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Copyright &Daily Lessons with Simon, ex-IELTS examiner
Here are some questions that people have asked me about the speaking test recently, with my answer below each one.
1) Should we use synonyms instead of words that the examiner used in the question? For example, if the question is &Do you think your weekends are long enough?&, should I use synonyms for 'weekend' and 'long'?
You probably won't have time to think of synonyms or paraphrasing in the speaking test. Also, if you try to paraphrase words like 'weekend' and 'long enough', you are in danger of giving a very strange answer (don't say &My Saturdays and Sundays are sufficiently lengthy&!!). Just answer the question in a natural way e.g. No, my weekends are too short. I wish they were longer.
2) Do we need to cover every point on the cue card in speaking part 2?
No, you won't lose marks for missing one or two of the points. However, the points are there to help you structure your answer, so I recommend that you try to use them.
3) Is it possible that the examiner will only ask six questions in part 1?
No. In part 1 the examiner must ask all of the questions on his/her question sheet, and there will be around 10 to 12 questions in total.
Examiners often begin the speaking test by asking about your home. Here are some typical questions and sample answers.
1) Do you live in a house or an apartment?
I live in a semi-detached house with three bedrooms and a small garden.
2) Which room do you like most in your house? Why?
My favourite room is the kitchen because it looks out onto the back garden, and it's on the side of the house that catches the afternoon sun.
3) Is there anything about your house that you would like to change?
Well, it would be nice if it were a detached house so that we could have windows on the wall that we currently share with our neighbours.
4) Tell me something else about your house.
The previous owners converted the loft i that's the quietest room in the house, and the best place to go to do some work.
Try writing a report for about the following information. Next week I'll give you some tips and show you part of my answer.
The charts below show the results of a questionnaire that asked visitors to the Parkway Hotel how they rated the hotel's customer service. The same questionnaire was given to 100 guests in the years 2005 and 2010.
Here's a useful question that someone asked me: How should we approach a question that contains two different subjects?
Take this question for example:
Some people believe that governments should pay for healthcare and education, but others disagree with this opinion. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.
What do you think? Should we write separate paragraphs about healthcare and education? Or can we put these two subjects together in each paragraph? Can you suggest an outline for a good essay structure for this task?
In the listening test, synonyms or similar words are often the key to getting the answer. Try the following multiple choice questions from Cambridge IELTS 7.
1. The original buildings on the site were
A) housesB) industrial buildingsC) shops
2. The local residents wanted to use the site for
A) leisureB) apartment blocksC) a sports centre
Note:Which synonyms or similar words did you hear?
I've noticed that many students get the wrong answer because they think too much! They worry about small differences in meaning. For example, look at the following part of a reading passage:
The two week planned study into the psychological impact of prison life...
Now decide whether the following statement is true, false or not given:
The study aimed to investigate the mental and behavioural effects of life in prison.
The statement is true, but many students put not given because they &over-think& the meaning of 'psychological'. They think that the definition of psychological must be more complex than 'mental and behavioural'.
Don't think too hard about small differences in meanings. 'Mental and behavioural' might not be a perfect definition of 'psychological', but the overall meaning is the same (a simple definition of psychology is the study of the mind and behaviour).
I've recently removed the search bar from this blog. The reason I did this is that Google does much better searches that the blog's search bar did. Have you ever used Google to search this website?
Here's how to search this blog using Google:
1) First, search for &ielts simon& on Google.2) You should then see the result in the image below.
3) Now use the &ielts simon& search bar circled in red above.4) Google will give you results from this website only.
I use this option all the time to find old lessons on my blog. It's a great way to search for a particular topic, type of question, or anything else that you're worried about. For example, if you want to know about using capital letters in the listening test, just type &listening capital letters& into the search bar, and see what you find.
Here are 3 good phrases that I used when giving my opinion in yesterday's speaking lesson. Try using them in your own sentences.
too... for my liking (e.g. the weather is too hot for my liking)
Personally, I'm not a fan of...
I'd much rather do A (than B)
Here are my sample answers to the questions in last week's lesson. I've used the
that I always recommend for part 3.
1) Do you think there are too many game shows on TV nowadays? Why?
(answer) Yes, there are far too many game shows on TV for my liking. (explain) I suppose the channels show these programmes because they are popular, and they must be very profitable. (example) A good example is 'Who wants to be a millionaire?', which has been sold to TV channels across the world. (alternative) Personally, I'm not a fan of game shows, and I'd much rather watch a film or an original drama series.
2) Do you think that people pay attention to adverts on TV? Why?
