Simon 3 Speak
Simon 3 Speak
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Daily Lessons with Simon, ex-IELTS examiner
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Here's my tip: Save one last effort for part 3. It's your best chance to leave a good impression on the examiner and
perhaps push him / her to give you that extra half band that you need.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (23)
2 of 10 7/6/17, 4:12 AM
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If you've prepared the six main topics well, you should be able to adapt and use your prepared ideas for most questions.
Take the following question, for example:
Describe a beautiful sky that you watched
I would adapt my description of London (main topic: describe a place). I already have some good ideas: the spectacular
views, the skyline, the iconic buildings, the landmarks etc. I could simply add that I watched the sunset from a 'vantage
point' overlooking the city centre. This question now seems a lot easier!
Have another look through the topics that people shared in the comments below last week's lesson, and think about
whether you could adapt your ideas from one of the six main topics.
Note:
Not every question can be answered by adapting the main topics. I'll cover some possible solutions to this problem in my
next video lesson.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (12)
1. Is it correct to use personal examples to support my ideas? Some teachers told me I shouldn't, because these examples
are not objective or universal.
2. I used your "firstly, secondly, finally" structure in one of my body paragraphs, but I was told that I gave too many
ideas, which were not well-supported.
Javier was given the wrong advice by his teachers. Here are my answers:
1. Below every IELTS writing question it says: "Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from
your own knowledge or experience". The question tells us to use our own experiences, and there is nothing in
the examiners' marking system that mentions the need for 'objective' or 'universal' examples.
2. If the question asks for 'advantages', 'problems', 'reasons' etc., you need to give more than one. So it's fine to give three
and use a "firstly, secondly, finally" structure! People often forget that the topic sentence gives the main idea of the
paragraph, and the three points in a "firstly, secondly, finally" structure are supporting ideas.
Why do so many teachers give the wrong advice about IELTS writing?
I'll try to answer this tomorrow.
1. Describe a person
2. Describe a place
3. Describe an object
4. Describe an event
5. Describe an activity
6. Describe your favourites
But what do you do if the task in your speaking test isn't related to one of these main topic areas?
This will be the subject of my next video lesson. Before I publish the lesson, can you remember seeing any questions that
3 of 10 7/6/17, 4:12 AM
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didn't seem to fit into one of the 6 main areas? Please share your examples in the 'comments' below this lesson.
Note: Please only share questions from a real test that you had, or from one of the official IELTS books. Don't use
questions that you've found on the Internet, or that a teacher or another student has invented. Let's stick to real, reliable
questions only.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (30)
Describe a family (not your own family) that you like. You should say
- how you know this family
- who the people in the family are
- what the members of the family are like
- and explain WHY you like this family.
Here are some ideas for the "why" part of this task:
Can you think of any more words or phrases to add to this list?
Describe a family (not your own family) that you like. You should say
how you know this family
who the people in the family are
what the members of the family are like
and explain why you like this family.
For this task, you could choose your neighbours, a friend's family, or even a famous family. If you have already prepared a
description of a person, try to adapt and use some of the same ideas.
4 of 10 7/6/17, 4:12 AM
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Part 1
Keep it simple; there's no need to show off in this part. Give a short, direct answer and a reason for your answer. Then stop.
If necessary, smile at the examiner to show that you are ready for the next question; if you keep speaking, the examiner will
interrupt you. Answer using full sentences, and try not to hesitate; just say the first thing that comes into your head.
Part 2
Before the exam, prepare ideas for the six main topics. Focus on vocabulary, not grammar or linking. In the exam, try to
note down as many ideas as you can during the 1-minute preparation time - hopefully you'll be able to use ideas that you
have already prepared. You don't have to cover all of the points on the task card, but it helps you to structure your answer if
you do. Say as much as you can for each point, and use a real example or story at the end of your description if you need to
fill time. Keep going until the examiner stops you.
Part 3
Practise "3-step" answers: 1) answer the question 2) explain your answer 3) give an example. There's also a 4th step that
you can sometimes use. By following these steps, you ensure that your answer "moves forward" instead of becoming
repetitive - most people repeat the same ideas when they try to give a long answer, and the steps will help you to avoid this.
PS. I'll publish my next speaking video in the next few days.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (27)
By the way, my video lesson about the "describe an activity" topic will be ready later today. Because of the delay I'll make it
free.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (8)
My approach is to prepare ideas for one sport (e.g. swimming) and one game (e.g. chess). I start with a simple idea, such as
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"swimming is healthy". Then I search for good words and phrases related to this theme. For example:
"Swimming is healthy" theme:
keep fit
get in better shape
a good cardiovascular workout
feel refreshed, rejuvenated, invigorated
gives me an energy boost
Can you think of any more words and phrases for this theme?
Here are some 'band 7-9' phrases that I used in my "smartwatch" answer:
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some ideas and 2 full sample answers for the topic "describe a place".
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (3)
I then suggest that we choose an easy 'theme' e.g. a hard-working and friendly person. We can prepare lots of good
vocabulary for this theme, and hopefully use it to describe any of the people in the list above.
In the lesson, I give some tips for part 2 of the IELTS speaking test. I explain what to do in the exam, but more importantly
what you can do before the exam to prepare for the most common topics.
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Finally, the main aim of the lesson is to help you to prepare for the "describe a person" topic. You'll see the language that
I've prepared for this topic, and hear me give a sample 2-minute answer.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (6)
Feel free to share your answers in the comments below. Please think about part 1 only - I'll cover parts 2 and 3 in later
videos.
Posted by Simon in IELTS Speaking | Permalink | Comments (18)
You should also be prepared to talk about your job and/or your studies.
After preparing one main description for these seven or eight topics, you should then practise adapting your descriptions
to as many questions as you can.
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Example:
Let's take the "disagreement" question in this lesson as an example. Can we use one of the main topics above as our
answer? Perhaps we could say that we had a family disagreement about where to go on holiday, which gift to buy someone,
or which film to see at the cinema. Which topic would you use and adapt for the "disagreement" question?
You will feel much more confident if you know that you have prepared and practised for the test. You should know exactly
what to expect. For example, have you prepared some common topics (e.g. describe a place, a person, a hobby) for the
short presentation? Are you ready for a past and a future question in part 3?
3. Speak naturally
Try to enjoy a normal conversation with the examiner. Instead of worrying about your grammar, listen carefully to the
questions and try to give natural answers. Most of the questions are about you, your life and your opinions, so it's best to be
open. I used to be an examiner, and I always found the job more interesting when students spoke openly about their
opinions and experiences.
*Note: You are not marked on body language, but I'd still recommend that you try to act in a friendly, confident manner.
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Here are some exam questions that students have asked me about recently:
Part 2
Describe a disagreement that you had with another person. You should say
10 of 10 7/6/17, 4:12 AM