IELTS Simon

IELTS Writing Task 1: the same language

People sometimes ask me to teach them "the language for pie charts" or "the language for tables". I tell them that they already know it. The language for the following 4 types of chart is the same:

• Line graphs
• Bar charts
• Pie charts
• Tables

These 4 types of chart all show the same thing: numbers. You can usually take the same set of numbers and present them in either of these 4 ways. The language you use to describe them will not change.

So what type of language are you going to use? You need to be able to 1) describe numbers 2) compare different numbers 3) describe changes in numbers (increase, decrease etc.). Easy!

IELTS Writing Task 2: children's upbringing

Children who are brought up in families that do not have large amounts of money are better prepared to deal with the problems of adult life than children brought up by wealthy parents. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?

Here are two quick tasks related to the question above.

1) Vocabulary: fill the gaps in the following paragraph:

On the one hand, I agree that some children from less wealthy _____ might be in a better position to _____ adult life. Children whose parents have less money learn to fight, struggle and solve problems on a daily _____. They are forced to rely on _____ because they have less financial help from parents and cannot get what they want as soon as they want it. For example, poorer children may have to wait until a birthday to receive a toy or game that they have asked for, and this encourages them to learn patience. These children will also learn the importance of managing money and the value of hard _____, which will be vital _____ in later life.

2) Opinions: think of some ideas to support the opposite point of view.

IELTS Vocabulary

Here are some band 7-9 phrases from Friday's lesson:

- a typical winter would last...
- when I say..., I'm really thinking about...
- wintry months
- the temperature drops below zero
- we’ve had periods of quite heavy snowfall
- to the extent that...
- roads have been blocked and schools have had to close
- everything covered in a layer of white
- the snow is what differentiates winter from the other seasons
- the landscape looks beautiful

IELTS Advice: good writing looks easy

Yesterday's description of a season might seem easy when you first read it. But don't be fooled - it's full of great 'native speaker' phrases that mean it's easily at band 9 level. Can you spot the phrases that would surprise and impress the examiner? I'll answer this question myself tomorrow.

IELTS Writing Task 1: comparing numbers

Can you work out what the missing words in the paragraph below are?

In 1970, around 5 million people travelled to work by car each day, _____ _____ about 4 million who used the bus _____ _____ 2 million who commuted by train. Over the next 30 years there was a significant increase in the number of car users, to almost 7 million, _____ a steady rise in rail passengers, to 3 million. _____ _____, the number of bus commuters decreased slightly.

IELTS Writing Task 2: 'disagree' essay plan

The subjects that children are taught in schools are decided by central authorities. Some people say that teachers, not politicians, should be responsible for this task. To what extent you agree or disagree with this opinion?

Here's my plan for a 'disagree' essay:

Note: I don't think you need to plan your conclusion.

IELTS Advice: different teachers, different methods

Different teachers, books and websites will give you different advice, methods and techniques, and it's important to remember that there isn't a "best way" to approach the test. For example, it's possible to achieve a band 9 in writing using various different essay writing approaches.

It only becomes a problem when you start to get confused about which method is "right" or which person you should believe. If you get confused, here's the solution: choose one method, believe in it, and persist with it.

IELTS Advice: noticing your mistakes

Last week I suggested that mistakes can be stepping stones that help you to improve your English. But you need to notice your mistakes before you can learn from them.

Here are some tips about noticing and learning from mistakes:

• The most obvious strategy is to get someone (e.g. a teacher) to check your written work and correct your mistakes.
• Before your teacher checks your work, did you check it carefully yourself?
• Study your teacher's corrections, and make sure you understand what you did wrong.
• Pay special attention to any repeated mistakes that you make.
• If you have a one-to-one teacher, you could also ask him or her to listen for mistakes that you make when speaking.
• Try recording yourself. Listen to the recording, and transcribe it. Analyse what you said carefully and ask someone to check it.

IELTS Speaking Part 2: describe a season

Think about how you would answer this question:

Describe your favourite season in your country. You should say

- when that season is
- what the weather is like at that time of year
- how that season is different from other seasons
- and why it is your favourite season.

Tip: try to adapt ideas from other topics that you have already prepared e.g. holidays, hobbies, festivals etc.

IELTS Writing Task 1: students' questions

Here are my answers to some questions about writing task 1:

1) Can I start my introduction like this: "It is on a line graph playing out over a 60 year time period that one sees..."?

