Showing posts with label online book store. Show all posts
Showing posts with label online book store. Show all posts

IELTS Book - Cambridge IELTS 6 Student’s Book with answer

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Publisher’s description:
Provides students with an excellent opportunity to familiarize themselves with IELTS and to practice examination techniques using authentic test material prepared by Cambridge ESOL. Each collection contains four complete tests for Academic candidates, plus extra Reading and Writing modules for General Training candidates. An introduction to these different modules is included in each book, together with an explanation of the scoring system used by Cambridge ESOL. A comprehensive section of answers and tape scripts makes the material ideal for self-study.
Contains 4 authentic IELTS papers from Cambridge ESOL, providing the most authentic exam practice available.

Purpose: Preparation for Academic and General Training Modules of IELTS exam.
Tests included: 4 Academic Module tests, 2 Reading and Writing parts for General Training test
Answer keys: Included.
Explanation for the Answer keys: Not included.
Answer sheets: Included.
Listening Transcripts: Included.
People like
  • The tests are very close to the real IELTS test in terms of format, design and level of difficulty. They give a perfect idea of what to expect in the IELTS exam.
  • The score a student gets in Cambridge IELTS 6 tests is a good estimate of a score in a real exam.
  • These tests help the test taker to find out his weak skills and work on them.
  • There are model answers for the Writing test (3 essays, 2 reports and 3 letters written by examiners) which give a clear idea of a good answer.
  • There are sample answers for the Writing test written by students and graded by the examiners. The tasks include three essays of Band 4, Band 6 and Band 7, two reports of Band 7 and Band 8, and one letter of Band 5. They help to understand what can cause a student to lose points in the Writing test.
People don’t like
In General
  • Tips and strategies for tasks handling in IELTS exam, together with time management techniques are a must for optimizing a student’s score. Cambridge IELTS 6 doesn’t offer anything of that kind, only the tests.
Practice tests:
  • There are less General Training practice tests (only 2) than Academic Module (4 tests).
  • The General Training tests contain only Reading and Writing sections.
  • It is also difficult to understand how to perform well in Speaking because there are no sample answers for it.
  • There is no CD with the book, which makes the Listening tests useless. The CD can be ordered separately.

Wanna find good books to study? Click here to go to IELTS BOOK STORE




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READ MORE - IELTS Book - Cambridge IELTS 6 Student’s Book with answer

IELTS Book - Barron’s IELTS with Audio CD

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Publisher’s description:

This brand-new test preparation manual covers all parts of the IELTS and all of its question types: multiple-choice, short answer, sentence completion, flowchart completion, graphs, tables, making notes, summarizing, labeling diagrams and maps, classification, matching, and selecting from a list. The manual also offers four practice tests with answers, and listening and reading modules with answer keys.

Purpose: Preparation for Academic and General Training Modules of IELTS exam.

Tests included: 2 General Training tests, 4 Academic Module tests.

Answer keys: Included.

Explanation for the Answer keys: Included.

Answer sheets: Included.

Listening Transcripts: Included.

People like

  • The book provides good explanation of all the task types and gives clear instructions how to handle questions of each type. It points out and focuses the student on the issues important to optimize the test score.
  • The answer key for Listening and Reading has explanations why those answers are the correct ones - very important feature in IELTS self-preparation.
  • Has British alternatives to American spelling (as footnotes) – because both are acceptable in IELTS and students need to be aware of that.
  • The price is modest as compared to other books for IELTS preparation.

People don’t like

In General

  • The answer key is not very well organized and doesn’t cover all of the examples in the book.

Reading module

  • There are no examples of text from General Training module.

Writing module

  • There are no specific descriptions or instructions for all the Writing task types, some types are covered, some are not.
  • The book is more Academic module oriented, especially in the writing section. There are more examples and tasks for the Academic writing than for General Training.

Practice tests

  • There are less General Training practice tests (only 2) than Academic Module (4 tests)
  • It is difficult to understand how to score well in IELTS writing because there are no marked letters, essays or reports.
  • There are no Audio files on CD for the Listening tests 2 – 4, which makes them useless.

Conclusion: The book helps you to get familiar with the test structure and teaches you how to approach IELTS tasks. The practice tests help to master the skills you’ve learned. It is probably more suitable for the Academic IELTS than for General Training module.

