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IELTS Speaking Task Cue Card: A time when you changed your mind about something you had planned to do.

June 23, 2022 IELTS Research

IELTS Speaking Task Cue Card:

A time when you had to change your mind about something you had planned to do.

What was it?

Why did you have to change the plan?

How did you feel about it?

IELTS Speaking Task Cue Card: A time when you changed your mind about something you had planned to do. Best IELTS Band 7 Coaching in Dehradun

Sample answer

Plans are a very promising phenomenon that occurs regularly in our lives. But they change due to different factors. Many a time I have intended a lot of things with a lot of ambitions but had to cancel or change due to various reasons.

One such incident took place when I had planned a motorcycling trip to a hill station nestled deep in the crevices of the Himalayan Mountains, along with a few friends. On a warm summer day we were sitting at a cafe near my place, and while we enjoyed our drinks, when I suddenly came up with an idea to go to a beautiful location in the hills near Himachal Pradesh on our motorcycles. We all discussed the plan and after a lot of brainstorming, we finalized our visit in the upcoming month of May, during our vacations. I was very excited and took permission from my family as well. After their agreement, I started preparing for the expedition and confirming the trip to the last detail. Sadly, sometimes such things happen due to which our pre-planning goes for a toss. Two days before we had to leave, my friend came to me and told me about a devastating earthquake that happened in the area we had decided to visit.

As a result, I was despaired and had almost reached the point of tears. With a heavy heart, I then called up all my friends and told them about the last minute change and the cancellation of the trip. Even after the change of plan, I had decided to visit the place during the autumn and promised myself that I will propose this trip again.

(278 words)

word	meaning
Intended	planned or meant. Example – Julia had intended to gift David a book.
Crevice	A narrow opening. Example – Robert filled the crevice in the wall with cement.
Brainstorming	A productive group discussion. Example – The agents did some brainstorming to produce new ideas.

Another Similar Cue Card

Describe a plan in your life that is not related to the work or study.
You should say:

What is the plan?

How did you make it?

How will you approach in the plan?

And how would you feel if plan is successful?

SAMPLE ANSWER TWO:

Plan, not related to study or work is a plan that stems out of your interests and passions. That kind of plan is very interesting to be made. Other plans of study and work are merely the derivatives of the compulsions imposed on us by life. Many times, people are so busy in their lives, that it is only at the retirement, when they think that they didn’t plan or do anything to fan out their interests, but rather remained bugged in their work only. I have this plan of learning, how to play a harmonica. I have been very fond of listening to good music. In my childhood, I was gifted a mouth organ by my relative. I used to enjoy playing it for hours together and it is still my best companion. The kind of serenity and calmness that I feel, while I play my random tunes on it, is just out of this world. I feel so immersed and dissolved within myself. Therefore, I have this plan of learning harmonica from a skilled music teacher.

To execute this plan, I am planning to get enrolled in a music class with some good teacher. Because of my job schedules, I happen to travel to different places frequently. This is the reason due to which I am not able to join the class, which will prolong for at least 6 months, for me to be a non-amateur player. This time, due to the company’s assent, I might get the opportunity of staying longer in the present city of Dehradun. I have already started looking for a good music instructor for me. Few of them that I have found hitherto, are masters of hand operated instruments, so I am looking for someone who is better at air driven ones and very soon, I will be starting with it.

If I am able to learn play the harmonica well, I shall be feeling very delighted and cheerful. After proper classes, I shall be having grips on the tones and notes of music, which will enable me to play different kinds of music. I shall be enjoying it fully and will keep on practicing to become better and better.

STRONG WORDS

Word	Meaning
Prolong	continue for a period: Prolonged illness can bring severe weakness.
Amateur	one who is not very skilful: I am still an amateur in singing techniques.

Follow-up Questions

Q. 1 Why do we make plans?

Sample Answer: We generally make plans to execute a purposeful event in life that can be of good significance to us. For instance, if I plan to take up a course that can enhance my software skills, then it is done so as to have better, higher paying jobs in my offing. Similarly, if I plan to learn how to play a music instrument, then it is done to blossom my hobby which I enjoy pursuing.

Q. 2 Do children also make plans? What kind of plans?

Sample Answer: Yes, even a child of 3 to 4 years makes his plans. The only difference is that they involve very simple reasoning in their plain plans. They do not make complex elaborate plans rather simple ones. For instance, a small child may plan how should I convince my father to go to market so that I can have my favourite toy and so on.

