paragraph. This will give us enough idea about the matter of the paragraph. But, we must be careful to use this method because at times, many authors give many ideas in one paragraph by making it very long.

Grouping Words:

Most of us read one word at a time, often saying the word to ourselves. This is extremely slow method of reading, especially when our mind is capable of processing information at a much faster pace. Hence, instead of looking at a single word, look at group of words & phrases. Instead of reading word-by-word, we must read in chunks. In addition, we do not have to say the words to understand their meaning.

Practice with Newspaper:

We must try to read several words, a phrase, or even a sentence at a time. A good way to do this is to read newspaper articles by scanning down the column, digesting all the words across, instead of reading one word at a time. A newspaper column usually has 4-5 words per line, & we should be able to carry out this process easily.

In Conclusion:

We must make effort to pick the pace of reading & concentrate on it until it becomes a habit. Ability to read fast is a very useful skill for anyone to cultivate.

We conduct coaching for IELTS, Business English and Personality Development in our Training Center at Mani Nagar (4th Floor, Nakshatra Building, above HDFC Bank, Mani Nagar –X- Road, Ahmedabad). Please visit link http://bit.ly/sarwansingh or write to us at sarwansingh6644@gmail.com   or call (91)8866680407 for further details.

By:

Sarwan Singh

http://singhsarwan.blogspot.com

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/sarwan-singh/17/722/313

@sarwan_singh

PARAGRAPH WRITING

PARAGRAPH WRITING

In general, the purpose of a paragraph is  

  to express one point, idea or opinion.

For example:       

 Students require more recreational time in order to better focus on lessons in class. This main idea is expressed through three sections of a paragraph:

1.    Beginning - Introduce your idea.

2.    Middle - Explain your idea.

3.    End - Make your point again, transition to next paragraph.

Here is a paragraph taken from an essay on various strategies required for an overall improvement of student performance:

(Topic Sentence)Students require more recreational time in order to better focus on lessons in the class.

(Supporting Sentence) In fact, studies have shown that students who enjoy a recess of more than 45 minutes consistently score better on tests immediately following the recess period. Clinical analysis further suggests that physical exercise greatly improves the ability to focus on academic materials.                        

(Concluding Sentence) Longer periods of recess are clearly required to allow students the best possible chances of success in their studies. (Transitional Sentence) Clearly, physical exercise is just one of the necessary ingredients for improving student scores on standardized tests.

There are four sentence types used to construct a paragraph:

1.    Topic sentence Topic sentence is the sentence which states your idea, point, or opinion. This sentence should use a strong verb and make a bold statement.

For Example:                                                                                                                                          Students require more recreational time in order to better focus on lessons in class.

NOTE:                                                                                                                                                   Notice the strong verb 'require' which is a call to action. A weaker form of this sentence might be: I think students probably need more recreational time. This weaker form is inappropriate for a topic sentence.

2.    Supporting sentences

Supporting sentences (notice the plural) provide explanations and support for the topic sentence (main idea) of your paragraph.

For example:                                                                                                                          

 In fact, studies have shown that students who enjoy a recess of more than 45 minutes consistently score better on tests immediately following the recess period. Clinical analysis further suggests that physical exercise greatly improves the ability to focus on academic materials.

NOTE:                                                                                                                            

Supporting sentences provide the evidence for your topic sentence. Supporting sentences that include facts, statistics and logical reasoning are much more convincing that simple statements of opinion.

3.       Concluding sentence

The concluding sentence restates the main idea (found in your topic sentence) and reinforces the point or opinion.

For example:                                                                                                                                                 Longer periods of recess are clearly required to allow students the best possible chances of success in their studies.

NOTE:                                                                                                                            

Concluding sentences repeat the main idea of your paragraph in different words.

4.    Transitional sentence

The transitional sentence prepares the reader for the following paragraph.

For example:                                                                                                                     

Clearly, physical exercise is just one of the necessary ingredients for improving student scores on standardized tests.

NOTE:                                                                                                                                

Transitional sentences should help readers logically understand the connection between your current main idea, point or opinion and the main idea of your next paragraph. In this instance, the phrase 'just one of the necessary ingredients ...' prepares the reader for the next paragraph which will discuss another necessary ingredient for success.