EMPLOYEE: Hello, Picturerep. Can I help you?
WOMAN: Oh, hi. I saw your advertisement about copying pictures to disk and I’d like a bit more information about what you do.
EMPLOYEE: Sure. What would you like to know?
WOMAN: Well, I’ve got a box full of old family photos that’s been up in the attic for years, some of them must be 50 or 60 years old, and I’d like to get them converted to digital format.
EMPLOYEE: Sure, we can do that for you.
WOMAN: Right. And what about size? The photos are all sorts of sizes – are there any restrictions?
EMPLOYEE: Well the maximum size of photo we can do with our normal services is 30 centimetres. And each picture must be a least 4 centimetres, that’s the minimum we can cope with.
WOMAN: That should be fine. And some of them are in a frame – should I take them out before I send them?
EMPLOYEE: Yes please, we can’t copy them otherwise. And also the photos must all be separate, they mustn’t be stuck into an album.
WOMAN: OK, that’s not a problem. So can you give me an idea of how much this will cost? I’ve got about 360 photos I think.
EMPLOYEE: We charge £195 for 300 to 400 photos for the basic service.
WOMAN: OK. And does that include the disk?
EMPLOYEE: Yes, one disk – but you can get extra ones for £5 each.
WOMAN: That’s good. So do I need to pay when I send you the photos?
EMPLOYEE: No, we won’t need anything until we’ve actually copied the pictures. Then we’ll let you know how much it is, and once we’ve received the payment, we’ll send the parcel off to you.
WOMAN: Right.
—————————
EMPLOYEE: Is there anything else you’d like to ask about our services?
WOMAN: Yes. I’ve roughly sorted out the photos into groups, according to what they’re about – so can you keep them in those groups when you copy them?
EMPLOYEE: Sure. We’ll save each group in a different folder on the disk and if you like, you can suggest a name for each folder.
WOMAN: So I could have one called ‘Grandparents’ for instance?
EMPLOYEE: Exactly.
WOMAN: And do you do anything besides scan the photos? Like, can you make any improvements?
EMPLOYEE: Yes, in the standard service each photo is checked, and we can sometimes touch up the colour a bit, or improve the contrast – that can make a big difference.
WOMAN: OK. And some of the photos are actually quite fragile – they won’t get damaged in the process, will they?
EMPLOYEE: No, if any look particularly fragile, we’d do them by hand. We do realise how precious these old photos can be.
WOMAN: Sure.
EMPLOYEE: And another thing is we can make changes to a photo if you want – so if you want to remove an object from a photo, or maybe alter the background, we can do that.
WOMAN: Really? I might be interested in that. I’ll have a look through the photos and see. Oh, and talking of fixing photos – I’ve got a few that aren’t properly in focus. Can you do anything to make that better?
EMPLOYEE: No, I’m afraid that’s one thing we can’t do.
EMPLOYEE: Any other information I can give you?
WOMAN: Er … oh, how long will it all take?
EMPLOYEE: We aim to get the copying done in ten days.
WOMAN: Fine. Right, well I’ll get the photos packed up in a box and post them off to you.
EMPLOYEE: Right. If you’ve got a strong cardboard box, that’s best. We’ve found that plastic ones sometimes break in the post.
WOMAN: OK. Right, thanks for your help. Bye.
EMPLOYEE: Bye.
Good morning and thank you for coming here today. I’d like to bring you up to date with changes in the school that will affect your children.
As you know, the school buildings date from various times: some from the 1970s, some from the last five years, and of course Dartfield House is over a century old. It was commissioned by a businessman. Neville Richards, and intended as his family home, but he died before it was completed. His heir chose to sell it to the local council, who turned it into offices. A later plan to convert it into a tourist information centre didn’t come about, through lack of money, and instead it formed the nucleus of this school when it opened 40 years ago.
The school has grown as the local population has increased, and I can now give you some news about the lower school site, which is separated from the main site by a road. Planning permission has been granted for development of both sites. The lower school will move to new buildings that will be constructed on the main site. Developers will construct houses on the existing lower school site. Work on the new school buildings should start within the next few months.
A more imminent change concerns the catering facilities and the canteen. The canteen is always very busy throughout the lunch period – in fact it’s often full to capacity, because a lot of our pupils like the food that’s on offer there. But there’s only one serving point, so most pupils have to wait a considerable time to be served. This is obviously unsatisfactory, as they may have hardly finished their lunch before afternoon lessons start.
So we’ve had a new Food Hall built, and this will come into use next week. It’ll have several serving areas, and I’ll give you more details about those in a minute, but one thing we ask you to do, to help in the smooth running of the Food Hall, is to discuss with your children each morning which type of food they want to eat that day, so they can go straight to the relevant serving point. There won’t be any junk food – everything on offer will be healthy – and there’s no change to the current system of paying for lunches by topping up your child’s electronic payment card online.
