Part 1 answers don’t always have to be as long as in the video – just answer the question and extend it naturally but don’t worry if you run out of things to say. The examiner will ask you the next question.
You should aim for around 10 – 30 seconds per answer. Sometimes you can give an extended answer, sometimes a shorter one.
Don’t always give extended answers and don’t always give shorter ones – these could both hurt your fluency score – be natural!
Make sure you include some good natural vocab in your answer and build up to practising the whole question.
You could use notes to help you but don’t rely on them. Your answer should be a different each time – that’s natural.
That’s also why I answered this question a bunch of times! I wanted to give you a sampling of different vocabulary and grammar and show you a good way to practice.
Instead of answering the question the same way each time, and memorising your answer until you sound like a bad actor reading from a script, instead you can try answering the same question with different answers each time.
You could tell the truth or have fun with it and lie or imagine that you are someone else answering the question. Enjoy practicing!
It is also a good idea to vary the length of your responses to be more natural. Some of my answers are short, some are longer…
Can you watch again and guess which ones are true/not true?
You might have noticed that my speaking style is a little bit fast – you don’t have to speak so quickly! I just do it because I am extremely intelligent.
Here is the tapescript from my speaking:
1.I’m glad you asked me that because I’ve got a whole range of hobbies that I’m really into. The main thing I’ll typically do is get out my paints and do a painting, I’ll sketch something on a piece of paper first and then maybe make a painting if I’ve got spare time, besides that I’m really into watching movies, Netflix is my favorite, so I might just veg out, sit on the couch, catch a movie – If I’ve got more time than that then I might call up a friend to see if they want to hang out.
2. I’m really active, I really like going out, I hate to stay at home, it’s the worst so whenever I’ve got a bit of spare time, I’ll call up a friend, see if they want to chill and I’ll go out with them, I might go to a coffee shop or, I love playing sports, I’ll play football with them, maybe I’ll catch a movie or just go for a walk and see what’s going on in my neighborhood.
3.I’m a bit of a homebody, I always stay home, I really like reading and recently I’ve kind of gotten into audiobooks, I downloaded an app called audible, which is from Amazon, and I can just spend a whole day, lying back, listening to an audiobook, and enjoying that.
4. I’m super into cooking so when I’ve got some time, I like to cook and I’ll typically make something that’ll last me for a few days so it won’t just last me one day. I can cook it, maybe I’ll cook some rice and put in – chop up some veggies – put it in there, maybe a little bit of meat but I’m not a big meat-eater and I’ll cook a big pot of it so that I can put it in some Tupperware and keep it in my fridge or my freezer, store it for even longer, so I can eat it for a while.
5. I’m really sociable – I like to go out with my friends, I’ll go out to a coffee shop nearby where I live because coffee shops are kind of like ‘the big thing’ right now, or a milk tea shop – that’s really popular in the country where I’m living and – and I like to gossip with them, I like to ask them about what’s been going on in their lives, their family, their friends and kind of catch up about that sort of thing – I’ll give ‘em an update on my life but I’m only going to tell them the good things – I never tell them what’s wrong with my life –
6.I’m really big into computer games, I didn’t used to be when I was a kid, it’s kind of a newer hobby for me but I’ve taken them up in the last few years so when I’ve got spare time I play on my computer, I’ve also got an Xbox and a PlayStation, so I’ll settle down on the couch and I can easily just spend the whole day playing computer games and looking up information about new games that are going to come out, watching previews for new games, talking to friends about games, I’m obsessed with games! I’ll play them on my phone if I’m in the elevator or waiting for something, I like mobile apps – I’m all about games in my spare time.
7.To be honest with you I don’t really have that much spare time because I’m so busy with work but if I do get a bit of time for myself I like to hang out with my girlfriend – because I’m busy all the time she gets a bit fed up with me that we don’t get that many chances to catch up and I don’t give her as much attention as I should but that’s something that I’m working on, I try to make more time, try to compartmentalize my life a little bit so that I’ve got more time to spend with my girlfriend and, in turn, she’s got more time to spend with me.
8.I’ve got a few pets and I like taking them out, I’ve got a dog, I’ll take him for a walk, I’ve also got a cat – you can’t really take a cat for a walk but you can just lie on the couch and pet them and that’s quite good for your health, I’ve heard, your mental health, as well as your – it can bring down your blood pressure, I’ve also got a couple of fish so I’ll feed the fish and every once in awhile I have to clean out their tank which is a whole ordeal to get through but since uh… – since I love my fish, I’m willing to do anything for them.
None of them are try FYI!
Here is another speaking model answer about free time from my friend Nick:
Some examples of good vocab are highlighted in the audioscript below:
“Well, one of the things I love to do is just hanging out with my friends. It might sound kinda obvious but my friends are really important to me, and believe it or not I’m kind of an introverted person so I’d rather meet up with them 1 to 1 than in a big group, you know. So maybe we’ll catch up over a coffee or grab some lunch. With my friends back in England, I try and keep in touch over facebook or whatsapp, have a bit of banter and I love getting all their gossip. I’m a bit rubbish sometimes in terms of keeping in touch but I try not to leave it too long without having a proper catch up.”
Vocabulary:
hanging out with my friends: spending time together
it might sound kinda obvious but: very clear/common
believe it or not: it is a bit surprising
introverted person:like spending time alone, quiet
meet up: hang out
1 to1: talking with just 1 other person, rather than a group
catch up over a coffee:get a coffee and talk about what is new in your life
grab some lunch: get lunch
keep in touch over facebook: talk over Facebook
banter: idle, casual conversation
getting all their gossip: learning news about other people
rubbish at keeping in touch: not good at contacting friends
try not to leave it too long: try to talk more regularly
having a proper catch up: spend some time atching up rather than just a short conversation
Now it’s your turn! Put your answers in the comments.
