by Dave | Dec 4, 2018 | Cambridge 13
This IELTS Writing Task 2 Sample Answer is from IELTS Cambridge 13 and is around the topic of society, generally.
I wrote it and I’m a former IELTS examiner so you can trust the quality. You can also find vocabulary, grammar, links, and more below!
Stop reading this and start reading all that!
The recent questions from the IELTS writing task 2 exam are here, task 1 is here and the speaking questions and topics are here.
Dave
IELTS Examiner Sample Answer from Cambridge 13: Choice (by Dave)
Some people believe that nowadays we have too many choices. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own experience or knowledge.
Write at least 250 words.
It is common nowadays to hear people decrying the number of choices people have relative to the past and proclaiming the drawbacks of so many easily-available options in a variety of areas of life. While I think that there is some truth in this, increased choice is ultimately a positive trend because it opens up options outside the mainstream.
The main reason why increased choice is considered a negative development is it makes life more complicated. Take for example the number of products people can choose from today. Supermarkets are filled with different brands with hardly any meaningful differences. This can cause people to waste time and energy making choices with little actual impact. This is also the case when it comes to online streaming services like Netflix, Hulu and HBO. Not only do people have to spend time researching these sites but once they make a choice they are limiting what they will be able to watch in the future. If they decide to subscribe to all of them, suddenly they will be paying upwards of $40 a month for basic viewing content. These are a couple of ways in which choice can take up time and make life more complex.
Although choice introduces a level of complexity to life, the main benefit is that it opens up options for people outside dominant cultural trends. The best example of this is the changes that have taken place in the music industry over the last 20 years with the advent of iTunes and streaming services. In the past, the big pop acts dominated the radio and album sales. Now the music scene is much more fractured. This makes it more difficult for some artists but also opens up the possibility that you can find a niche of music that you and some other people love. This has been replicated in other areas like podcasting, painting, and film as well. People can find what interests them outside of what major companies are trying to push. That is why increased choice is positive taken as a whole.
In conclusion, the drawbacks of increased choice do not outweigh the advantages gained by allowing people to explore what interests them the most. In the future, this will continue and present challenges but also allow for a more diverse cultural experience for rich and poor alike, all over the world.
IELTS Examiner Sample Answer Analysis
It is common nowadays to hear people decrying the number of choices people have relative to the past and proclaiming the drawbacks of so many easily-available options in a variety of areas of life. While I think that there is some truth in this, increased choice is ultimately a positive trend because it opens up options outside the mainstream.
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My first sentence repeats the question and topic. Don’t stress too much about this sentence!
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The second sentence states my overall opinion and main reason for it (getting away from the mainstream).
The main reason why increased choice is considered a negative development is it makes life more complicated. Take for example the number of products people can choose from today. Supermarkets are filled with different brands with hardly any meaningful differences. This can cause people to waste time and energy making choices with little actual impact. This is also the case when it comes to online streaming services like Netflix, Hulu and HBO. Not only do people have to spend time researching these sites but once they make a choice they are limiting what they will be able to watch in the future. If they decide to subscribe to all of them, suddenly they will be paying upwards of $40 a month for basic viewing content. These are a couple of ways in which choice can take up time and make life more complex.
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My first sentence is the topic sentence, which tells the half-asleep, mostly drunk examiner what the paragraph is about (choice makes life more complicated).
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The second sentence jumps right into the example of different products to choose from. It is good to focus on one specific area of choice because this is such a general topic!
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The third sentence explains why choice in supermarkets can be bad.
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The forth sentence clearly states the negative impact.
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The fifth sentence continues the example by talking about supermarkets.
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My sixth sentence continues the example into the area of online streaming services.
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The seventh sentence develops the example further.
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My eighth sentence generalizes the example and connects it back to my topic sentence.