You may be wondering what will happen to the old canteen. We’ll still have tables and chairs in there, and pupils can eat food from the Food Hall or lunch they’ve brought from home. Eventually we may use part of the canteen for storage, but first we’ll see how many pupils go in there at lunchtime.
————————
OK, back to the serving points in the Food Hall, which will all have side dishes, desserts and drinks on sale, as well as main courses.
One serving point we call World Adventures. This will serve a different country’s cuisine each day, maybe Chinese one day and Lebanese the next. The menus will be planned for a week at a time, so pupils will know what’s going to be available the whole of the week.
Street Life is also international, with food from three particular cultures. We’ll ask pupils to make suggestions, so perhaps sometimes there’ll be food from Thailand, Ethiopia and Mexico, and then one of them will be replaced by Jamaican food for a week or two.
The Speedy Italian serving point will cater particularly for the many pupils who don’t eat meat or fish: they can be sure that all the food served there is suitable for them. There’ll be plenty of variety, so they shouldn’t get bored with the food.
OK, that’s all on the new Food Hall. Now after-school lessons. There are very popular with pupils, particularly swimming – in fact there’s a waiting list for lessons. Cycling is another favourite, and I’m delighted that dozens of pupils make use of the chance to learn to ride in off-road conditions. It means that more and more cycle to and from school every day. As you know, we have a well-equipped performance centre, and we’re going to start drama classes in there, too. Pupils will be able to join in just for fun or work up to taking part in a play – we hope to put on at least one a year. We already teach a number of pupils to use the sound and lighting systems in the centre. And a former pupil has given a magnificent grand piano to the school, so a few pupils will be able to learn at the school instead of going to the local college, as many of them do at the moment.
SUSIE: So Luke, for our next psychology assignment we have to do something on sleep and dreams.
LUKE: Right. I’ve just read an article suggesting why we tend to forget most of our dreams soon after we wake up. I mean, most of my dreams aren’t that interesting anyway, but what it said was that if we remembered everything, we might get mixed up about what actually happened and what we dreamed. So it’s a sort of protection. I hadn’t heard that idea before. I’d always assumed that it was just that we didn’t have room in our memories for all that stuff.
SUSIE: Me too. What do you think about the idea that our dreams may predict the future?
LUKE: It’s a belief that you get all over the world.
SUSIE: Yeah, lots of people have a story of it happening to them, but the explanation I’ve read is that for each dream that comes true, we have thousands that don’t, but we don’t notice those, we don’t even remember them. We just remember the ones where something in the real world, like a view or an action, happens to trigger a dream memory.
LUKE: Right. So it’s just a coincidence really. Something else I read about is what they call segmented sleeping. That’s a theory that hundreds of years ago, people used to get up in the middle of the night and have a chat or something to eat, then go back to bed. So I tried it myself.
SUSIE: Why?
LUKE: Well it’s meant to make you more creative. I don’t know why. But I gave it up after a week. It just didn’t fit in with my lifestyle.
SUSIE: But most pre-school children have a short sleep in the day don’t they? There was an experiment some students did here last term to see at what age kids should stop having naps. But they didn’t really find an answer. They spent a lot of time working out the most appropriate methodology, but the results didn’t seem to show any obvious patterns.
LUKE: Right. Anyway, let’s think about our assignment. Last time I had problems with the final stage, where we had to describe and justify how successful we thought we’d been. I struggled a bit with the action plan too.
SUSIE: I was OK with the planning, but I got marked down for the self-assessment as well. And I had big problems with the statistical stuff, that’s where I really lost marks.
LUKE: Right.
SUSIE: So shall we plan what we have to do for this assignment?
SUSIE: First, we have to decide on our research question. So how about ‘Is there a relationship between hours of sleep and number of dreams?’
LUKE: OK. Then we need to think about who we’ll do they study on. About 12 people?
SUSIE: Right. And shall we use other psychology students?
LUKE: Let’s use people from a different department. What about history?
SUSIE: Yes, they might have interesting dreams! Or literature students?
LUKE: I don’t really know any.
SUSIE: OK, forget that idea. Then we have to think about our methodology. So we could use observation, but that doesn’t seem appropriate.
LUKE: No. it needs to be self-reporting I think. And we could ask them to answer questions online.
SUSIE: But in this case, paper might be better as they’ll be doing it straight after they wake up … in fact while they’re still half-asleep.
LUKE: Right. And we’ll have to check the ethical guidelines for this sort of research.
SUSIE: Mm, because our experiment involves humans, so there are special regulations.