Q. 3 Why do the plans fail sometimes?

Sample Answer: A person’s interests keep on shifting with the passage of time. For instance, I liked reading history till the time I was unaware of the past events. But once I knew most of those, I started reading psychology books. To know the what and how of brain and various processes and disorders related with it turned out to be an interesting read for me. Therefore, I think, based on the mind-set and changing interests, I keep on hopping on the subjects of different kind of books.

Q. 4 Do you like reading a story or watching that? Why?

Sample Answer: Most of the times, plans fail due to the lack of proper reasoning and concerted efforts in the right direction. Right mix of all the needed variables along with the right execution will not let a plan fail so easily. But still, some plans fail either due to lack of requisite resources or sometimes, due to reasons uncontrolled by us, can be called as environmental reasons. For instance, I plan to go for boating on the next day and it starts raining heavily then so I would have cancel my plan.

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IELTS Speaking Task Cue Card: Describe something useful you learned from a member of your family.

June 23, 2022 IELTS Research

IELTS Speaking Task Cue Card:

Describe something useful you learned from a member of your family.

What did you learn?

How did this become useful later in your life?

Explain why it was important for you?

joint-family Best IELTS Band 7 Coaching in dehradun

Sample Answer

I have been brought up in a joint family with thirteen family members. Apart from my parents, my family consists of my grandparents, two uncles, and their wives and children. My family has always believed in moral values and the strength they can provide to one’s character. Due to this, I have always learned something from every family elder. Apart from this, my elders have also taught me many practical things and activities. My uncle taught me swimming, my aunt taught me painting and art, and my elder siblings taught me how to play outdoor games.

Out of this long list, I have one memorable lesson that I remember is the power of reading that my grandmother taught me. She was a teacher in her early days and has always been a strict academic. Even in such an old age, she still reads many books, mostly spiritual and religious texts. She started teaching me how to read from an early age and helped me incite interest in it. With her help, I used to learn new words, and read something new every day. I understood the benefits of reading due to her.

She started inspiring me to read books other than my academic books. As the days passed and I spent more time with her, I realized that I had gained a lot of knowledge, and that too earlier than other children of my age. I have won many orations, debating, and writing competitions due to this habit. I am grateful to her for giving me inspiration and confidence as I know this habit has helped me with my studies and with my intellectual growth.

(297 words)

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7249900007

IELTS Band 7 Saharanpur
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IELTS CUE CARD: DESCRIBE AN OCCASION WHEN YOU GOT UP EARLY IN THE MORNING

June 20, 2022 IELTS Research

Describe an occasion when you got up early in the morning

When did you get up early

Why you got up early

What did you do?

And how you felt about it.

IELTS Speaking latest cue card 2020.Describe an occasion when you got up early in the morning. When did you get up early?

SAMPLE ANSWER

There is no doubt that getting up early in the morning is always a good idea. Since ages it has been advocated that getting up early is good for our health. I too try to get up early in the morning so that I can utilise my time in the morning by doing some physical exercise. Due to my hectic work schedule I do not get enough time for physical activities throughout the day.

If I recall a time when I had to wake up extremely early in the morning, it was when I was supposed to board my first flight. I was travelling from Mumbai to Delhi and I had to take early morning 7 am flight to reach Delhi to attend a seminar which was scheduled to begin at 10 am and I didn’t want to get late. So I decided to take a morning flight to reach there on time.

I asked my Mom to wake me up and I also set an alarm for 3 am so that I could leave my house well in time. As it was my first journey by air I was extremely excited and kept visualising my trip while I lay in bed.

When my alarm rang in the morning, it was very hard for me to wake up but then I forced myself and got up. I quickly got ready, had my breakfast and by 4 am I was on my way to the airport with my father in his car. We left early as we didn’t want to get stuck in the traffic jam, which is a usual sight on the road to the airport.

I reached the airport at around 5 am, passed through security and boarded the plane, excited and happy to start my first plane journey.

Ever since, I decided to be an early riser. And nowadays my profession also demands me to get up early in the morning.

STRONG WORDS

WORDS	MEANING
Hectic	full of activity
Visualising	to form a picture of someone or something in your mind.

Another Similar Cue Card

Describe a time when you got up early.

When was it and where?

Why did you get up early?