Although choice introduces a level of complexity to life, the main benefit is that it opens up options for people outside dominant cultural trends. The best example of this is the changes that have taken place in the music industry over the last 20 years with the advent of iTunes and streaming services. In the past, the big pop acts dominated the radio and album sales. Now the music scene is much more fractured. This makes it more difficult for some artists but also opens up the possibility that you can find a niche of music that you and some other people love. This has been replicated in other areas like podcasting, painting, and film as well. People can find what interests them outside of what major companies are trying to push. That is why increased choice is positive taken as a whole.
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My first sentence is my topic sentence with the idea that choice allows people to pursue what they actually like.
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The second sentence introduces the example of the music industry.
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My third sentence develops this example by comparing it to the past.
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My fourth sentence says that things are now different.
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The fifth sentence describes how things are different now.
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My sixth sentence further explains why this is a positive trend.
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The seventh sentence summarises the paragraph and ties it back to my overall opinion.
In conclusion, the drawbacks of increased choice do not outweigh the advantages gained by allowing people to explore what interests them the most. In the future, this will continue and present challenges but also allow for a more diverse cultural experience for rich and poor alike, all over the world.
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The first sentence restates my overall opinion. Make sure you give a clear opinion!
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My second sentence gives some more detail to finish off the essay. Put your pencil down now and say a prayer to the IELTS gods!
Sample Answer Vocabulary
Practice with the words below – can you figure out what they mean just by reading the sentence they are in? Write down what you think each one means before checking your answers!
It is common nowadays to hear people decrying the number of choices people have relative to the past and proclaiming the drawbacks of so many easily-available options in a variety of areas of life. While I think that there is some truth in this, increased choice is ultimately a positive trend because it opens up options outside the mainstream.
The main reason why increased choice is considered a negative development is it makes life more complicated. Take for example the number of products people can choose from today. Supermarkets are filled with different brands with hardly any meaningful differences. This can cause people to waste time and energy making choices with little actual impact. This is also the case when it comes to online streaming services like Netflix, Hulu and HBO. Not only do people have to spend time researching these sites but once they make a choice they are limiting what they will be able to watch in the future. If they decide to subscribe to all of them, suddenly they will be paying upwards of $40 a month for basic viewing content. These are a couple of ways in which choice can take up time and make life more complex.
Although choice introduces a level of complexity to life, the main benefit is that it opens up options for people outside dominant cultural trends. The best example of this is the changes that have taken place in the music industry over the last 20 years with the advent of iTunes and streaming services. In the past, the big pop acts dominated the radio and album sales. Now the music scene is much more fractured. This makes it more difficult for some artists but also opens up the possibility that you can find a niche of music that you and some other people love. This has been replicated in other areas like podcasting, painting, and film as well. People can find what interests them outside of what major companies are trying to push. That is why increased choice is positive taken as a whole.
In conclusion, the drawbacks of increased choice do not outweigh the advantages gained by allowing people to explore what interests them the most. In the future, this will continue and present challenges but also allow for a more diverse cultural experience for rich and poor alike, all over the world.
Answers:
decrying: opposing, condemning or saying something is bad
relative to the past: compared to the past
proclaiming: claiming or saying
opens up: makes possible
mainstream: what most people like and is presented by large media companies
hardly: barely, almost not at all
little actual impact: not much of an effect
this is also the case when it comes to: it is also true for
streaming services: services like Netflix where you can watch directly online
upwards of: more than
dominant cultural trends: what is popular in music, film, etc. at the moment
taken place: to happen
advent: the beginning of something
fractured: split apart
replicated: reproduced, repeated
taken as a whole: overall, in general, considered from a larger perspective
diverse cultural experience: lots of different kinds of art, music, film, culture
Vocabulary Practice
It is common nowadays to hear people __________________ the number of choices people have __________________ and __________________ the drawbacks of so many easily-available options in a variety of areas of life. While I think that there is some truth in this, increased choice is ultimately a positive trend because it __________________ options outside the __________________.
The main reason why increased choice is considered a negative development is it makes life more complicated. Take for example the number of products people can choose from today. Supermarkets are filled with different brands with __________________ any meaningful differences. This can cause people to waste time and energy making choices with __________________. __________________ online __________________ like Netflix, Hulu and HBO. Not only do people have to spend time researching these sites but once they make a choice they are limiting what they will be able to watch in the future. If they decide to subscribe to all of them, suddenly they will be paying __________________ $40 a month for basic viewing content. These are a couple of ways in which choice can take up time and make life more complex.
