advice to cope with Speaking in ielts.pdf

used to cope witg speaking

1. Universal advices to
cope with speaking
part

2. assessment criteria

3. assessment criteria

5. Should an event be prepared in advance?

Well [give yourself time to think], I have to say/I would say [preface what you really think] yes, by all means.
I must admit [confess that smth is true] that only few celebrations can be successfully organised on the spot
without too much planning effort. For instance, [give example] it would be so easy to throw a surprise
birthday party for a friend or a family member since/as [give reason] there’s such a wide range of products
that one can buy at a Dollar store for such purposes – all sorts of paper cups, plastic plates and cutlery, single
use tablecloths and so on. Yet/however, [contrast] most events do require a good deal of planning. Family
celebrations like [give example] Christmas, Thanksgiving, wedding anniversaries, as well as [add
ideas]wedding parties, product launches or various receptions simply can’t be spontaneous. Their
organisation needs a good plan because [give reason] there are way too many aspects to take into account –
the menu, guest list, or even gifts. So [express a result] good planning of large events always equals order and
peace of mind. On the other hand, [introduce another point of view] it is not uncommon for people to
overplan their events and then, when something small deviates from the initial plan, it wreaks havoc on the
whole event and the festive feeling associated with it. That is why [give an explanation] I don’t think we
should plan every single detail of every single event, so that [express purpose] we leave some space for
adjustment in case the circumstances change.

6. Some phrases to start part1 or part3
I would say/I wouldn’t say so,…
Oh, well, I see what you mean
Talking about it I could mention that…
When I was younger I used to…
I suppose/guess/assume…
It’s possible…
Yes and no/it depends/50-50…
I do/I don’t (for the questions which start “do you?”)
Perhaps/ It might/may be…
I think it’s likely/unlikely/
It must be/can’t be

7. Introducing personal experiences

In my experience/ My experience is
that...
I’ve found that...
From what I’ve seen…
I don’t have much experience of...
I remember when…
What happened was…
One time (when)/once…
Back when I was…/back then,....
Expressing personal opinion

Speaking for myself…
Personally…
In my view…
For me…
As I see it…
As far as I’m concerned…
to my mind
frankly speaking/honestly/to be honest

If you feel very strongly about the topic in
question you can use the following phrases:

I’m sure/positive that…
I’m convinced that…
I’m certain that…/Certainly, …
There’s no way…
Definitely/absolutely/for sure/exactly

8. Part 2 prompt phrases
To begin with, …
First of all, …
I’d like to start with …
I’m going to tell you about…
The (point / idea / etc.) I’m going to talk/speak about is/are….
I want to tell you about….
I would like to discuss…

9. To extend your answer
Combining Details
Instead of giving a very short answer you can add in some extra details with ‘and’, ‘with’ or ‘also’.
Do you live in a flat or a house?
Short answer: I live in a house.
Longer answer: I live in a house with my two brothers and my mum. We’ve also got a dog and a cat.
Past Comparisons
You can talk about what you ‘used to’ do and how that has changed now in the present.
Do you play sport?
Short answer: I play football.
Longer answer: I used to love basketball, but now I play football more because that’s what my friends are in to.

10. Adding Reasons
Always try to explain why you think or do something in the
test. You can do this using ‘because’ or ‘so’.
Do you like your job?
Short answer: Yes, I really love my job.
Longer answer: Yes, I really love my job because I get to help
people with their problems everyday.

Future
If something will change in the future, you can use one of the
future structures, like ‘will’ or ‘be + going to’.
Do you work or study?
Short answer: I’m at university at the moment.
Longer answer: I’m at university at the moment, but I’m
graduating next year and I will hopefully get a job in
advertising.

Contrast Opposite Opinions
You might be asked a question where you have to talk about your
opinion or another person’s opinion. Use ‘even so/though’ or ‘although’
to show that you have considered both sides.
Is your hometown a nice place for tourists to visit?
Short answer: Yes, it has a really nice beach.
Longer answer: Yes, it has a really nice beach, although it is getting
really busy these days, so it’s not as pristine as it used to be.
Giving Examples
Real life examples are always the easiest things to talk about because
you can talk about them naturally and in more detail.
Do you get along with your brothers?
Short answer: No, we’re not into the same things.
Longer answer: No, we’re not in to the same things, like when we are
both watching TV we always fight about what show to watch.
(хотя)

11. Feelings and Opinions
You can easily extend your answer by saying
how you feel about the question you were
just asked. It will also make your answer more
interesting.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
Short answer: ‘I like shopping.’
Longer answer: ‘I like shopping because I love
trying on new clothes and I always feel more
confident when I’m wearing a new outfit.