What did you do then?

And how did you feel then?

SAMPLE ANSWER TWO-

People generally follow a discipline in their lives regarding day to day activities. For instance, most of the people have their almost fixed schedule for waking, going to office and returning, evening walks or exercises and finally going to sleep at the end of the day. This routine, over a period of time, turns into an inseparable habit and one sticks to it necessarily. On the same pattern, we can generalize that youngsters usually have a habit of sleeping and waking up in the late hours and I am no exception here. Almost every night, I sleep around midnight hours and wake up around 8 in the morning. But, there was one-time period, which I can recall vividly, when I used to wake up at 3 am in the morning. It was, when I had a three-day stay with my parents in an Ashram in Hardwar.

Ashram had its own regulations and code of conduct. Whoever used to stay there, for spiritual reasons only, had had to attend the early morning rituals and needed to pay offerings to the fire god. Even though there was no punishment ascribed for the absence, but the spirituality factor itself was the primary motivation for my parents, who then enjoined me to be a part of the morning ceremony.

After waking up, we had to make up our beds first and then we needed to take ablution in cold Ganges water. Thereafter, we had to adorn the particular clothing provided by ashram and stand in the queue, waiting for our turn to sit around fire pits and pay offerings.

Well, since I was habituated to wake up late, therefore it was a painstaking task for me for the first two days. My father used to switch on the lights and started hymning bhajans which automatically made me awake, although with a little irritation. But, once I became the part of that community consciousness in the rituals and ceremonies, I used to feel a very pleasant divine feeling. Meditative practices and postures, followed afterwards, dispersed waves of tranquillity in those crimson lights of the early dawn. I, then felt the importance of the morning calm and woke up voluntarily on the third and final day.

STRONG WORDS

Word	Meaning
Enjoin	instruct, urge: Schools were enjoined to conduct online classes in Covid.
Ablution	holy bath: Hindus perform ablution before worship.
Tranquility	peace, calmness: Meditation helps in keeping mind tranquil.
Crimson	deep red: Milk turns crimson if heated for longer periods.

Follow-up Questions

Q. 1 Why do people wake up early?

Sample answer: Manyatimes, people wake up early to take up their personal chores in the morning hours. For instance, morning hours are considered suitable for exercises and religious prayers. Similarly, those who have to commute long distance to offices, also wake up early to reach on time.

Q. 2 What are the benefits of waking up early?

Sample answer: With less vehicular congestion and limited polluting avenues in the morning, it is beneficial to perform physical exercises in the early hours. Apart from that, morning hours give us ample of time to be prepared for the forthcoming events during the day time. We can utilize these extra hours to clear the backlogs, if any, and do the necessary arrangements for the day. It is also believed that morning study enables quick learning and better retention of the texts, therefore it is favourable time for students too.

Q. 3 Why do children and youngsters generally wake up late?

Sample answer: Lack of responsibility and absence of active job are the crucial reasons due to which youngsters spend a lot of time on entertainment and other activities in the night. Also, it is a common trend, nowadays, for the students to study late in the night and wake up early. Although, those who are involved in the sports activities possess the habit of waking up early.

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IELTS Speaking cue card: A friend who cleverly solved a problem

June 20, 2022 Pooja Ph.D. CELTA

IELTS Speaking cue card: A friend who cleverly solved a problem

Talk about a friend who cleverly solved a problem
You should say:

Who he/she is?

What the problem was?

What solution he gave?

And explain why you think his solution was clever.

IELTS Cue Card solved a problem

Sample Answer

We come across many problems in our day-to-day life. Some people can find workable solutions while others may seek help for tackling their problems. Today, I’m going to talk about a close friend who gave an effective solution to my problem. His name is Rishabh Agarwal. He is from Haryana. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering.

I’m the manager of a primary school in Mumbai. It rains heavily in Mumbai in the rainy season which lasts from mid-June to early October. School kids cannot play any outdoor games during these months because playgrounds become slippery and muddy. The long rainy season affects children’s health and moods as well. It’s also not possible for kids to be in sport halls all the time. I discussed this problem with Rishabh and asked for his advice to handle this situation.

He came up with a clever idea of having pedals installed in school desks so that kids can pedal in classrooms. I loved his creative idea and thought of implementing it in our school. Within a month pedals were installed in five classrooms. It was an experiment to check kids’ response. To our surprise, children started using pedals regularly and the overall outcome was very positive. All students became physically active and their fitness and health levels improved dramatically. In studies too, kids did considerably well.