Although choice introduces a level of complexity to life, the main benefit is that it opens up options for people outside __________________. The best example of this is the changes that have __________________ in the music industry over the last 20 years with the __________________ of iTunes and streaming services. In the past, the big pop acts dominated the radio and album sales. Now the music scene is much more __________________. This makes it more difficult for some artists but also opens up the possibility that you can find a niche of music that you and some other people love. This has been __________________ in other areas like podcasting, painting, and film as well. People can find what interests them outside of what major companies are trying to push. That is why increased choice is positive __________________.
In conclusion, the drawbacks of increased choice do not outweigh the advantages gained by allowing people to explore what interests them the most. In the future, this will continue and present challenges but also allow for a more __________________ for rich and poor alike, all over the world.
Grammar – Present Perfect
This has been replicated in other areas like podcasting, painting, and film as well.
One of the challenges that students have with using the present perfect in both writing and speaking is that sometimes they are interchangeable. People in the UK tend to overuse the present perfect, while it is used less by speakers in the USA.
Someone from the UK is more likely to say “I haven’t got it” and someone from the USA “I don’t have it” or in the UK “I’ve lost my mind” and the US “I lost my mind.”
Both are correct so don’t stress too much about those small differences. Focus on using it for events in the past that are still relevant or still continuing.
In this sentence: “This has been replicated in other areas like podcasting, painting, and film as well,” I am talking about an event (lots of choice) that has spread to many different industries. It is still happening now and it has present relevance so I use the present perfect.
The form for present perfect is really simple: have/has + past participle.
The more you practice using it in your speaking and writing, the better chance you have of using it on the real test and impressing the examiner!
Links
When you watch the videos, try using some of these activities to improve your listening at the same time: Improve your Listening.
Comment below – what kind of music do you like? Movies? TV?
I’m really into…
My favourite is…
Depends on my mood, sometimes I enjoy…
I hate everything but…
by Dave | Dec 3, 2018 | Cambridge 12
This is an IELTS Writing Task 2 sample answer based on a question from the IELTS Cambridge 12 book of previous practice tests.
That means this a real question from IELTS and I am a real former examiner – what more could you want!
The recent questions from the IELTS writing task 2 exam are here, task 1 is here and the speaking questions and topics are here.
Dave
IELTS Examiner Sample Answer from Cambridge 12: Young People (by Dave)
At the present time, the population of some countries includes a relatively large number of young adults, compared with the number of older people.
Do the advantage of this situation outweigh the disadvantages?
The average age of the population for many nations around the world has been in decline in recent decades creating a situation where young people have become the world’s largest demographic, particularly in developing nations. Although there are decided drawbacks to this phenomenon related to expertise in the workforce, it is still a positive development because it will lead to booming economies in the coming years.
The most frequently cited drawback to having a predominately young population is the lack of skilled workers in many important industries. A great example of this can be seen in Vietnam, which has one of the youngest populations in the world. Vietnam currently has very few leaders in important areas like engineering and technology. When it came time for Ho Chi Minh city to build a subway system, there were not enough skilled engineers to accomplish the feat. They had to hire a huge number of specialists from Japan and Thailand to ensure the quality of the project. The potential engineers for this project are still in school in Vietnam or studying abroad and it may be another decade before they are ready to design and execute large, complex infrastructure. It is not uncommon for developing countries with young populations to require outside assistance for national projects to the detriment of their own workers.
Despite this drawback, the advantage of a young population is that it brings many future benefits to a country and is a key indicator of future economic prosperity. Japan famously has one of the oldest populations in the world and this has led them into a deep economic recession over the last 20 years as it becomes increasingly apparent that the nation will have to assume responsibilities related to healthcare and a dwindling workforce. Contrast this with the so-called ‘Tiger Economies’ of Southeast Asia that include Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Singapore. These countries have some of the youngest populations in the world, which, coupled with a growing middle class and better education, means that they will enjoy upward economic growth for decades to come. The middle class will expand because well-educated graduates will be able to get good jobs and this middle class will become a consumer class that feeds the economy. Overall, this is why having a young population is desirable for any nation.