(answer) Yes, I think we are all influenced to some extent by TV adverts, otherwise companies wouldn't pay so much to have them shown. (explain) Advertisers are very good at making us believe that their products or services will improve our lives in some way. (example) For example, if you see an advert for a new phone, it plants a seed in your mind, and you start to wonder about upgrading your old phone.
One easy way to describe the information on a graph or chart is by writing a sentence that lists three related figures. For example:
In school A, 30% of students chose to study languages, 40% selected an art or music course, and 50% chose a science option.
In the year 2010, over 5 million people bought product A, around 7 million bought product B, and nearly 10 million consumers purchased product C.
Notice that I tried to vary the vocabulary in each list:
chose = selected, course = option, people = consumers, bought = purchased
Let's have a look at one of the questions from Cambridge IELTS 11.
Many governments think that economic progress is their most important goal. Some people, however, think that other types of progress are equally important for a country.?Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.
Here's the first half of my sample answer. Can you fill the gaps?
People have different views _____ how governments should measure their countries’ progress. _____ economic progress is of course essential, I agree with those _____ believe that other measures of progress are just as important.
There are three key reasons why economic growth is seen _____ a fundamental goal for countries. Firstly, a healthy economy results _____ job creation, a high level of employment, and better salaries for all citizens. Secondly, economic progress ensures that more money is available for governments to spend _____ infrastructure and public services. For example, a government with higher revenues can invest _____ the country's transport network, its education system and its hospitals. Finally, a strong economy can help a country’s standing _____ the global stage, in terms of its political influence and trading power.
People often ask me the following question:
Is it acceptable to write words like &bookshop& or &seafood& as two words (book shop, sea food)?
To answer this question, you need to look at the question instructions.
If the instruction says that you can use more than one word, &book shop& and &sea food& would be accepted.
However, if the instruction tells you to use only one word, you must write &bookshop& or &seafood&. If you write two words, it's wrong!
Note: When doing practice tests, use a dictionary to find out whether we normally write one word or two.
Read the following passage, and choose the best title from the list below.
Dennis Tito, an American engineer and multimillionaire, was the first space tourist to fund his own trip into space. In 2001, he spent nearly eight days in orbit as a crew member of ISS EP-1, a visiting mission to the International Space Station, after being accepted by the Russian Federal Space Agency as a candidate for a commercial spaceflight. Tito met criticism from NASA before the launch, primarily from Daniel Goldin, at that time the Administrator of NASA, who considered it inappropriate for a tourist to take a ride into space.
In the decade since Dennis Tito journeyed to the International Space Station, eight private citizens have paid the $20 million fee to travel to space, but it is believed that this number could increase fifteen-fold by 2020. A web-based survey suggested that over 70% of those surveyed were interested in travelling to space, 88% wanted to spacewalk, and 21% liked the idea of staying in a space hotel.
A) A giant leap for tourism in the 21st century.B) The first space tourist.C) The pros and cons of space tourism.
In Wednesday's
I asked you to write a &Finally& sentence to finish a paragraph. My own preference for the final idea would be to write about the strength of a country globally. Some of you chose this idea too, so well done!
Here's why I would choose this point:
My first point was about jobs for individual people. My second point was about national issues. So it would be great in terms of coherence to move on to a point about something international.
So, here's my &Finally& sentence:
Finally, a strong economy can help a country’s standing on the global stage, in terms of its political influence and trading power.
Here are some of the &Finally& sentences that people wrote below Wednesday's . Can you find and correct the mistakes?
Finally, development of an economy might help a nation tackle with such problems as currency fluctuations, natural damages, terrorist attacks and the like.
Finally, a sustainable economy also help the government well-prepare for natural disaster as well as the battle against inflation.
Finally, strong economy leads towards a better lifestyle for inhabitants by providing state of the art technology.
Finally, from broader aspect, progress in economy enable government to gain authority in political arena, thereby helps to future progression of a country.
Try using the 'long answer' technique from
to answer the questions below (from Cambridge book 11).
Do you think there are too many game shows on TV nowadays? Why?
Do you think that people pay attention to adverts on TV? Why?
I'll show you my answers next Friday.
It should be possible to understand any chart, graph or diagram without reading the question. So today's tip is: look at the chart (graph, diagram etc.) first. Make sure you understand what it shows, and put a circle around some of the key things that you can see.
I tried this with my students, and we found it very easy to understand the chart. Also, as we already knew what the chart was about, it was easier to understand the question statement.
The paragraph below needs a &finally& sentence. Can you suggest one?
Paragraph topic: why economic progress is an important goal for governments.