No. That sentence looks very strange to me as a native speaker, and it won't impress the examiner. Just stick to the simple approach that I recommend in my task 1 lessons here on the website.

2) What will happen if my overview paragraph is different from what the examiner would write for an overview?

I tell my students to choose two main or general points for their overview (summary) paragraph. There are usually more than two main points to choose from, so don't worry about whether the examiner would choose something different. If your overview sentences summarise the information well, you'll be fine.

3) Is writing task 1 less important than task 2?

Yes. Task 1 is worth one third of your writing score. Task 2 is worth two thirds.

4) Can I write more than 150 words?

Yes. There is no maximum word count.

5) Is every word counted, even words like "a"?

Yes. All words are counted, even small words like "a" and "of".

IELTS Writing Task 2: some recent questions

If you're preparing for writing task 2, here are some recent questions that you could work on.

Opinion question
The subjects that children are taught in schools are decided by central authorities. Some people say that teachers, not politicians, should be responsible for this task. To what extent you agree or disagree with this opinion?

Discussion question
Some people think that the teenage years are the happiest of our lives, while others believe that adult life brings more happiness. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

2-part question
News editors decide what to broadcast on television and what to print in newspapers. What factors do you think influence these decisions? Do we become used to bad news, and would it be better if more good news was reported?

IELTS Listening: multiple choice

Multiple choice questions can be difficult, especially when the speaker mentions all of the possible choices. Look at this example (Cambridge 7, page 15):

Janice thinks that employers should encourage workers who are

A) potential leaders.
B) open to new ideas.
C) good at teamwork.

This is what Janice says:

"Well, currently teamwork is in fashion in the workplace and in my opinion the importance of the individual is generally neglected. What managers should be targeting is those employees who can take the lead in a situation and are not afraid to accept the idea of responsibility."

As you can see, all three of the choices are mentioned. You really need to concentrate for this kind of question - don't just write the first thing you hear.

So, which answer is correct, and why?

IELTS Reading: more keywords

Here's my keyword table for test 1, passage 2 in Cambridge IELTS 7:

Do you make keyword tables like this when you do IELTS reading tests at home? The more practice you do, the better you'll get at noticing the keywords and finding the answers.

IELTS Speaking Part 1: 'shopping' topic

Here are some questions and sample answers for the 'shopping' topic. Remember that part 1 answers need to be short, direct and simple.

1) Who does most of the shopping in your household?

There isn't one person who does most of the shopping. I'd say it's a shared responsibility because we tend to go shopping together as a family.

2) What kind of shopping do you like doing?

I quite like shopping for presents for people's birthdays or for Christmas. My favourite type of shop would have to be a bookshop.

3) Is shopping a popular activity in your country?

Yes, it's very popular. Saturday is the busiest shopping day, and lots of people treat shopping as a kind of leisure activity, rather than something practical.

4) What types of shops do teenagers like best in your country?

I'm not an expert on teenage behaviour, but I guess they like buying clothes, music, gadgets... that kind of thing.

IELTS Writing Task 1: too many synonyms

Some students learn 10 different ways to write the word "shows" (e.g. the graph shows). They find words like depicts, indicates, reveals, displays, exhibits etc. But none of these words are really appropriate for the kind of essay we are writing.

I advise my students to keep it simple and avoid making mistakes. Just learn one or two different ways to write the same thing. For example:

• shows = illustrates / compares
• graph = line graph
• chart = bar chart / pie chart
• the number of = the figure for
• increased = rose / saw an increase / there was a rise

IELTS Reading: paragraph heading

Read the following paragraph and choose the best heading.

Melbourne has topped the list of the best cities in the world to live in, according to a new report by The Economist Intelligence Unit. Vienna in Austria and Vancouver in Canada came in second and third place respectively on the Global Livability Ranking. Cities across the world are awarded scores depending on lifestyle challenges faced by the people living there. Each city is scored on its stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure. This is the third time that the Australian city has topped the list. Unfortunately, UK cities fared worse on the list with London coming 55 out of 140 cities while Manchester was ranked 51. The report also shows that livability across the world has fallen by 0.6 per cent.

A) Livability survey produces some surprising results.
B) How cities are ranked.
C) Results of the latest “Most Livable Cities Index”.
D) Melbourne is top city for tourists.

Asking for a re-mark

One of the most common questions that people ask me is whether I recommend asking for a re-mark. To read my advice click here. It's also useful to read the comments by students below the lesson.