In conclusion, I fully believe that a younger population indicates a country is going to be successful in the future. The key element for all young populations is education and governments should focus on this in order to fully exploit the benefits of their demographics.
IELTS Examiner Sample Answer Analysis
1. The average age of the population for many nations around the world has been in decline in recent decades creating a situation where young people have become the world’s largest demographic, particularly in developing nations. 2. Although there are decided drawbacks to this phenomenon related to expertise in the workforce, it is still a positive development because it will lead to booming economies in the coming years.
1. My first sentence simply rephrases the question and topic. Write this sentence quickly as it is not that important.
2. The second sentence gives my opinion and includes the main reason why (economic benefits).
1. The most frequently cited drawback to having a predominately young population is the lack of skilled workers in many important industries. 2. A great example of this can be seen in Vietnam, which has one of the youngest populations in the world. 3. Vietnam currently has very few leaders in important areas like engineering and technology. 4. When it came time for Ho Chi Minh city to build a subway system, there were not enough skilled engineers to accomplish the feat. 5. They had to hire a huge number of specialists from Japan and Thailand to ensure the quality of the project. 6. The potential engineers for this project are still in school in Vietnam or studying abroad and it may be another decade before they are ready to design and execute large, complex infrastructure. 7. It is not uncommon for developing countries with young populations to require outside assistance for national projects to the detriment of their own workers.
1. My first sentence is a topic sentence that explains the main idea for the paragraph (lack of skilled workers in younger populations).
2. The second sentence uses the example of Vietnam (where I live!).
3. My third sentence expands on the example.
4. The fourth sentence continues the examples.
5. My fifth sentence also continues the example.
6. The sixth sentence makes the example more general by talking about other developing countries.
1. Despite this drawback, the advantage of a young population is that it brings many future benefits to a country and is a key indicator of future economic prosperity. 2. Japan famously has one of the oldest populations in the world and this has led them into a deep economic recession over the last 20 years as it becomes increasingly apparent that the nation will have to assume responsibilities related to healthcare and a dwindling workforce. 3. Contrast this with the so-called ‘Tiger Economies’ of Southeast Asia that include Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Singapore. 4. These countries have some of the youngest populations in the world, which, coupled with a growing middle class and better education, means that they will enjoy upward economic growth for decades to come. 5. The middle class will expand because well-educated graduates will be able to get good jobs and this middle class will become a consumer class that feeds the economy. 6. Overall, this is why having a young population is desirable for any nation.
1. My first sentence is a topic sentence saying that having a younger population is good for the economy.
2. The second sentence gives the examples of Japan.
3. My third sentence continues the examples by contrasting with countries in Southeast Asia.
4. My fourth sentence continues the example.
5. The fifth sentence gives more detail in the example.
6. My sixth sentence is general and explains why every country should want a young population.
1. In conclusion, I fully believe that a younger population indicates a country is going to be successful in the future. 2. The key element for all young populations is education and governments should focus on this in order to full exploit the benefits of their demographics.
1. My first sentence repeats my opinion. Do this or get IELTS band 5 for task achievement!
2. The second sentence adds an extra detail that is not summary because some IELTS examiners require this for band 7+.
Sample Answer Vocabulary
What do the phrases highlighted below mean in your own words? Is there a translation in your language?
The average age of the population for many nations around the world has been in decline in recent decades creating a situation where young people have become the world’s largest demographic, particularly in developing nations. Although there are decided drawbacks to this phenomenon related to expertise in the workforce, it is still a positive development because it will lead to booming economies in the coming years.