LUKE: Yes, I had a look at those for another assignment I did. There’s a whole section on risk assessment, and another section on making sure they aren’t put under any unnecessary stress.
SUSIE: Let’s hope they don’t have any bad dreams!
LUKE: Yeah.
SUSIE: Then when we’ve collected all our data we have to analyse it and calculate the correlation between our two variables, that’s time sleeping and number of dreams and then present our results visually in a graph.
LUKE: Right. And the final thing is to think about our research and evaluate it. So that seems quite straightforward.
SUSIE: Yeah. So now let’s …
Dancing is something that humans do when they want to have a good time. It’s a universal response to music, found in all cultures. But what’s only been discovered recently is that dancing not only makes us feel good, it’s also extremely good for our health.
Dancing, like other forms of exercise, releases hormones, such as dopamine, which make us feel relaxed and happy. And it also reduces feelings of stress or anxiety.
Dancing is also a sociable activity, which is another reason it makes us feel good.
One study compared people’s enjoyment of dancing at home in front of a video with dancing in a group in a studio.
The people dancing in a group reported feeling happier, whereas those dancing alone did not.
In another experiment, university researchers at York and Sheffield took a group of students and sent each of them into a lab where music was played for five minutes. Each had to choose from three options: to sit and listen quietly to the music, to cycle on an exercise bike while they listened, or to get up and dance. All were given cognitive tasks to perform before and after. The result showed that those who chose to dance showed much more creativity when doing problem-solving tasks.
Doctor Lovatt at the University of Hertfordshire believes dance could be a very useful way to help people suffering from mental health problems. He thinks dance should be prescribed ad therapy to help people overcome issues such as depression.
It’s well established that dance is a good way of encouraging adolescent girls to take exercise but what about older people? Studies have shown that there are enormous benefits for people in their sixties and beyond. One of the great things about dance is that there are no barriers to participation. Anyone can have a go, even those whose standard of fitness is quite low.
Dance can be especially beneficial for older adults who can’t run or do more intense workouts, or for those who don’t want to. One 2015 study found that even a gently dance workout helps to promote a healthy heart. And there’s plenty of evidence which suggests that dancing lowers the risk of falls, which could result in a broken hip, for example, by helping people to improve their balance.
There are some less obvious benefits of dance for older people too. One thing I hadn’t realised before researching this topic was that dance isn’t just a physical challenge. It also requires a lot of concentration because you need to remember different steps and routines. For older people, this kind of activity is especially important because it forces their brain to process things more quickly and to retain more information.
Current research also shows that dance promotes a general sense of well-being in older participants, which can last up to a week after a class. Participants report feeling less tired and having greater motivation to be more active and do daily activities such as gardening or walking to the shops or a park.
Ballroom or country dancing, both popular with older people, have to be done in groups. They require collaboration and often involve touching a dance partner, all of which encourages interaction on the dance floor. This helps to develop new relationships and can reduce older people’s sense of isolation, which is a huge problem in many countries.
I also looked at the benefits of Zumba. Fifteen million people in 180 countries now regularly take a Zumba class, an aerobic workout based on Latin American dance moves. John Porcari, a professor of exercise and sport science at the University of Wisconsin, analysed a group of women who were Zumba regulars and found that a class lasting 40 minutes burns about 370 calories. This is similar to moderately intense exercises like step aerobics or kickboxing.
A study in the American Journal of Health Behavior showed that when women with obesity did Zumba three times a week for 16 weeks, they lost an average of 1.2 kilos and lowered their percentage of body fat by 1%. More importantly, the women enjoyed the class so much that they made it a habit and continued to attend classes at least once a week – very unusual for an aerobic exercise programme.
Dance is never going to compete with high-intensity workouts when it comes to physical fitness gains, but its popularity is likely to keep on rising because it’s such a fun way to keep fit.
Questions 1-10
Complete the notes below.
Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
Questions 11-15
Choose the correct letter, A , B or C .
Minster Park
Questions 16-18.
What comment does the speaker make about each of the following serving points in the Food Hall?
Choose THREE answers from the box and write the correct letter, A-D , next to Questions.
A pupils help to plan menus
B only vegetarian food
C different food every week
D daily change in menu
Food available at serving points in Food Hall
Questions 19-20
Choose TWO letters, A-E .
Questions 21-24
Assignment on sleep and dreams, questions 25-30.
Complete the flow chart below.
Write ONE WORD ONLY for each answer.
Assignment plan
Questions 31-40, health benefits of dance.
Recent findings:
- All forms of dance produce various hormones associated with feelings of happiness.
- Dancing with others has a more positive impact than dancing alone.
- An experiment on university students suggested that dance increases 31 .
- For those with mental illness, dance could be used as a form of 32 .