READ MORE - IELTS Book - Barron’s IELTS with Audio CD

IELTS Book - IELTS Express Intermediate

Saturday, July 16, 2011

IELTS Express Intermediate is a two-level exam preparation course at Intermediate level (IELTS grade 4-5.5) and Upper Intermediate level (IELTS grade 5 and above). The IELTS Express series focuses on building skills and providing essential exam practice.
  This IELTS  book is divided into eight theme-based units covering a broad range of typical IELTS topic areas. Each unit covers one productive skill and one receptive skill. Units 1, 3, 5 and 7 consist of a Reading and Speakim section, while Units 2, 4, 6, and 8 consist of a Listening and Writing section. IELTS Express Intermediate Coursebook also includes:
  • a separate section on the IELTS General Training Writing module
  • a complete IELTS Practice test for both Academic and General Training modules
  • an Answer key
  • Listening scripts for all the recorded material
  • a Language bank of useful expressions for the IELTS speaking and writing exam tasks How is each unit section
IELTS Express Intermediate offers preparation for both versions of the IELTS test - Academic and General Training.

IELTS students preparing for the Academic module can:
  • work though Units 1-8
  • refer to the relevant sections of the Language bank
  • do the IELTS  Practice test for the Academic module

IELTS students preparing for the General Training module can:
  • work through Units 1-8
  • do Units GT 1A and GT IB, instead of Unit 2 and Unit 6 writing sections
  • do Unit GT 2
  • refer to the relevant sections of the Language bank
  • do the IELTS Practice test for the General Training module
You can buy this book HERE

IELTS Express 1 Intermediate Coursebook (Exam Essentials) (Bk. 1)

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READ MORE - IELTS Book - IELTS Express Intermediate

IELTS Book - Action Plan for IELTS (IELTS General Training)

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Publisher’s description:
Action Plan for IELTS is a short, intensive, low-level exam preparation guide, based around preparing for IELTS in the few weeks leading up to the test.
The book is organized in the same order as IELTS test (Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking modules) and examines each question type in detail. It gives students a last-minute action plan, providing examples, mini practice tasks and strategies to maximize their band score in the test. Action Plan for IELTS is available for both the Academic and General Training module. The Academic module is suitable for students around Band 6+ and the General Training module for students around Band 5+.
Purpose: Preparation for General Training Module of IELTS exam
Tests included: 1 Full General Training test
Answer keys: Included.
Explanation for the Answer keys: Included.
Answer sheets: Not included.
Listening Transcripts: Included.

Visit IELTS BOOK STORE for more IELTS BOOKS
READ MORE - IELTS Book - Action Plan for IELTS (IELTS General Training)

IELTS Book - Instant IELTS: Ready-to-use Tasks and Activities (Cambridge Copy Collection)

Monday, June 27, 2011

Author: Cambridge University Press
Published: 2004/05/06
Upper-intermediate, Advanced
British English
126 pages







READ MORE - IELTS Book - Instant IELTS: Ready-to-use Tasks and Activities (Cambridge Copy Collection)

IELTS Book - Check Your Vocabulary For IELTS English

Tuesday, June 21, 2011


Check your vocabulary for English for IELTS Examination is a workbook that has been written for students who are planning to sit either the IELTS general training or the IELTS academic modules of the IELTS exam. It covers some of the main vocabulary points that you will need for, or come across in, the listening, reading, writing and speaking sections of the exam.



I hope that you find the modules in this book useful and that the vocabulary you acquire will help you to achieve the grade you want in the IELTS.