The most frequently cited drawback to having a predominately young population is the lack of skilled workers in many important industries. A great example of this can be seen in Vietnam, which has one of the youngest populations in the world. Vietnam currently has very few leaders in important areas like engineering and technology. When it came time for Ho Chi Minh city to build a subway system, there were not enough skilled engineers to accomplish the feat. They had to hire a huge number of specialists from Japan and Thailand to ensure the quality of the project. The potential engineers for this project are still in school in Vietnam or studying abroad and it may be another decade before they are ready to design and execute large, complex infrastructure. It is not uncommon for developing countries with young populations to require outside assistance for national projects to the detriment of their own workers.
Despite this drawback, the advantage of a young population is that it brings many future benefits to a country and is a key indicator of future economic prosperity. Japan famously has one of the oldest populations in the world and this has led them into a deep economic recession over the last 20 years as it becomes increasingly apparent that the nation will have to assume responsibilities related to healthcare and a dwindling workforce. Contrast this with the so-called ‘Tiger Economies’ of Southeast Asia that include Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Singapore. These countries have some of the youngest populations in the world, which, coupled with a growing middle class and better education, means that they will enjoy upward economic growth for decades to come. The middle class will expand because well-educated graduates will be able to get good jobs and this middle class will become a consumer class that feeds the economy. Overall, this is why having a young population is desirable for any nation.
In conclusion, I fully believe that a younger population indicates a country is going to be successful in the future. The key element for all young populations is education and governments should focus on this in order to fully exploit the benefits of their demographics.
Answers:
in decline: getting worse
demographic: the type of people living in a place (men, women, young, old, race, etc.)
decided drawbacks: clear disadvantages
expertise: knowledge or skill in an area
workforce: the working people in a country
booming economies: economies that are doing very well
predominately: mostly
came time for: when something is needed/desired
accomplish the feat: do/finish something
specialists: people with expertise
ensure: make sure
execute: do
not uncommon: common
outside assistance: help from other people
to the detriment of: to the disadvantage of
future benefits: will get something back later
key indicator: a signal that gives information/makes something clear
economic prosperity: the economy doing well
recession: the economy of a country shrinking slightly
increasingly apparent: more and more clear
assume responsibilities: take responsibility
dwindling workforce: number of workers getting smaller
contrast this with: compare this to
coupled with: combined with
desirable: wanted
fully exploit: take full/complete advantage of
Vocabulary Practice
The average age of the population for many nations around the world has been ____________________ in recent decades creating a situation where young people have become the world’s largest ____________________, particularly in developing nations. Although there are__________________ to this phenomenon related to __________________ in the __________________, it is still a positive development because it will lead to __________________ in the coming years.
The most frequently cited drawback to having a __________________ young population is the lack of skilled workers in many important industries. A great example of this can be seen in Vietnam, which has one of the youngest populations in the world. Vietnam currently has very few leaders in important areas like engineering and technology. When it __________________ Ho Chi Minh city to build a subway system, there were not enough skilled engineers to __________________ . They had to hire a huge number of __________________ from Japan and Thailand to __________________ the quality of the project. The potential engineers for this project are still in school in Vietnam or studying abroad and it may be another decade before they are ready to design and __________________ large, complex infrastructure. It is __________________ for developing countries with young populations to require __________________ for national projects __________________ their own workers.
Despite this drawback, the advantage of a young population is that it brings many __________________ to a country and is a __________________ of future __________________. Japan famously has one of the oldest populations in the world and this has led them into a deep economic __________________ over the last 20 years as it becomes __________________ that the nation will have to __________________ related to healthcare and a __________________. __________________ the so-called ‘Tiger Economies’ of Southeast Asia that include Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Singapore. These countries have some of the youngest populations in the world, which, __________________ a growing middle class and better education, means that they will enjoy upward economic growth for decades to come. The middle class will expand because well-educated graduates will be able to get good jobs and this middle class will become a consumer class that feeds the economy. Overall, this is why having a young population is __________________ for any nation.
In conclusion, I fully believe that a younger population indicates a country is going to be successful in the future. The key element for all young populations is education and governments should focus on this in order to __________________ the benefits of their demographics.
Links
Here are some activities you can use to improve your listening while watching the videos: Improve your Listening.