Benefits of dance for older people:
- accessible for people with low levels of 33
- reduces the risk of heart disease
- better 34 reduces the risk of accidents
- improves 35 function by making it work faster
- improves participants’ general well-being
- gives people more 36 to take exercise
- can lessen the feeling of 37 , very common in older people
Benefits of Zumba:
- A study at The University of Wisconsin showed that doing Zumba for 40 minutes uses up as many 38 as other quite intense forms of exercise.
- The American Journal of Health Behavior study showed that:
– women suffering from 39 benefited from doing Zumba.
Cambridge IELTS 16 Academic Listening Test 2
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IELTS Advantage
IELTS Preparation Courses
Ielts preparation- ✍️ everything you need to know.
IELTS preparation involves understanding the test format, how it is marked and then making a plan to achieve your desired score. To do this, you will need to improve your English, practice test skills and join a preparation course to check your progress before registering for the test.
How to Prepare for the IELTS Test
Below is a quick checklist to help with your IELTS preparation:
- Understand the test format
- Know how the test is marked
- Surround yourself with English
- Make a plan of action
- Join a preparation course
- Practice with sample questions
- Perfect your IELTS skills
- Check your progress
- Register for the test
Join the Best IELTS Preparation Course.
IELTS Preparation: Pass 3x Faster
One of the most popular questions I get on my YouTube Channel is:
Chris, how can I prepare for my IELTS exam quickly ?
Truthfully, the answer to this question will be different for every person reading this article, which makes it difficult for me to give one solution that will help everyone.
However, I can tell you how to prepare for your exam PROPERLY!
Find out how to improve your preparation and accelerate your IELTS journey here:
Why is IELTS Preparation So Difficult?
Quite simply, so much information is out there, and students do not know which sources they can trust . IELTS can take months (sometimes years!) of hard work and thousands of dollars in tuition and test fees, so there is a lot of pressure to get it right the first time.
There are three main things you need to improve:
- General level of English (Slow)
- Test skills (Medium)
- Knowing how the test is marked (Fast)
Improve Your General Level of English
IELTS is essentially an English language test; therefore, the higher your level of English, the better your score should be. Simply studying IELTS skills and doing practice tests will not be enough if your level of English is not high enough.
As indicated above, this is probably the slowest part of your preparation. Most English schools recommend at least 6 months to improve a student’s level of English by the equivalent of 0.5- 1 band score.
I will show you how you can improve your general level of English at home below.
Perfect Your Test Skills
There are four parts to the IELTS test- Writing, Speaking, Reading and Listening. Each of these parts has many different possible questions, each of which has a specific skill you need to acquire.
For example, academic students can expect to see one of seven different types of questions in Task 1 Writing. Each of these different types of questions requires differing skills.
The Listening and Reading tests have over 10 different types of questions each. Again, all of these questions require a different strategy and set of skills.
Most of your IELTS preparation should be spent learning these skills, and when these are combined with a high level of English, it should result in a high score.
Learning these skills does not take as much time as learning the language itself, but does take a significant amount of time. Most schools recommend spending 2-3 months learning these skills.
I will address how to improve these at home below.
Know How the Test is Marked
The fastest and most effective way to improve your score is knowing exactly what the examiners want and giving it to them. Most of my teachings are based on this principle.
However, you can’t simply learn this and get a high score; they should be combined with improving your level of English and test skills.
Below we will look at the official marking criteria to help us understand what the examiner wants.
Step-by-Step Approach to IELTS Preparation
1. decide if you are doing general training or academic.
2. Understand the Test Format
3. Set Realistic Goals
The keyword here is ‘realistic’. There is a big difference between the score you want and the score you will get.
Effective preparation will help you succeed and ensure you get the best score possible, but it does not ensure miracles.
Click here to read our article: How Long Will it Take Me to Get the Score I Need?
4. Understand Marking Criteria
The article below will explain the band scores, how examiners decide them and the official marking criteria used to mark your test. Click the link below.
- IELTS Scores
5. Understand the Different Question Types
There are more than 10 different types of questions for Reading and Listening. Again, there are more than 10 different kinds of questions on the Writing test.
Knowing these will give you a huge advantage because each of them requires a different approach and strategy. I have them all for you in each of the skills sections below.
6. Perfect Your IELTS Skills
As mentioned above, there are many different approaches and strategies that you need to succeed in IELTS. For example, do you know how to write an effective introduction and conclusion? Do you know how to develop your answers in the speaking test? Do you know how to quickly locate the correction information in the reading test?
All of these skills will be addressed below.
7. Improve Your Vocabulary
Vocabulary is a huge part of the IELTS test. It covers 25% of your total mark in Speaking and Writing. It is also tested in the Reading and Listening tests.