Hang around is another very common but natural (and idiomatic) phrasal verb. It’s quite versatile so it can be used in a range of part 1 speaking topics.
So for example if you are asked about shopping you can say you like to hang around town or at the mall. If you’re asked about books, you can reply that you enjoy just hanging around at the library.
If you’re asked about the countryside, you can say you love spending your weekends, hanging around in the countryside and so on.
Make sure you practise vocab as part of a whole question. You could use notes to help you but don’t rely on them. Don’t learn it word for word.
It should be a different each time – that’s normal.
And remember, your answers don’t have to be 100% true. It’s not a truth test. It’s an English test.
So what does ‘hang around’ mean? It means: ‘To spend time in a place waiting or not doing anything’.
“Some guys I know like to hang around in bars, chatting to girls. Some girls I know like to hang around town, doing a bit of window shopping. Teenagers seem to love hanging around malls. A lot of people like to hang around in the park or at the beach, just enjoying the atmosphere.”
Now it’s your turn! Put your answers in the comments.
Do you enjoy hanging around places? If so, where and why?
Try practising these questions by yourself. Let me know how it goes!
Hang out is one of the first phrases that I encourage my students to practise for the speaking test.
That’s because it’s an example of idiomatic vocab (required for band 7+), so it’s natural and commonly used by native speakers. Also it’s extremely versatile – it can be used in a wide range of part 1 speaking and even writing topics.
So for example you are asked about whether you like cooking and you reply that you enjoy just hanging out in the kitchen. If the examiner asks you about your weekends, then you can say that you love hanging out in the countryside. If they ask you about books, you can respond by saying that you like nothing more than hanging out with a good book. ..get it?
And by the way, your answers don’t have to be 100% true. It’s not a truth test. It’s an English test.
So what does ‘hang out’ mean? It means ‘To spend time with people or in a particular place’.
“Most people like hanging out with their friends or family. Some people like to hang out at a cafe, or the library, just people watching. Some people like to kill a few hours by hanging out with a good book. Others like to hang out in the park or at the beach, just watching the world go by. These days, a lot of young people enjoy hanging out on Facebook. Some people like hanging out with their pets. Others don’t like hanging out with anyone. I was hanging out at the park the other day and I ran into an old friend.”
Now it’s your turn! Put your answers in the comments.
Who do you like to hang out with?
Where do you like to hang out?
If you want to both improve your English and feel comfortable, I now offer online lessons complete with feedback, videos, workbooks and more!
So you want to improve but you never get around to practising or you just don’t know the best way.
Sounds familiar? Well, you’re not alone. But luckily help is at hand. Try out these tips:
Five Steps for Improving your Spoken Vocabulary
1. First choose some natural vocabulary that you want to use more – this could be a phrasal verb, a linking phrase or some academic vocabulary.
2. Next, write them down, maybe on your hands or on a post-it note and stick them on the wall. Maybe on the fridge, near the kitchen sink, next to the bed, anywhere where you can build them into your daily routine.
3. Every day make different kinds of sentences using the phrases. So for ‘hang out’, I like to hang out with my cat. Yesterday I was hanging out at the park and I ran into an old friend.
4. The next step is to practise the whole question. At first, make some notes to help you but then later ditch the notes, and do it without them. Don’t worry if your answer changes over time. That’s what you want – make it more natural.
5. Practice as often as you can – on the toilet, in the shower, on the way to work. Try it out, let me know how it goes.
Now it’s your turn! Put your answers in the comments.
There are three parts to the IELTS speaking test and most students agree that part 1 of the speaking test is the easiest.
In fact it’s designed that way in order to ease you into the test, but don’t be fooled. It’s just as important as the other two parts and it’s your best chance to make a good impression.
It feels like a friendly interview and that’s because you’ll be asked questions on two to three personal, familiar topics such as your job, your studies, your hobbies, but also more random topics like rivers, clothes or your mobile phone.
But all the questions will directly be about you – no academic opinions required, and you only have to give relatively short answers (not like the long answer in part 2) and use general English.
Make sure you practise part 1 as much as the other parts. For some students, these topics seem too easy, so they might feel like they’re wasting their time studying or practising for them, that’s exactly why you should.
Part 1 is the first and best chance to impress the examiner, so you should practise a range of common questions.
That way you can be as fluent as you can and be able to show off some good, natural vocabulary.
This means phrasal verbs like ‘hang out with my friends’, idiomatic phrases like ‘grab a coffee’, ‘catch a movie’ or linking phrases like ‘it sounds kinda obvious’ or ‘believe it or not’.
To improve your fluency, you should try to extend your answers by directly answering the question then adding two bits of extra information.
So for ‘How often do you eat fast food?’ you would say:
“Well I usually eat fast food about once a week, and that is more often than not means grabbing a take out from the KFC near my home, but to be honest I only eat fast food when I’m too busy or too lazy to cook!”
Here’s a list of example part 1 topics and questions to get you started:
Work – what’s your job?
Studies – What do you study?
Home – Do you like your home? Why?
Hometown – Is it an interesting place to live?
Colours – What colour would you not choose for your home?
Clothes – Do you wear the same clothes when you go out and when you’re at home?
Fast food – How often do you eat fast food?
Music – Did you study music at school?
Films – Is there a cinema near your house?
Trees – Have you ever planted a tree?
Cooking – Who usually does the cooking in your house?
Rivers – Would you like to live near a river?
Now it’s your turn! Put your answers in the comments.
Practise the questions above and let us know how it goes.
Do you know any interesting Speaking Part 1 topics?
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