In Part 1 of the IELTS oral test you have to talk about 3 topics: your hometown, your work or study, AND two more familiar topics. In my last two articles I gave some advice on Part 1, hometown and work or study. Let’s take a look at other familiar topics and how to ask questions.
Topics for part 1
Free time
Daily routines
Family
Teaching
sports
Hotels
Shopping
Music
You can ask your own questions using the following initiators:
Describe what you do in your free time, describe your daily routine and describe your family.
Tell me about your free time, your daily routine, your family.
What do you think about have free time, change your routine, your family.
You can also use the 5W + H formula and ask questions about who, what, where, when, why, and how:
Who do you remember from school, what did you enjoy the most in school, what school did you go to, where did you go to school, when did you go to school, why did you like / dislike school, how has school changed since that they were there?
Because the topics are familiar, you shouldn’t have a problem talking about them. It is a good idea to take notes on each topic as you practice your answers or write down things you would like to say. However, you you should practice saying your answers out loud as this is a speaking test and you will be tested on how well you speak.
You can record yourself on audio to see how you sound, practice with a friend (have them ask you the questions), or practice with an online teacher or trainer. The more questions you are asked, the more practice you will have to answer. Remember to practice giving long, complete answers. Do this over and over again. It does not matter if you ask the same question frequently, as it will give better and better answers with more and more information. The more you practice this, the better it will be.
In the next article, we will look at Part 2 of the IELTS oral test.