You should implement a vocabulary improvement plan as quickly as possible. Click below to download one now.
8. Practice English Every Day
When it comes to improving your English, there really is no substitute for practising a little every day.
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of ways you can practice every day, and it doesn’t have to be doing boring IELTS tests. My most successful students found something they enjoyed doing in English and then did this regularly. The more you use English; the more your skills will improve and the higher your chance of getting the score you need.
Below are lots of ways to improve your English at home:
- 25 Free Online Language Learning Tools
- 7 Great Ways to Learn English at Home For Free
You can also combine learning English with the most common IELTS topics. Some topics, such as the environment, education, and technology, come up again and again. Reading and listening to these common topics is a very powerful technique that will help you improve your vocabulary and your ideas while improving your English.
Below you will find links to the most common IELTS topics.
- Common Essay Topics
- Speaking Topics
9. Practice Tests
You should do IELTS practice tests to establish your current band score and familiarise yourself with the test.
However, there are two things that I should warn you about before doing these.
The first thing is that there are lots of fake tests. These tests can be found online or in your local bookstore. Where I live, there are hundreds of books in my local store, all claiming to offer ‘official’ tests. The problem with this is that they are often written by people who know nothing about IELTS and are simply looking to make a few dollars.
Fake tests can be very misleading and often prevent students from understanding the real test.
You should only do tests from official and trustworthy sources. The best sources of past papers are the Cambridge Past Papers books .
Below are other reliable sources of practice tests:
British Council
IELTS Essentials
The second thing I want to warn you about is not making these the only part of your IELTS preparation. Lots of students that I know do IELTS practice tests all day, every day, and most of them improve very little. They should only be used as a test of your current ability. You should spend most of your time improving your level of English and your IELTS skills.
If you are practising all week, you should only be really doing 1 or 2 practice tests. In other words, they should be a very small but important part of your preparation.
You’ll find a full list of practice study materials in our resource guide and our practice guide .
10. Get Your Speaking and Writing Assessed
You must get a qualified teacher to assess your speaking and writing. They will be able to tell you your current level, but more importantly, they will be able to tell you what your weaknesses are.
This is probably the most important part of your IELTS preparation. If you do not know your weaknesses, you are wasting a lot of time because you have no idea what to focus on. You must focus on things you are not good at to improve.
The most effective strategy for IELTS preparation is to find out your weaknesses, go away and work on them and then come back and have your work assessed by an experienced IELTS teacher. They can then tell you if you have improved and advise you on what to focus on next.
Please click the link below if you want me to assess your writing.
Essay Correction Service
How will I know that I’m ready for the IELTS exam?
Hundreds of thousands of students fail the IELTS exam each year for one simple reason:
They took the test before they are ready for it!
In my experience, there is only one question you need to ask yourself to decide whether you’re ready for the IELTS exam.
Find out what it is here.
IELTS Writing Task 2 Preparation
Writing Task 2 Skills
Below are links to complete guides on the essential Writing Task 2 skills.
- Question Analysis
- Ideas Generation
- Complex Sentences
- Introductions
- Main Body Paragraphs
- Conclusions
- Cohesive Devices
Full Lessons
Below you will find complete lessons on each of the different Task 2 question types.
- 8 Steps to Success
- Opinion Essays
- Discussion Essays
- Problems/Causes and Solutions
- Advantages and Disadvantages
- Sample Answers
Below you will find a link to lots of Band 9 sample answers. Use these to compare and assess your writing.
IELTS Writing Task 1 (Academic) Preparation
Writing Task 1 Lessons
Below are links to complete guides on the essential Writing Task 1 skills.
- Academic Task 1 Checklist
- Task 1 in 5 Easy Steps
- How to Paraphrase
- How to Write an Overview
- Charts Lesson
- Maps Lesson
- Multiple Graphs Lesson
- Process Lesson
- Grammar and Vocabulary Guide
IELTS Writing Task 1 (General) Preparation
Below you will find all the help you need to prepare for Task 1 if you are doing General Training.
- How to Write an Informal Letter
- How to Write a Formal Letter
- Letter Writing Tips
- GT Task 1 Strategy
IELTS Speaking Preparation
In part 1, you will be asked questions on familiar topics. Click below for lots of sample questions and answers.
- Part 1 Common Topics and Sample Answers
- Easy Ways to Extend Your Answers
- Part 1 Dos and Don’ts
This test part allows you to speak for longer on a given topic.
You will be given a card with a particular topic on it, including key points that you should discuss.
You will be given one minute to plan, and then you will talk for between 1-2 minutes.
Below are some tips that I give to all of my IELTS Speaking classes:
- Speaking Part 2 Tips
- Speaking Part 2 Strategy
In part 3, the examiner will ask further questions linked to the topic discussed in part 2.