Wanna find good books to study? Click here to go to IELTS BOOK STORE




Leave comments below to share your favourite IELTS BOOKS to everyone.
READ MORE - IELTS Book - Check Your Vocabulary For IELTS English

IELTS Reading - Academic Reading - The Family of Germanicus

This part of the test should take 17 -20 minutes

The Family of Germanicus


Germanicus is not a name that many people are familiar with today, but the man and his family are central figures in the story of one of the most colourful imperial dynasties the world has ever known – the Julio-Claudians.
The Julio-Claudians get their name from two families of the old Roman republic. Both families were old. The Julians had an impeccable aristocratic pedigree, while the Claudians were one of the most politically powerful families in the state. The two were thrown together into an alliance during the troubles which gripped Rome during the fall of the Republic.
Julius Caesar, the most famous member of the Julian family, led his legions in the conquest of Rome. Though Caesar was a great general, he lacked the political skills to control the Roman senate and Caesar was killed by the senators during one of their meetings. Another round of civil wars followed, and Caesar's great-nephew, Augustus, became the ruler of Rome.
In contrast to Caesar, Augustus was a superb, uncompromising and ruthless politician. Early in his career he realized that his family could not rule alone, and he allied himself with the Claudians by marrying a woman called Livia Drusilla. Livia was not only a Claudian herself, but the former wife of another Claudian. She had two children by her first marriage, Tiberius and Drusus.
When he grew up, Drusus married Antonia, the daughter of Mark Antony. They had two children, one called Claudius and the other named Tiberius after his uncle and grandfather (Tiberius was a common Roman name, and often used for members of the Claudian family.)
Tiberius joined the army while he was still a young man, and turned out to be an excellent soldier. At the time, the Romans were busy with a major war in Germany. This war had not been going well, and the Romans lost a number of legions during a major battle in the Teutonwald forest. Tiberius was one of the commanders who helped to restore the power of Rome, and to celebrate his victories, and to distinguish him from his uncle, the soldiers started calling him Germanicus.
Germanicus, or Nero Claudius Drusus Germanicus to give him his proper name, was not only an excellent commander, but one who took great care that his soldiers were well supplied and looked after. He was loved by the troops he commanded and this love helped him to bring the legions back under control when they mutinied on hearing of the death of Augustus.
Since Augustus had no sons he had adopted Tiberius, the uncle of Germanicus. As the son of Augustus, Tiberius became emperor after him. Augustus had known how popular Germanicus was, and considered adopting him instead of Tiberius, but instead adopted Tiberius and made Tiberius adopt Germanicus. His plan was that power should go from himself, to Tiberius and then to Germanicus and his sons. Germanicus had already become closer to the Julian family by his marriage to Agrippina, the grand-daughter of Augustus.
Sadly, the glittering career of Germanicus did not happen. From Germany he want to Asia Minor where he again won victories for Rome, but on his return from a trip to Egypt he became ill and died. Some modern historians believe that Germanicus died of malaria, but Germanicus and his wife were both convinced that he had been poisoned by his enemies. Among those they suspected was Tiberius, the emperor, since it was felt he wanted power to pass to his own son rather than to Germanicus.
With the clear line of succession destroyed, members of the imperial court started to plot and scheme to see who would be emperor after Tiberius, who was already an old man. The conspiracies drew in the surviving members of the family of Germanicus, and the two eldest boys were accused of treason and killed. One daughter, Julia Livilla, was married to the son of Tiberius and is believed to have poisoned him – partly to help the plots of her lover and partly to avenge the 'poisoning' of her father. Agrippina, the wife of Germanicus was exiled and starved herself to death.
One boy survived, a young man called Gaius. Tiberius made him live in his house where he could watch him carefully, but also because Tiberius was true to his promise that when he died the children of Germanicus would come to power. Gaius did indeed become emperor, but the mental stress of the earlier years could not be undone, and he is known today as the mad emperor Caligula.
Gaius Caligula was assassinated, but history had not done with the children of Germanicus. The next emperor was Claudius, the brother of Germanicus. He married, another daughter of Germanicus called Agrippina after her mother. Agrippina, a direct descendant of Augustus, was thus the wife and niece of Claudius, the sister of Caligula, and eventually, the mother of another emperor. This was Nero, the tyrant emperor whose death marked the end of the descendants of Germanicus and the Julio-Claudian dynasty of emperors.

Fill in the missing names in this family tree

Family Tree

Augustus
married
1.








Julia

Tiberius Drusus
married
Antonia





Agrippina
married
Germanicus
2.