Contrasting Details
One of the easiest ways you can extend your answer is
to simply use the word ‘but’ to contrast details.
How long have you worked there?

Short answer: I’ve worked there for three years.

Longer answer: I’ve worked there for three years, but
I’m going to change careers next year.

Frequency
You can use words like ‘usually’, ‘never’, ‘always’ and
‘more often than not.’ to extend your answers.
What do you do at the weekends?

Short answer: I watch TV and play computer games.

Longer answer: I usually watch TV and play computer
games, but sometimes I go out for a drink with my
friends.

12. Strategies to save some time to think:
Do you like flowers in your home?

Do I like flowers? Surely, I do. Why? Because they
make my home cozier.
I’ve always had them at home. I like looking after
them.



Let me see/Let me think.../Just a
moment, I need to catch my idea
Oh, that’s a difficult/tough/tricky
question.
I haven’t thought about this
question before.
I’ve never really thought about
that before.
Now, let me think how I can put
this.
I’ve never thought about it, but I
could say that…
Well, that’s an interesting/tricky
question.
That is a complex issue.
I’m not sure

13. What if you have no idea about the
topic:
I’ve never been told about that but I believe…
Talking about that I would say that you know I might not have given it much
thought.
It appears as if I didn’t really have much to say about it.
Surely for some people this could be very important and one day I may see that
they were right in thinking so but for now…
I think there are some people who you would call experts in this area, but I’m
definitely not
May be the government should look after it I don’t know…a bit confused…
Grading your level of
knowledge:

I don’t know much about it..
I don’t know if…
I’m not an expert on...
I know quite a lot about...
LIE!

14. Example of how to buy yourself some time to think:
– How often do you watch television?
–…Well…How often do I watch TV?.. Ok, talking about TV and the mass media in general…I don’t know…Well, it
seems…you know, it seems I don’t watch many TV programs…you see, we are living in the era of the Internet, if you see
what mean…so I think it’s quite natural….isn’t it? But…
-Well…How often do I watch TV?.. It seems to me that I don’t watch TV programs a lot….
…. for the reason that today we prefer to use the Internet over TV
….As compared to the past, when people used to be entertained by TV, today we prefer to use the Internet over TV
...although in the past I used to watch TV every evening
... although I sometimes find them informative
– Which magazines or newspapers do you read?
–…Well…Which magazines do I read?.. Ok, talking about magazines and newspapers…I don’t know…Well, it seems…you
know, it seems I don’t read many magazines…or newspapers either…you see, we are living in the era of the Internet, if
you see what mean…so I think it’s quite natural….isn’t it? But…

15. When you don’t know how to end
Well, people have to make different choices at different
stages of their lives. They have to choose a career or a partner
or…Well, things like that.

The principal reason for this situation is the fact that…
Anyway, I hope you know what I mean.

16. If you didn’t understand
do not hesitate to ask!
- Could you repeat, please?
- It seems I didn’t get your question, what do you mean?
Sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.
Could you say that again, please?
Could you explain what you mean by…?
Do you mean…?
Sorry, I didn’t catch the last word of the question.

17. Hometown
where
what it
looks like
how long
likes/dislikes
location
agricultural
west
rivers
small
infrastructure
museums
historical, cultural
green
organic/nature
old-fashioned
old
studies
childhood

forest
bumpy roads
architecture

18. Decisions
difficult,
important
daily
buy a car
(expensive
purchases)

to take an exam

go to resort
to do a doctoral
degree



responsibility

difficulty

time

opportunity. chance

contribution

Brainstorming your topic!
From general(about all people)
to specific(your examples if it’s
speaking part 1 and your
experience was asked)

19. museums
how often
favourite
like/dislike
school trip
holidays
travel
popular
hermitage
huge
breathtaking
architecture
impressive
piece of art

boring
art museums
exhibition
kind of art
cultural heritage
jewellery
masterpiece
unique,exclusive
to be into art