This part of the test is designed to allow you to talk about things more abstractly.
- Part 3 The Ultimate Guide
- Part 3 Common Questions
- Part 3 Tips
IELTS Speaking Skills
Below you will find several posts designed to help you improve your IELTS speaking exam technique:
- How to Talk About an Unfamiliar Topic
- Is Accent Important?
- IELTS Speaking Tips
- IELTS Speaking Topics
IELTS Speaking Criteria
You must understand the criteria examiners use to assess your speaking. Here is a guide:
- Speaking Criteria
IELTS Reading Preparation
There are several different questions on the IELTS reading test, and each has its own problems and strategy. Click on any of the links below for a full step-by-step guide.
- Short Answer Questions
- Multiple Choice
- Summary Completion
- Matching Sentence Endings
- Sentence Completion
- True, False, Not Given
- Matching Headings Tips and Strategy
- Labeling a Diagram
- Matching Information to Paragraphs
- Secret to Getting a 9 on Your Reading Test
- Top 10 IELTS Reading Tips
IELTS Listening Preparation
Below is a list of resources to help you prepare for the IELTS listening test at home.
- Summary Completion Lesson
- IELTS Listening Overview and Tips
- IELTS Listening Form Filling Question Tips
- IELTS Listening Practice
- Multiple Choice Questions
- Labelling a Map or Plan
- Best Podcasts for English Learners
Test Day Advice
You are now ready for your test, and your IELTS Preparation is complete. Here is a checklist to ensure you do your best on test day:
- Get to bed early. You’ll need lots of sleep.
- Eat a good breakfast. Eat more than you normally do so that you won’t get tired and hungry. Protein and fat are better than simple carbohydrates.
- Wear comfortable clothes. This isn’t a time for showing off your fashion sense.
- Don’t forget to bring your ID and essential documents.
- Make sure you know where the test centre is and how to get there.
- Get to the test centre early. Do not throw away all of your IELTS preparation by being late.
- Find out where everything is, including your test room and the toilets.
- Bring some water and some sugary food or drinks. Don’t drink too much because bathroom breaks will take up time.
- Do not panic. Stress is normal. Use that nervous energy to focus, but do not allow it to control you.
- Do not hesitate to ask the staff for help if you need anything. They are there to help you.
Action Plan
Now that you know what to do, it’s time to make a study plan.
Everyone will use do this differently; however, below are some of the things you need to consider when making your study schedule:
1. The date of your test:
How many days/weeks before your test?
Is it flexible, i.e. can you change the date?
2. How much time do you have per day to study?
You should aim to be able to study in peace and totally focus on what you are doing.
Do you have more time on particular days, such as Saturday and Sunday?
What other commitments do you have?
Are there any commitments you can stop doing until you take your IELTS test? This will free up a lot of time.
You should be realistic about this. Be honest with yourself.
3. What is your current English level?
The higher your general level of English, the faster you can complete this course.
4. What is your learning style?
Can you normally understand everything the first time, or do you have to go away and think about it alone?
Do you prefer to study with other people or by yourself?
I recommend sitting down with a calendar and filling out all of the days you want to study with the things you need to do above. This will help you stay organised and reduce your stress about preparing for the test. This will also give you an idea of how much work you will have to do each study day.
You can do this with a paper calendar or use one of the many online apps.
The more organised you are now, the easier your preparation will be.
IELTS Band Scores
Full IELTS Band score calculators are available here.
Success Stories
We are very lucky to have many successful students who have shared their IELTS stories with you.
Click here to watch them now.
Below you’ll find testimonials from just some of our successful students.
From Failure to Band 8.5 in Just 1 Month
I am very proud of Sana. She failed to get the scores she needed the first time but kept going and got an amazing Band 8.5 overall.
She was kind enough to share her experience with you all in a detailed video.
Click here to watch it now.
I crowdsourced the questions from you guys, so thanks very much for that. In the video, we look at:
– How to identify your areas of weakness. – How to boost your level of English. – How much time did it take to reach 8.5? – Thoughts on the ‘perfect’ essay. – How to cope with stress. – + her advice for listening, reading, speaking and writing.
How This Doctor Went from Band 5.5 to 7.5 in IELTS
Doctor Aidrous is one of the students I am most proud of. He worked extremely hard to get the score he needed and moved from 5.5 to 7.5.
He showed up to all of my classes and steadily improved with each session.
He has kindly agreed to share his experience and inspire you.
Click here to watch his video now.
From IELTS Band 6.5 to Band 7 in 2 Weeks
Daniela was in the same position many of you are in. She got 6.5 in IELTS Writing but needed a 7.
She tried going to a big IELTS school in her hometown but didn’t get the help she really needed.