3. Drusilla Agrippina Drusus Nero Gaius Caligula










Nero





Decide if the information below is true or false or not given
TrueFalseNot given
4. Agrippina, wife of Germanicus killed herself
5. Augustus was the great-great-grandfather of Nero
6. Claudius was the father-in-law of Caligula
7. Antonia was Livia's daughter-in-law
8. Agrippina was the daughter of Tiberius
9. Two of Germanicus' children died soon after birth
10. Nero had no brothers or sisters
11. Julia Livilla plotted to poison her lover

Fill in the family relationship described below
A. Grandmother     B. Stepson     C. Brother     D. Mother-in-law     E. Daughter     F. Grandson     G. Nephew
12. Livia was Antonia's ......
13. Gaius Caligula was Claudius' .......
14. Germanicus was Livia's ........
15. Antonia was Gaius Caligula's ......
16. Drusus was Augustus' ......

Answers
1. Livia
2. Claudius
3. Julia Livilla
4. true
5. true
6. false
7. true
8. false
9. not given
10. not given
11. false
12. D
13. G
14. F
15. A
16. B

Source:  English-online
READ MORE - IELTS Reading - Academic Reading - The Family of Germanicus

IELTS Book - The Best Books for IELTS

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

As you know, there are 2 modules of IELTS: Academic and General.

Academic is usially taken by future students and General - by immigrants. Listening and Speaking sections are the same for both Academic and General, while Reading and Writing sections are different.
This is why there are 2 study books:

"Target Band 7" for Academic IELTS  and  "Ace The IELTS" for General IELTS Module.

If you are preparing to take Academic IELTS, buy this book:


If you are preparing to take General IELTS, buy this book:
 
For more IELTS Book, please visit our Online Book Store
READ MORE - IELTS Book - The Best Books for IELTS

IELTS Speaking - Samples of IELTS Speaking Modules

Questions which were asked during real IELTS speaking. The whole speaking part of both academic IELTS and general IELTS took less than fifteen minutes.

In the first part of the IELTS speaking module the interviewer will be asking questions about general topics such as your name, hobbies, family, native city etc.

In the second part of the IELTS speaking module you will be given from one to two minutes to prepare a two-minute talk on a given topic.

Academic IELTS Speaking Module 1
  • Part 1 of the IELTS Speaking Module


    1. What's your name?
    2. What do you do?
    3. Where do you come from?
    4. Do you like your country?
    5. What do you like about your country?
    6. What street do you live in?
    7. What is the street called?
    8. Why is your street called this way?
    9. Do you like your street?
    10. What do you like in your street?
    11. Do you like living in Kharkov city? Why?
    12. Are you a city dweller? Why?
    13. What do you like doing with your friends?
    14. What is your favourite meal?
    15. Who cooks in your family?
    16. What is their best meal (house special)?

  • Part 2 of the IELTS Speaking Module


    1. Tell me about an important event in your life.
    2. Follow-up question. Do you prefer celebrating family occasions at home or in a cafe? Why?

  • Part 3 of the IELTS Speaking Module


    1. Is it important to celebrate different events in our lives?
    2. Are you a goal-settler? Why?

General IELTS Speaking Module I

  • Part 1 of the IELTS Speaking Module


    1. What's your name?
    2. Are you working or studying?
    3. How long have you been working for this company?
    4. What are you main duties?
    5. What do you like about work you do?
    6. What do you want to change or improve in it?
    7. Do you like shopping?
    8. What do you usually shop for? What food?
    9. What items do you buy? Why?
    10. What time do you do the shopping? Why?

  • Part 2 of the IELTS Speaking Module


    1. Describe a child you know.
    2. How old is he or she?
    3. What does he look like?
    4. How are you related?

  • Part 3 of the IELTS Speaking Module


    1. What kind of children activities are there available in your city?
    2. What do you need to do to interest a child in such activities?
    3. What activities do you think there will be in the future?
    4. What kind of pressure do children have at school?
    5. What is your view of the school of the future?

General IELTS Speaking Module II


  • Part 1 of the IELTS Speaking Module


    1. What is your full name?
    2. Where do you live?
    3. Tell me about the city you live in.

  • Part 2 of the IELTS Speaking Module


    1. How do people spend holidays in your country?
    2. Do you think the travelling industry is developing successfully in your country?

  • Part 3 of the IELTS Speaking Module


    1. What kind of travelling do you prefer in your country?
    2. What is your favourite food?
    3. What is your favourite restaurant?