Comment below – does your country have an old or young population?
Well, where I’m living…
It’s kind of of a mix actually in …
Honestly, it’s a giant problem in …
Truth be told, we don’t really have to deal with this problem much in ….
You can see a student example with corrections here:
by Dave | Nov 1, 2018 | IELTS FAQ
It’s the day before your exam.
You haven’t studied at all.
You can’t speak a single word of English.
You aren’t even old enough to take the test.
You haven’t even been born yet.
But you’ve scheduled your test and it is tomorrow.
What should you do to be best prepared?
Read on to learn how to can ace the test despite all the problems listed above.
Dave
Step 1: Review your Notes/Worksheets
Remember all those IELTS notes that you took? It’s not time to burn them yet. You can do that the day after the test.
First you should read them. Read them directly before you go to bed so that they are tattooed onto your brain.
When you wake up in the morning, read them again. You don’t have to read them too carefully. Just breeze through them a couple of times so that they are part of your short-term memory.
This always made a huge difference for me when I was taking tests in University. Reviewing is such an important step – more important than learning it the first time – but most students neglect it.
You already did the hard work sitting in some boring IELTS class next to smelly students, took the notes – now is the easy part, just review them!
Step 2: Get a Good Night’s Sleep for the First Time in Your Life
I know your passion in life is aimlessly scrolling through Facebook late at night. Believe me, I know that all too well.
Smash your phone to bits and throw it in the toilet. You can fish it out tomorrow and take it to the Apple store for a full refund.
Ignore your friends no matter how bad the emergency. Lock your door and don’t let in your family. Give them some money for a hotel or something.
Go to sleep early or knock yourself unconscious if you have to.
Make sure that you don’t have any nightmares. Dream of your future success.
Put back together the phone that you just smashed and set an alarm (and a backup alarm).
Step 3: Eat
Wake up and eat breakfast. Some countries have supersitiions about the foods you should eat before a test.
For example in Vietnam, many people won’t eat eggs on the day of a test because the are shaped like a zero (0).
Follow whatever superstition your country believes in. It’s probably not true, but why risk it?
Have something healthy that promotes brain functioning like a banana, broccoli, nuts, or dark chocolate.
Make sure that you shower and brush your teeth thoroughly. There is nothing that will hurt your score on IELTS more than having bad breath or bad body odor.
Step 4: The Easy Part (Taking the Test)
Show up for the test.
Remember to bring your ID. Show up a bit early so that you feel comfortable and have some time to make yourself nervous/anxious.
It really helps to visualise the result that you want. Don’t focus on your score.
Visualise doing well on the listening, reading quickly, speaking well, and writing a masterpiece. Make sure that you imagine something specific.
Step 5: After the Test
When you get your results back, there’s a very good chance that you will be disappointed. Most students are and that’s why IELTS is such a big business.
You need to have realistic expectations about taking the test again.
How far are you from your score? If you are half a band away, you might not need much more preparation. Read more about how long it will take here.
If you are 1 band or more away, then you probably need to improve your English, not study IELTS. Read more about why here.
Finally, make a realistic study plan that you will be able to stick to – an unrealistic one is only going to result in you giving up later on!
Best of luck!
Comment below – how was your IELTS test? Anything interesting/funny/horrifying happen on test day?
by Dave | Oct 4, 2018 | IELTS Vocabulary
When I was in middle school, I got to the final round of a spelling bee in my district. I used to read a lot and I was really good at spelling (not sports so much though).
I lost on a pretty easy word too! The last word that I had to spell was ‘address’!
For some reason, that word has always been tricky for me and I still mess up the spelling all the time. I can never remember if it is two ‘d’s or two ‘s’s…
Where would we be today without auto-correct on our computers and phones?
Well, we’d be better at spelling that’s for sure! Our brain would also be cluttered with all the weird spellings you find in a language that’s been sleeping around and mutating for thousands of years.
Dave
GHOTI
There’s a famous example of the confused link between spelling and speaking in English.
How do you say ‘ghoti’?
The correct answer is ‘fish.’