In just 2 weeks, we helped her get to a Band 7 level.
She kindly shared her experience with you in this video and gave great advice to anyone struggling with their writing.
Click here to watch her success story now.
How Crystal Achieved Band 8 After Failing her IELTS Test Many Times
I am proud of all my students, but I have to admit I have a soft spot for students who show massive amounts of perseverance, determination and consistency.
Crystal achieved a Band 8 overall after trying and failing many times.
She was kind enough to share her story with you all. In this video, we look at:
– How she identified her writing weaknesses. – How perfectionism was ruining her speaking performance. – How she achieved a Band 9 in Listening. – How she improved her vocabulary.
Click here to watch it now.
All of the students above attended one of my IELTS preparation courses.
You are probably thinking, ‘What makes you different?’
In a nutshell, our student’s success is our success, so we strive to create the best IELTS courses and services globally.
What also makes us different is our unique system.
- We first help you identify the exact reasons you are not getting the score you need. We do this by looking at your work and giving you feedback.
- We then teach you how to fix and turn weaknesses into strengths. We do this through our course video platform.
- You will then put what you have learned into practice, and we will continue giving you personalised feedback on what you are currently not doing well enough.
- We will help you refine and fix any problems until you can do everything effectively. You are then ready for the test.
For more information about our IELTS Preparation courses, please visit our VIP Academy . If you’d like to hear what our students have to say, you should read our VIP Academy Reviews . If you have any questions about joining, please feel free to email me- [email protected]
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IELTS Preparation FAQs
What is the ielts exam.
IELTS stands for 'International English Language Testing System' and is an English proficiency exam. This exam will test your reading, writing, speaking and listening skills. Click here to read our article that answers this question in more detail.
How much will the IELTS exam cost me?
You can find out by visiting the official British Council website here .
What score do I need to achieve?
We can't answer this question for you. You need to find out by contacting one of the following:
- Your employer
- Your immigration office
- Your school or university
How can I register for the IELTS exam?
You need to book your exam through an official IELTS body (eg. IELTS, IDP or the British Council). The IELTS website also has a useful online tool that shows you where your nearest test centre is. Check it out here.�
Can I get the certificate without taking the exam?
No. If you are told otherwise, it's likely that you're being scammed. Read more here .
How do I begin my preparation?
This depends on how new you are to IELTS. If you're completely new to IELTS, check out our article for IELTS beginners here . If you have a basic knowledge of the exam and need to organise your studies, check out our IELTS Preparation Guide here .
Do I need a study plan?
No, a study plan is not required to do well in the IELTS exam.
However, If I'm being honest, my most successful students share one key trait in common: the ability to create and follow a study plan. Doing so allowed them to set realistic goals, maintain a positive mindset and organise their studies in a controlled manner. You can find help with creating your own study plan in this article .
Is it possible to score a Band 8?
Yes, we have helped a large number of students score an overall Band 8 on their IELTS exam. You can watch their stories here .
Should I do IELTS General or Academic?
That depends on your reasons for taking the IELTS exam. You'll find a useful infographic which describes the difference between the two tests in our IELTS Preparation Guide.
The official IELTS by IDP app is here! Download it today.
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IELTS Academic assesses how well you can use English in an academic environment.
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Students applying to high schools or vocational training programs in English-speaking countries might need to take this test.
- IELTS for UKVI
If you would like to study at undergraduate or postgraduate level in the UK, you can take IELTS for UKVI.
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IELTS-Ready for the New Year: A 6-Week Plan for Busy Learners
Boost your IELTS confidence with our 6-week preparation plan for busy test takers. Learn how to manage your study time and stay motivated. Whether you’re new to IELTS or have taken the test before, our plan offers a range of options to help you reach your IELTS goals.
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The countdown to the New Year has begun! If you're a busy English learner aiming to take the IELTS test in 2024, we're here to help! In this 6-week plan, we'll show you how to build good study habits in your English learning journey so that you can confidently say you're on your way to being IELTS ready on January 1st. Best of all, each weekly focus comes with three easy-to-achieve options, each taking no more than one hour of your precious time.
Download My IELTS Study Plan
Week 1: Create Effective Study Habits
Before you start your preparation journey, it’s important to familiarise yourself with the IELTS test format. Once you know what the test looks like, follow these steps to build successful study habits.
Write down your target score and what English language skills you need to improve.
Take a look at the next five weeks of our study plan and choose the preparation materials that will help you most.
Review your plan each week. Add extra options or change what you’re studying if necessary.
Create a study schedule that suits your daily routine. Treat your study time like an important appointment you wouldn’t want to miss.
Choose a quiet place to study where you won’t be disturbed. Consider switching your phone to silent mode.