READ MORE - IELTS Speaking - Samples of IELTS Speaking Modules

IELTS Reading - Academic Reading - Gondwanaland

Monday, July 5, 2010



This test is in two parts, one of eight questions, the other of five. For the first part you have to read the text, and then match the paragraph headings A - H with the paragraphs 1-8.

This part of the test should take 17 -20 minutes.

1. Meet Mesosaurus, a small reptile which lived in fresh-water lakes and streams millions of years ago during the lower Permain age. Mesosaurus has had a big impact on how we view our planet, because he helped to prove the existence of the super-continent called Gondwanaland.

2. Every schoolchild has probably looked at a map of the earth and noticed how Africa and South America fit together like pieces of a giant jigsaw, yet until just over a hundred and fifty years ago, no-one believed that this was more than an odd coincidence. It seemed impossible that the massive continents of the earth could ever be moved, let alone so far apart that they ended up half a planet from each other.

3. Nevertheless, in 1912 Alfred Wegener, a German meteorologist came up with the theory that the continents of the earth had all existed in a single mass, which he called Pangaea (which is Greek for 'all the world'') Later researchers decided that Pangaea had been two continents, one to the north of the other, which had existed about 250 million years ago. From the geological evidence found in the Gondwana area of India, an Austrian geologist, Eduard Suess coined the name 'Gondwanaland' for the southern supercontinent, of which India was once a part. (The northern continent was called Lurasia.)

4. For many years super-continents were regarded as an interesting theory, but no-one knew how it might work in reality. Then the discovery of the mechanisms of plate tectonics showed how continents might drift across the face of the globe. Once it was accepted that the continents were floating on currents of lava, more evidence became apparent. A particular type of an early plant, the seed fern, was found on continents now scattered about the southern hemisphere of the world, as were tillates, a deposit left by glaciers in the Permo-Carboniferous era of 520 million years ago. And Mesosaurus, the little fresh-water reptile, left his remains in West Africa and Brazil. Since Mesosaurus had no way of crossing the Atlantic, researchers realized that it could not be coincidence that this reptile had left remains in exactly the place where Africa and South America fit together so neatly.




5. By investigating similarities in animal fossils, different types of plants found in the southern hemisphere but not in the northern hemisphere, and patterns of rock formations, researchers have managed to put the continents of modern-day earth together like a huge jigsaw to make up the vanished super-continent. Sometimes rock formations can be seen to break off at the ocean's edge, to carry on once more thousands of miles away on another continent. The evidence shows that not only were Africa and South America once joined to Antartica, but so were India and Australia, parts of south Western Europe, and Florida.

6. Although Gondwanaland was located in the far southern hemisphere of the planet, where Antarctica remains today, the climate was much warmer, and we know that huge forests grew there. These forests, fossilized into coal, supply many Indians with energy today. The land animals were adapted to life on their cool continent, with its long dark winter days. Some of the best known dinosaurs, such as Stegosaurus, Triceratops, and Tyrannosaurus lived on the northern continents, but Gondwanaland also had some fearsome predators such as Abelisaurus, a large meat-eater that lived during the cretaceous period. The seas were populated with fish called placoderms, a name which they get from their skin, which was so thick that they were practically armoured.

7. The break-up of Gondwanaland had huge consequences for planet earth as we know it now. In geological terms, India has been a sprinter. Breaking from Gondwanaland the sub-continent drifted rapidly northward from the south pole, finally smashing into Asia about 45 million years ago in a collision that raised the Himalayas.

8. When South America split off about 30 million years ago the effect was even more dramatic. Cold Antarctic water no longer mixed with warmer seas when pushed northward by the south American landmass. Instead it circled the pole getting colder and colder, until Antartica lost its vegetation and animal life, and became the barren icy wilderness it is today.

  1. Finding the evidence
  2. The living continent
  3. Small but significant
  4. Making modern Antartica
  5. Putting it all together
  6. Joining another continent
  7. An impossible idea
  8. What's in a name?

Choose from the phrases below to complete sentences which best summarize the points made by the writer. Write the name of the phrase that completes the point in the box after the first part. You only need four of the phrases given.