‘GH’ as it is said in rough.
‘O’ as it is said in women.
‘TI’ as it is said in nation or station.
Combine those sounds and it is ‘fish.’
That shows you just how crazy spelling is in English. This is a problem not just for English learners!
Everyone has their own person list of words that they spell wrong basically every single time and rely on auto correct for – for me that includes:
convienent convenient
acurrate accurate
pronounciation pronunciation
rythm rhythm
I go out of my way to avoid spelling those words. If I have to use them, I just scramble together a bunch of letters and let spell check fix it for me because I know I’ll never get them right.
That’s the liberty I have though – you shouldn’t be like me! You won’t have Google to spell check for you on IELTS!
What’s your personal list of hard to spell words? Comment them below!
TOP 10 MOST COMMONLY MISSPELLED WORDS
Let’s get down to the most commonly misspelled words. I’ve chosen words that are academic and likely to come up on the writing so you can improve your IELTS grammar score.
I got these words from my personal experiences marking essays and from surveying my students.
10. Deteriorate
9. Veterinarian
8. Mediterranean
7. Amphitheater
6. Committee
5. Unnecessary
4. Successive
3. Conference
2. Assassination
1. Bureaucratic
How many of those words could you spell?
Which words give you the most trouble?
HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR SPELLING
Well, now that you don’t feel so bad about your bad spelling, let’s look at some ways to improve your spelling.
There are two problems you have to overcome.
The first is that English is a mess. There aren’t any 100% consistent rules for English spelling.
The second is that once you start spelling a word wrong, it’s easy to keep doing it your whole life.
That’s why I’m still messing up the word ‘address’ 20 years later!
Even though there aren’t consistent rules for English spelling there are still some rules. We do have an alphabet after all and it kind of matches the way we say things.
Here are 5 helpful rules:
1. All kids in America learn the ‘i before e except after c’ rhyming rule.
For example, believe, fierce and friend.
But be careful because there are some exceptions like ancient, science and neighbour.
2. If a word has just one sound/syllable like ‘big’ and we add an ending ‘bigger’ we always add an extra consonant.
For example: swimming, hitting, flipping, redder, etc.
3. The plural endings for words with ‘f’ like knife or leaf changes to a v: knives, leaves.
4. Another plural rule is that we add ‘-es’ to any words that ends with x, z, ch, s, ss, sh.
For example, matches, kisses, wishes, quizzes, foxes, etc.
5. Another common rule that kids learn is to change ‘y’ to ‘ie’ when you add an ending to it.
For example, try to tried, cry to cried, baby to babies.
The second problem is more interesting and means that you need some spelling activities to break your bad habits.
These activities have worked for my students in the past so they might work for you as well:
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Anagrams: take the hardest words that you are learning to spell and make them into anagrams here: Print out the last or copy it down and use it to practice your spelling a few times throughout the day.
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Keep a record of the words that you often mess up. You can do this when you are typing something online. Before you use the autocorrect to fix it, save the word to a separate document. Practice writing those words every day until you stop making mistakes with them.
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Download a fun spelling game. You can find versions of scrabble, boggle, scattegories, and bananagrams on your phone. You can read about some more here. My favourite is Words with Friends, which you can play with a friend who is also studying.
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Buy or download a book of wordsearches or crossword puzzles. These are a fun way to work on your spelling as well as your memory for vocabulary.
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Challenge your friend to a spelling contest. One of my good friends recommended this to me. It’s a simple way to practice with a friend when you have nothing better to talk about. Simply say a word for your partner to spell and then your friend says one for you. If your friend has worse English, you can give him/her easier words. You can also have a dictionary available to make it really challenging.
Good luck!
Remember to comment below: what is the hardest word for you to spell in English?
by Dave | Aug 18, 2018 | How To
6. Dress Provocatively
This is 2018 and we live in a progressive, modern society. In the past, I would only have recommended women dress up.
Now I would recommend both sexes increase their sex appeal.
If you are truly committed, spend a few months before the exam getting into great shape and show up to the test naked or in a swimsuit.