There are three key reasons why economic growth is seen as a fundamental goal for countries. Firstly, a healthy economy results in job creation, a high level of employment, and better salaries for all citizens. Secondly, economic progress ensures that more money is available for governments to spend on infrastructure and public services. For example, a government with higher revenues can invest in the country's transport network, its education system and its hospitals. Finally,...
My students found the following two questions difficult, mainly because of some of the vocabulary used by the speaker.
1. Joanna concentrated on women performers because
A) women are more influenced by fashion.B) women's dress has led to more controversy.C) women's code of dress is less strict than men's.
2. Frost's article suggests that in popular music, women's dress is affected by
A) their wish to be taken seriously.B) their tendency to copy each other.C) their reaction to the masculine nature of the music.
Here's a transcript of the recording:
You only had women performers in your study. Was that because male musicians are less worried about fashion?
I think a lot of the men are very much influenced by fashion, but in social terms the choices they have are more limited... they'd really upset audiences if they strayed away from quite narrow boundaries.
Frost points out that a lot of female singers and musicians in popular music tend to dress down in performances, and wear less feminine clothes, like jeans instead of skirts, and he suggests this is because otherwise they'd just be discounted as trivial.
Tasks:Which answer would you choose for each question? Can you explain the meaning of the words that I've underlined above?
Here's my keyword table for test 3, passage 2 in Cambridge IELTS book 11.
Note: gulls and terns are types of bird
Here are my correct versions of the sentences in Thursday's :
In 1985, Canada exported about 19 million tonnes of wheat.
The figure for Australia was lower, at 15 million tonnes.
In 1988, the amount of wheat exported by Canada increased by about 5 million tonnes.
And here are some good phrases from last week's General Writing :
the proposed closure
stress how important something is
on a daily basis
which they enjoy immensely
an integral part of the local community
a social hub in the town
lose a treasured facility
within a reasonable distance
have a detrimental effect on
quality of life
take these concerns into consideration
Note: The phrases above are not only useful for GT task 1. You might be able to use them in writing task 2 or in the speaking test.How to Shoot in Manual Mode-The Basics - Click it Up a Notch
How to Shoot in Manual Mode-The Basics ,
Don’t we all want to know how to take good pictures??
The best way to improve your photography is learning how to shoot in manual mode.
if you need more convincing :O)When learning how to shoot in manual mode you need to know and understand the “exposure triangle”.
This is made up of your aperture, shutter speed, and ISO.
You use these three components to get your light meter to be at zero.
To find your light meter look through your view finder.
It should be that little line graph at the bottom that looks a little like this: – 2 . . . 1 . . . 0 . . .1 . . .2 + (there should be a little flashing vertical line or “ticker” underneath the graph, this is what you are adjusting)**Please make sure you check on your light meter which side the + and – signs are on.
My example is for Canons.
Nikons look like this + 2 . . . 1 . . . 0 . . . 1 . . . 2 – ** How to shoot in manual modeApertureThe
or sometimes called the “f stop” is what allows you to have those blurry backgrounds people often ask me about.
The lower the number (f1.8) only has a small part of your photo in focus and then slowly gets blurrier as you go out from you focal point.
On my 50mm, the lowest aperture I can go is f1.8.
If I shoot “wide open” (on the lowest number your lens will go) then I will probably only have one eye in focus but will have a nice blurry background.
It is possible to get both eyes in focus but you need to be sure you on the same plane as your subject.
You would need your camera to be parallel to your subject’s eyes.
Basically, get down on their level. :O)
The higher the number of your aperture the more of your picture will be in focus.
For example, if you are shooting people and only want them to be in focus then you want to make sure that your aperture is at least at the same number as there are people in the photo.
If I were taking pictures of both my girls I would want to make sure my aperture was at least at f2.0.
I like it to be around f2.8 when I shoot my girls though.
If there are 5 people then you would want to be at least at f5.0 and so on.
When shooting landscape you would want your aperture number to be a lot higher so that the majority of your picture is in focus.Changing your aperture affects the amount of light in your shot.
The lower the number, the more light is brought in.
The higher the number, the less light.
Therefore, if you do a lot of indoor shooting, it is nice to have a lens with a lower aperture such as f1.8.Remember: Lower number aperture = more light and a blurrier background / Higher number aperture = less light and a sharper backgroundISO 100, ss 1/640, f4.5 (notice my aperture is at a higher number or closed up so both girls are in focus) The type of lens you use is a big factor as to what aperture you can set it on.
When I had a kit lens (the one that came with my camera body) on my old canon, the lowest it went was f3.5.
This made it very difficult for me to use in low lighting situations such as indoor shots.
Also, with an aperture that high you are less likely to get a blurry background.