9. For many years the existence of Gondwanaland
10. The discovery of plate tectonics
11. Evidence for Gondwanaland
12. In the past Gondwanaland
13. The break-up of Gondwanaland

  1. was dominated by the theories of European scientists
  2. had a large population of plants and amimals
  3. demonstrated that continents can indeed drift apart
  4. partly explains why earthquakes and volcanoes happen
  5. was because Mesosaurus existed on two modern continents
  6. has been found in geological formations and fossils
  7. smashed into the Asian landmass 45 million years ago
  8. was nothing but speculation
  9. had huge effects on the climate of the Earth
  10. was believed to be a legendary lost continent

Answers:

1. C
2. G
3. H
4. A
5. E
6. B
7. F
8. D 9. P
10. K
11. N
12. J
13. Q


Source:  English-online
READ MORE - IELTS Reading - Academic Reading - Gondwanaland

IELTS Speaking

The speaking module is the same for the general and academic exam. The test takes an average of about fifteen minutes to complete. Unlike some other speaking exams you have your own examiner. The examiner does not make up the questions you will be asked - the questions are written down on a sheet called the 'examiner frame'. The only part where the examiner has more control is the third part of the test where the examiner can change the language level to what is considered suitable to the skill that you have shown in the first parts of the test. The conversation is recorded, so if the idea makes you nervous, practice with a recorder to make sure you are used to this happening.


http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41RMP3F4TEL._SL500_AA300_.jpg


Here are the different parts of the test (you can also see the parts in more detail after this introduction):



Part 1




The examiner introduces herself. (Your examiner might be a woman or a man. Since our experience is that examiners are slightly more likely to be women, we will use the female pronoun here.) You are expected to introduce yourself as well. You will need to show that you are the person who is on the list of candidates. After this you will be asked some general questions on topics on the examiner's question sheet.


This part takes four or five minutes



Part 2




This is sometimes called the 'long turn'. You have to look at a question topic. You have a minute to prepare what you want to say on the topic, and then you have to speak on it for about a minute. Afterward, the examiner will ask one or two questions based on what you have said.


This part takes about four minutes



Part 3




The examiner will ask you questions, usually on the topic that you have just talked about. Often these are more 'abstract'; such as 'What is your opinion of ...?' or 'What would you do if ...?' This part is meant to be in the form of a conversation, so you have to keep your part of the conversation going.


Marking


You are assessed on four things (criteria)




  • Fluency and Coherence

  • Lexical Resource

  • Grammatical Range and Accuracy

  • Pronunciation




Fluency and coherence checks whether you can talk in a normal manner without long silences, and that you can join up your ideas. So a long 'errrrrrrrrrrr ...' followed by silence will lose you marks while 'Now, there was something else I wanted to say about that ... no, sorry, I've forgotten.' means exactly the same but will impress the examiner! Use of 'link words' like 'also', 'after that' 'but on the other hand' helps to give continuity to sentences.

Lexical resource comes in two parts - how good your vocabulary is, and how good you are at coping with gaps in your vocabulary by putting the idea in a different way. Unless your vocabulary is exceptional, you will sometimes find yourself looking for a word. Rather than stop talking, your examiner wants you to say the same thing differently. For example, you should know the word 'envelope' but if you suddenly find a horrible blank where that word should be, you should simply say 'the thing that you put letters into before you post them'.

Grammatical range and accuracy. Again there are two parts to this. Your grammatical range is whether you can move smoothly to (for example) passives or perfect tenses if that is the best way of getting your meaning across, and secondly how well you do this. It is no use trying to use a wide range of grammatical structures if all you are doing is demonstrating that in fact you can't do it! On the other hand, if you can use a variety of grammatical forms, then you must show this to the examiner.

Pronunciation. You are expected to have an accent. An accent shows where you are from, and no-one should be ashamed of that. But if you pronounce words so badly that it is difficult to understand you, or if your word and sentence stress, level and rhythm come at the wrong time (for example raising your tone in the middle of a question, rather than at the end), then you will lose marks.


Hints




(There are more of these in the detailed description of each speaking section)

You are tested on your ability to communicate. Don't try to impress your examiner with your wide knowledge of grammatical forms or your huge vocabulary. Concentrate on getting your ideas across, and use the grammar and vocabulary that is most suitable for this.