Just kidding – let’s get on to the real list now!
Dave
1. Improve the Right Way (No Shortcuts)
What you shouldn’t be doing: studying IELTS for years on end, learning idioms to try to cheat the test, memorising your responses, or going to the test with no knowledge of how IELTS works. If you do those things, you will make a fool of yourself and the examiner will be laughing about you in the break!
Instead you should: spend time improving your English, learn natural English expressions like phrasal verbs, make sure that you practice a lot, learn about IELTS and watch some practice tests online to know exactly what to expect.
Otherwise, it’s like trying to play a sport without knowing any of the rules – it will be obvious you have no idea what you are doing no matter how good your clothes look!
2. Follow the Unwritten Rules of IELTS
IELTS is full of unwritten rules, just like real life!
Some real life unwritten rules include:
Wait until everyone gets out of the elevator before you get on.
Don’t stop to read your phone in the middle of the sidewalk.
Turn off your high beams if there are other cars.
Don’t pee right next to someone at a urinal.
Don’t text ‘k’ or ‘kk.’
Say ‘thanks’ to people who open the door for you.
Cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze.
Don’t speak too loudly into your phone.
The unwritten rules of IELTS are:
Don’t tell the examine your life story.
Don’t tell the examiner what score you need on the test.
Don’t ask what your score is at the end of test.
Don’t try to shake the examiner’s hand unless they offer first.
Don’t ask the IELTS examiner any questions.
When the examiner asks a short follow-up question at the end of part 2, give a short answer!
Don’t ask the examiner to explain whole questions, only words, in part 1.
Be as specific as possible in part 3 – don’t be general and don’t give personal examples.
Don’t try to have a long conversation with the examiner after the test ends.
Don’t try to look at the questions the examiner is asking or what the examiner is writing down.
3. Clean Yourself
Most of you can just skip this one because you are not an overgrown man-child.
But you’d be surprised by the number of candidates who show up looking like they just climbed out of the nearest garbage bin.
It shouldn’t impact your score. It probably doesn’t.
But still…
It’s bad enough that the examiner probably looks like trash – clean yourself up a bit!
Please do at least the following to spare your examiner: take a shower, wear clothes that look clean, brush your teeth, have a breath mint or two (this is the most important step), don’t vigorously scratch any part of your body during the test or pick your nose (I’m not joking!).
4. Be Interesting
Examiners usually have to talk to the same country, asking the same questions, over and over.
Sometimes that can turn out like this:
Candidate 1: Talk about an invention that changed the world in a good way.
“I’d like to talk about the smartphone…”
Candidate 2: Talk about an invention that changed the world in a good way.
“I’d like to talk about the smartphone…”
Candidate 3: Talk about an invention that changed the world in a good way.
“I’d like to talk about the smartphone…”
By the end of the day the examiner is bored to death of the same boring, predictable answers and wishes Steve Jobs had never invented the smartphone!
Being interesting won’t help your score necessarily – it might not make a difference.
But if you have interesting, unconventional answers the examiner will listen more closely and have a much more positive impression of you.
It could even help bump up your score in some cases!
How do you do it if you are not normally an interesting person? Just give more concrete, specific examples.
Don’t speak very generally: I really like movies. When I go to the movies I can relax and have a good time. It’s a nice environment to be in after a long day working and I feel much better after I’ve seen a movie.
Do speak very specifically: I really like movies. Last week I went to see Deadpool 2 and it was really cool. I saw the original too but the sequel was better because the action scenes were better. There’s one part where Deadpool …
5. Be Humble
Nothing turns off examiners more than arrogance (besides body odor or bad breath).
Here are some of the things that you shouldn’t do:
Don’t be late – you might make the examiner wait!
Don’t talk about how rich you are – examiners are poor, lonely, lost souls filled with hatred for people who are more successful than themselves!
Don’t look annoyed or impatient with every question the examiner asks.
Be respectful, listen carefully and don’t be rude at any point.
IELTS tip – Be Humble!
Comment Below: What was our IELTS speaking test like? Mean or nice examiner?