In my view, Rishabh’s solution was very clever for two main reasons. First of all, it was very practical. Secondly, it was not expensive. If the school had to spend a lot of money on this solution, I think it wouldn’t have been approved by the management committee. Sometimes a complex problem has a simple solution, we have to just strike the right note. I think those who use their knowledge in a practical way are better problem-solvers.

Some more ideas for this cue card

You were getting sleepless nights. Your friend recommended making your own tongue twisters and automatically falling asleep in the process.
Water glasses in your kitchen were full of hard water stains. You asked your friend for advice, who recommended mixing vinegar in your cleaning liquid. Amazing results.
Your child/nephew/cousin dropped their curry on a newly painted wall in a temper tantrum. It was looking ugly. Your friend helped you out by creating a swirly crème and brown design on the wall. It looked professional.

Another Similar Cue Card

Describe when a person solved a problem in a smart way.
You should say:

What was the problem?

Who solved it and how?

And w

hy do you think it a smart way?

SAMPLE ANSWER TWO:

We encounter so many problems in our everyday activities, which need only a spark of an idea to tackle with them. But, often, due to the lack of right reasoning along with the panic in our heads, the problem appears to be a herculean task and we fail to find the right solution. Similarly, I can recount an incident, when the sheer smartness and instantaneous wits of my friend helped tackle the situation in an unnoticed, humorous manner. During my school days, I used to take part in dramatics and had also won a few accolades in it. So, once, during an act in a very lengthy play in an Inter Public School Drama Competition, I met this forgetfulness of my dialogues. As it was a very crucial act, my forgetfulness could have brought embarrassment and eventually the poor scores to our school team.

It was then, when my friend and co actor Aditya came to my recue on the stage. In that act, there were a number of dialogues coupled together, which I had to speak in one go. My friend was acting as a villain in that play. I recited the initial lines glibly but then, suddenly, I lost the memory of my successive dialogue and began fumbling. Generally, it takes a few seconds lapse for the immersed audience to acknowledge the forgetting error in actors in a play; but once it happens, it results into a sarcastic laughter from their side and a total collapse of the successive act. So, before that could happen to us, my friend Aditya, who was there with me in that particular act, sprung up with a boisterous laugh, characteristic of a typical villain. He instantaneously gazed into my eyes, as if giving me the time to recollect the dialogues. Within a flash of time, I was able to remember my part. Once he got the affirmative gesture from me, he discontinued laughing and I resumed with my dialogues.

Well, the spontaneity, with which my friend came up with this additional laughter act, was equivalent to the drop of a hat. He not only disallowed the audience to take cognizance of that error, but, additionally, he also won brownie points for his sudden laughter. I think that was the only best thing to do at that time, which he did. I was highly impressed with his outstanding wits and presence of mind.

STRONG WORDS

Word	Meaning
Glib	smooth, in a flow: Student gave glib excuses to the teacher for his late arrival in the class.
Boisterous	loud and cheerful: Children often exhibit boisterous laughs rather gentle smiles.
Fumble	act/speak clumsily: Writing essays in a fumbled manner doesn’t give clarity in the text.
Prodigious	very big extent: Internet network worldwide is very prodigious.

Follow-up Questions

Q. 1 Why can’t most people act smartly amidst problems?

Sample Answer: I think, when a person is stuck in a problem, they usually ponder over the problem only, which makes it appear prodigious. This leads to the panic in their minds and an overall confusion which results in a further distance from the solution. Their hearts start sinking and minds go blank of knowledge which results in the total surrender to a problem.

Q. 2 How should one handle a problem?

Sample Answer: I think, one should not perceive the problem as a true problem. It should be considered as a little glitch only, in the path of accomplishment. One should treat it lightly and focus on the ideas to find a way out. Earnest efforts put together with a smart approach can make any problem go disappear.

Q. 3 Are problems good or bad to a person?

Sample Answer: By the first look, any problem appears to be the worst adversary to the person. But, actually, they serve as a mean to learn new skills and better coping mechanisms. It was the problem only, that gave birth to new inventions and innovations. For instance, problem of not having light in the night gave birth to Edison’s invention of light bulb. Every wrong path actually leads to a reduction of the total no. of paths and finally we are left with the right solution only.