Make sure that you have a few topics prepared - your favourite book, where you live, what you think about some movies or celebrities. But if you don't get the opportunity to talk about something you have prepared, don't do it anyway. The examiner will know if you change the subject to a 'prepared topic'.

It is not absolutely compulsory to tell the truth. Liars can be good at English too. If you are asked about your hobby, and you don't have one, but you know a lot about skateboarding because it's your brother's hobby, talk about skateboarding as if that was YOUR hobby.

Finally, relax! The examiner has only 15 minutes to discover how good you are at English. You know, (or should know) approximately how good your speaking is. If you come in looking depressed and frightened, you are telling your examiner 'I don't think my English is good enough, I think I will fail.' Why give the examiner the benefit of that opinion?

READ MORE - IELTS Speaking

IELTS Writing

Both the academic and general training modules of the IELTS are in two parts and last for one hour. The first task is shorter, and requires the candidate to write about 150 words. This task is worth one third of the marks for the paper, and therefore you should not spend more than 20 minutes on it. The second part should be about 250 words long and should take the remaining 40 minutes.



With both tasks, it is important to make sure that you understand what you have to do before you start writing. You can make notes on the question paper to help you to plan exactly what you are going to write on the answer sheets.


Remember that the examiners are looking for a clear, logical statement of what you want to say. So your reply must answer all the points required, going from one to the other in a logical way, and using plenty of connecting words and phrases, such as 'and so ...' 'as well as' 'Firstly', 'Secondly' and so on.


You will get marks for using a wide range of appropriate sentence structures and vocabulary, but not if you torture your sentences to show how many language structures you can fit into one paragraph!


While your essays do not have to be exactly 150 and 250 words long, you will lose marks if an essay is too long or too short. Also if you are going to to repeat information that was given in the question, make sure that you rewrite it into your own words. If you make a mistake while you are writing, don't scribble it out, but just draw a single line through the words you have got wrong, and write the correction after it.



Academic writing


Task 1




Here you will be given some graphical information which you have to summarize into a short report. This is often a graph, a table or a flowchart. (Flowcharts are boxes joined by lines showing how something happens. If more than one thing can happen the box will have extra lines coming from it showing the results of each outcome.) The examiners want to check that a candidate can interpret visual information and describe it, using appropriate language to point out the most significant items of data. Make sure you spend some time making sure that you understand what the visual information is trying to tell you, and do not worry if you do not know some of the technical words - use a short description instead. It is usually a good idea to start with a sentence giving a short description of what the entire question is about. (For example 'This describes haw many people use a gym during the week; when they use it, and what facilities they use.' or 'This describes how to unpack a computer and connect the different parts together.') Remember, your job is to summarize and present the information rather than to give your opinion about it.


General Training


Task 1




This is usually a letter in which you are given a particular problem or situation. You will be told what the situation is. (For example asking someone to attend a job interview.) There will be three 'bullet points' summarizing the information you have to give. (Remember not to simply copy this information word-for-word into your letter.) The question will usually let you know what tense you should use. for example the example above would require a future tense, whilst another, for example thanking someone for a nice dinner, would require a past tense. Remember that you must cover each of the 'bullet points' in the question, and organize what you have to say clearly and logically.


Academic and General Training


Task 2




This is a discursive piece of writing. This means that you must attack or defend an opinion, present your own opinion, or evaluate an issue. For both Academic and General Training this requires an organized extended piece of writing.

For example you may be be given this statement 'Children today have too much money and free time'. You may be asked to discuss this - to present arguments why this statement is true, and compare these arguments with those against this idea. You may be asked to argue for, or against the opinion. Whatever the discussion topic, you should be prepared to give your opinions and justify them, and to challenge contrary opinions. You may also be asked to find the cause, or suggest a solution to a problem. Remember also that the main question might have several sub-questions, so with the example above remember to discuss the issues of money and free time.

Candidates are marked on how clearly and convincingly they present their argument, not on whether the examiner agrees with them. Grammar, a good range of vocabulary and the ability to put a case together will all be assessed. Candidates doing the General Training module can illustrate their points with personal experiences and anecdotes.