Stay motivated by using some of these effective study strategies to make sure you keep on track:
Share your study plans with a friend or family member for accountability.
Ask a teacher to give you feedback on your writing or speaking.
Reward yourself after each study session to celebrate your progress.
Week 2: Lift Your Listening
If you're taking the IELTS on computer test , the first section you do is Listening – which is why we’ve put it first on the study plan. Choose from three different options to fill your IELTS study hour this week.
Option 1: Free Practice Questions
Want to get an idea of what kind of questions you’ll see in the Listening test? Listen to conversations and monologues while completing multiple-choice, form completion and other common IELTS Listening questions with these free practice sample questions.
Option 2: Tips to Improve IELTS Listening Scores
If you’re looking for ways to improve your IELTS Listening score, don’t miss this free one-hour masterclass where IELTS expert Rocco Nigro shares his best tips and plenty of examples. As a bonus, the video also covers strategies you can use in the Reading section on the IELTS test.
Option 3: Practise with Podcasts
Looking for a less formal way to prepare for IELTS Listening this week? Listening to podcasts can help you get used to the different accents you might hear in your test. We’ve put together a list of our Top 10 podcasts to help you improve your English.
Week 3: Get Reading-ready
Preparing for this section of the test involves more than just reading. This week’s options will help you develop reading skills and strategies and build up your vocabulary.
Option 1: Free Sample Questions
Trying test preparation questions can help you find out what reading skills you need to improve. Explore these free IELTS Academic and General Training sample questions to learn about the type of questions that you can expect to see in the IELTS Reading test.
Option 2: Learn Reading Skills
What’s the best way to manage your time in the IELTS Reading test? This article offers lots of tips for improving your reading speed and finding information quickly.
Option 3: Read the News in English
When you’re preparing for IELTS, it’s important to expand your vocabulary so you can understand different types of texts. Breaking News English provides current news stories in seven different English levels with free vocabulary exercises to go with them.
Week 4: Boost Your Writing
Improving your writing skills for IELTS takes time, but finding the right resources doesn’t have to. This week’s options cover a mixture of writing skills as well as ways to include English writing practice into your daily routine.
Option 1: Practice Writing Topics
Familiarise yourself with the writing questions you might get on test day by downloading our free IELTS Academic and General Training Writing questions. We’ve also included sample answers to help you get the IELTS score you need.
Option 2: Improve Your Writing Band Score
Are you aiming for a band 7 or 8 in Writing? The two videos below take you through a step-by-step study plan to help you reach your desired score
7 Steps to help you reach a Band 7: IELTS Writing Task 2 - YouTube
8 Steps to help you reach a Band 8: IELTS Writing Task 2 - YouTube
Option 3: Keep a Daily Journal
Regular practice improves both your writing skills and self-confidence. Start a journal in English and write about your thoughts and experiences for ten minutes every day. Not sure what to write? Read these journaling tips for ideas.
Week 5: Advance Your Speaking
Improving your IELTS Speaking skills requires a clear study plan with regular practice. This week’s options offer three different study strategies to help you boost your confidence and speaking abilities.
Option 1: IELTS Speaking Practice Topics
Improve your IELTS Speaking skills by taking a closer look at the types of questions you might get on test day. Add these common IELTS speaking questions to your study plan and practise with friends to stay motivated.
Option 2: Improve Your Speaking Score
This one-hour video class takes you through the Speaking test format and assessment criteria. Watch examples of two-way discussions from IELTS Speaking tests that received bands 6, 7 and 8.
Option 3: Record Yourself
Talk about a different topic for five minutes every day. Record yourself on your phone and listen to the recording afterwards. This allows you to identify areas for improvement in pronunciation, fluency, vocabulary and grammar.
Week 6: Revision and Confidence
Congratulations on making it to Week 6! This week is all about building up your IELTS confidence by identifying any gaps you might have in your skills and knowledge.
Option 1: Free Mock Tests
Practise managing your time effectively by taking an online mock test under exam conditions. Analyse your results to identify your weaknesses so you know what to focus on for the rest of the IELTS study time.
Option 2: Understanding IELTS Scores
Read about how IELTS is scored. Look at the band descriptors for Writing and Speaking and find your desired band score. Identify the areas you need to improve and set aside time to work on these.
Option 3: What to Expect on Test Day
What does an IELTS test centre look like? And what do you need to bring on test day?
Take a virtual tour of an IELTS test centre to get a better idea of what to expect on test day.
Remember, consistency is the key to success. By starting with just one option a week, you'll be well on your way to achieving your IELTS goals. Stay connected with our social media channels, explore the additional preparation materials on our website, download our app and get involved with our community of learners for support and motivation.
You've got this! Start your journey to IELTS readiness today.
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