From the encouragement of a friend, I bought a 50mm 1.8 prime lens.
This is an EXCELLENT lens if you are serious about learning how to shoot in manual mode, it is an inexpensive lens with a low aperture.
Some cameras are not compatible with this lens, such as the Nikon d3000 and Nikon d5000.
For those cameras maybe a 35mm 1.8 would be a better fit.ISO (pronounced by the letters – I – S – O) ISO was once explained to me as the worker bees.
If you have it set at 100, it is like you are sending out 100 worker bees to bring back the light for you.
If you set it higher, 1600 for example, you send out more worker bees, 1600 in this case, to bring back light for you.
The lower the number the less light.
Something to keep in mind about ISO is it can sometimes affect the amount of
in your picture.
Noise is when your picture looks grainy or pixelated.
If your photo is properly exposed it shouldn’t matter what your ISO is set at because it shouldn’t be grainy.Here is a great
written about the noise of a picture.Try to remember that typically if you are outside shooting then you can have a lower ISO such as 100 or 200.
If you are indoors with low lighting you may want to increase your ISO to around 800.Remember: Lower ISO = less light / Higher ISO = more lightISO 400, ss 1/100, f2.8 (I should have opened up my aperture a little {lower number} to allow me to raise my shutter speed to at least 1/125.
Luckily, she was sitting still) ISO 1000, ss 1/50, f3.2 (I used the floor to set my camera on for this photo.
I should have opened my aperture so I could have raised my shutter speed)
Shutter SpeedThis is the amount of time that your shutter is open.
When looking at your camera your shutter speed is written as 1/(a number).
This means that your shutter is open for 1/(whatever the #) of a second.
When shooting people and especially children try not to go any slower than 1/125.
This will help to prevent a blurry picture.
Sometimes 1/125 is not fast enough and you still get some movement in your photo, like in the picture of Kate running, but it is a good rule of thumb.
If your shutter speed gets too slow such as 1/40 then “camera shake” may affect the sharpness of your photo.
You shake your camera whether you mean to or not, which is why you want to keep your shutter speed as high as possible.The lower the bottom number the more light will come in because your shutter is open longer.
The higher the bottom number means less light will be coming in because it is open for less time.
If you are in a low lighting situation and you are taking a picture of something stationary, you can lower your shutter speed to something crazy like 1/20 but just make sure you use a tripod!Remember:
Lower shutter speed = more light but your subject may be blurry / higher shutter speed = less light but possibly a sharper subjectISO 200, ss 1/400, f2.0 ISO 100, ss 1/125, f3.2 (This is a good example to prove that 1/125 won’t always prevent motio notice her hands are blurred.
I should have opened up my aperture and then raised my shutter speed…this seems to be a problem of mine :O)
By adjusting these three things you will be moving the “ticker” back and forth in your light meter.
Ideally, you want to adjust them so that the ticker is on the zero.
It is considered a properly exposed picture if the ticker is on the zero.
Personally, I like the ticker to be one tick to the positive so my photo is a little overexposed.
Play around with it and see what you like :O)
One thing some people have asked is, “In which order should you adjust these to shoot in manual mode?”
It is a personal preference but this is what I do:1. Set my aperture – that way if I’m trying to get a blurry background I have control over that. 2. Set my shutter speed – remember try not to go below 1/125; if my “ticker” is not where I want it after adjusting these two, then I… 3. Change my ISO – I try to do this one last just because I like my ISO to stay at the lowest number possible.
Typically, I can get the exposure I want by just changing my aperture and shutter speed.I will touch on this more later but just a little side note about lenses.
As I said earlier, it is much easier to learn how to shoot in manual mode with a prime lens. Prime lens – does not zoom {you move your feet if you want to get closer}, has a fixed aperture {meaning you control your aperture}, and most people say gives you a sharper image than a zoom lens. Zoom lens – allows you to zoom back and forth, not all zoom lenses have a fixed aperture {I highly recommend a fixed aperture lens} – most kit lenses have a variable aperture so be careful {the aperture changes depending on what focal length you use, not set by you}How to change your ISO, aperture, and shutter speed:Nikon D3000 Canon Rebel T1i I challenge you to go out this week and take your camera off of the green auto square.
Give it a try, shoot in manual mode.
You never know, you may love it and never go back! Check out this post with over
if you have any questions or wish to learn more. Courtney SlazinikLearn it all, step-by-step, with me, the force behind Click it Up a Notch, a Huffington Post Top 5 Blogs for momtographers.A former teacher who got into photography to capture my beautiful family, I am eager to share what I’ve learned over the past 5 years & open the door to photography for other moms.Name*Email* PhoneThis field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
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