It is generally a good idea to start by summarizing the argument. Then present briefly the main points against the opinion you want to express. Then refute these points, give your own points and several supporting sentences, and conclude with a summary of your main point and where the discussion should go from there. (For example an essay on 'Will the internet mean that one day people might never want to leave their houses' might finish with the words 'Therefore, no matter how good information technology becomes, people will still want to travel, and transport networks will have to exist for them.')

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IELTS Reading

This part of the exam lasts for 60 minutes. You will have to do three sections, and answer 40 questions. You get one mark for each correct answer. The passages and the questions are on the exam paper, and you need to put your answers on an answer paper. If you have put your answers on the question paper first, you will not be given extra time to copy them onto the answer paper. You will lose marks for bad spelling and grammar in your answers.



The IELTS is more varied than many other EFL exams, and the types of question and types of reading test can change. So in the IELTS it is very important to regard the instructions as part of the test, and read them very carefully. Even if you are running out of time, do not try to answer the questions before you are sure that you understand what you have to do.


The questions too can be of many different types. You might get multiple choice (usually you need to choose one of four options, or you might be given a statement and asked whether - according to the text - this information is true, false, or not given). You may have to give short answers or put missing words into a sentence. (With these last two, check carefully how many words you can write, and remember that this total includes articles and prepositions, but not punctuation.)


You might also be asked to select titles for the different parts of the text, fill in a chart or a table, or locate answers in a paragraph. (For this the paragraphs are numbered, and remember, the information you need will probably not be described with the words used in that paragraph.) You might also be asked to name the paragraph when the writer given an opinion about something. With this and with finding answers, you may have a choice which says that the information is not given in any of the paragraphs.


Each passage might have questions of one, two, three or four of the question types listed above. You almost always have at least two types.


Remember, with all reading exercises, it is a good idea to look at the questions before reading the passage. Then when you see what might be a possible answer in the test you can remember it and go back to it again when you start answering the questions. In the IELTS reading, time is always a problem. You should not divide the time into three 20 minute sections, but rather give slightly less time to the first test (16-18 minutes) and more to the last test (20-23 minutes).


The reading is either the Academic or the General Training module. You cannot mix up your modules and take (for instance) the General Training reading module and the Academic writing module. When you enrol to do the exam, you must say whether you are doing the General Training of the Academic vesrion of the exam, and you will only do the reading from the version you have selected. Therefore you only need to read the information about both modules if you are not sure which version of the exam you want to do. Otherwise, you only need to look at the information about your version of the exam.


Academic Reading module.


There are theee passages which together contain between 2,000 and 3,000 words, though the three passages will not all be the same length. For example one 'passage' might have a diagram or a graph without much text and you will be given questions that test whether you have understood the information being shown. (If any of the words in the diagram are unusual or technical, you will be given an explanation of the meanings.)


Another passage will be the sort of thing that you might find in a magazine or a book. This will be 'real' material (material that actually was published somewhere) and is chosen from things that would interest a person studying at university, or is the sort of thing that teachers require their students to read.


One passage is always an argument. Here 'argument' means that the writer has an opinion about something, and it trying to prove that this opinion is right. You do not have to disagree or agree with the opinion, but the questions will check that you have understood what the writer is trying to say, and you have understood the way that he has tried to prove his opinion.


With all the passages, you need to make sure that you understand what the text is about and how it is put together. (i.e. Whether it is a narrative, an argument, or presenting facts.)


General Training Reading module


Unlike the academic section, which has three passages of text (or two passages and a 'non verbal' section such as a graph or a diagram), the three sections of the General Training module can each have several shorter texts.


Section 1 will have two or three texts. These are from the sort of thing that you would need to understand if you were living in an English-speaking country. For example you might get the sort of instructions you would find on a sign, an advertisement, or part of an instruction manual for a product. You might also find texts from books or magazines. to answer the questions you will have to prove that you can find the important information in these texts, and are not confused by things like idioms or 'headline' English.


The second section is often a bit harder, so give it more time. This time there will probably be one or two texts, usually from an instruction manual, or (for example) from a booklet welcoming you to your new job and explaining how the system works.


Section three is generally a single text. It is usually the sort of reading you might find in a magazine. This is often a narrative or a description, though an interview is possible. Again this section is generally harder than the two previous sections, so allow more time to complete it.


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