IELTS Speaking: Musical Instruments Questions and Answers

by 11 Comments

It is possible to be asked about musical instruments in all parts of the IELTS speaking test. Below are some questions which mostly appear in part 1 but questions 4 to 5 can appear in part 1 and part 3. Two model answers are given below as well. This is topic currently being used in 2017.

You can vocabulary for types of musical instruments here: Musical Instruments Word List

Questions: IELTS Speaking Musical Instruments Topics

Check some possible questions for this topic:

  1. Did you ever learn a musical instrument as a child?
  2. If you could learn a musical instrument, what would you choose?
  3. If you had a child, what musical instrument would you encourage him/her to play?
  4. What traditional instruments are there in your country?
  5. Do you think traditional musical instruments have a place in modern society?
  6. How do you think traditional music could be made more popular?

Sample Answers for Part 1

Q. Did you ever learn a musical instrument as a child?

A. No, I didn’t but I always wish I had. If I had had the chance, I would have learned the guitar. The problem was that my parents thought it was more important to focus on school work than learn to play an instrument.

Q. If you could learn to play any musical instrument, what would you choose?

A. I think I’d probably go for the violin. It’s such a beautiful stringed instrument and I think the music that can be played on it, can be really haunting and moving. Yes, I’d definitely choose that one.

Sample Answer for Part 3

Do you think traditional instruments have a place in modern society?

Absolutely yes. Traditional instruments are part of our heritage and our identity. I believe that all school children should have the opportunity to learn to play one of them a part of their music lessons. For example, the tabla, which is like a pair of wooden hand drums, is a traditional instrument in our country and is part of most traditional songs. So, learning it would enable children to appreciate their country’s musical history more.

Recommended for IELTS Speaking:

Common Topics for Speaking Part 1

Free Video: Common Question Types in Speaking Part 1

Part 3 Common Mistakes

Current Topics in Speaking 2017

All Speaking Tips & Model Answers

Musical Instruments Vocabulary

All Vocabulary for IELTS

Main IELTS Pages

Develop your IELTS skills with tips, lessons, free videos and more.

Get my free lessons by email

Subscribe for free to get my new IELTS lessons sent to your email inbox.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,

IELTS Speaking Part 1: Vegetables

by 24 Comments

It is possible to get a topic about vegetables in IELTS speaking part 1. Below are some of the possible questions with a model answer and also a link to learn vocabulary for this topic.

  1. Do you like vegetables?
  2. Are there any vegetables you dislike?
  3. Did you like vegetables when you were a child?
  4. Are vegetables popular in your country?
  5. Do most people eat vegetables with their meal in your country?
  6. Are there many vegetarians in your country?
  7. Do you think it is important to eat vegetables?
  8. How can parents encourage their children to eat more vegetables?

Model Answers

  • Question: Do most people eat vegetables in your country?
  • Answer: Yes, they do. Almost every meal has either rice or potatoes and also another vegetable as well, such as cabbage, carrots, green beans or something like that. Quite a lot of people have a small proportion of vegetables to meat but at least they always have some kind of vegetable with their meal.

 

  • Question: Are there many vegetarians in your country?
  • Yes, quite a lot. Many people choose to avoid eating meat and their diet consists of both vegetables and grains. There are quite a few restaurants in my city which cater to vegetarians and offer the most wonderful dishes such as fried aubergine, spinach and potato, onion cakes and things like that. They’re actually very delicious.

Click the link to learn vocabulary for vegetables

Get my free lessons by email

Subscribe for free to get my new IELTS lessons sent to your email inbox.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,

IELTS Speaking Part 1: Clothes

by 26 Comments

Here are some questions for a common topic in IELTS speaking part 1 – clothes.

  1. Do you often buy clothes?
  2. Are clothes important to you?
  3. What kinds of clothes do you prefer to wear?
  4. What kinds of clothes do you wear most days?
  5. Would you ever spend a lot of money on clothes?
  6. Do you think men and women have the same view of clothing?

Model Answer

  • Question: What kinds of clothes do you prefer to wear?
  • Answer: If I could choose, I’d wear casual clothes everyday. I feel much more comfortable wearing jeans and a t-shirt or a jumper. Unfortunately, my work forces me to wear formal clothes like a suit or trousers with a smart shirt which I really don’t like so I only get to wear casual clothes on my days off.

Get my free lessons by email

Subscribe for free to get my new IELTS lessons sent to your email inbox.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,

Sample Answers for Travel and Transport in Speaking Part 1

by 43 Comments

Below are sample answers for the the topics of travel and transport for part 1 of the IELTS speaking test.

Travel

Q. Do you often travel abroad?

A. Not much, to be honest. I don’t get many days off in a year but when I do have time off, I mainly spend that time with my family in my hometown.

Q. When is the best season to travel in your country?

A. I guess it would be spring. That’s when the weather starts warming up and all the flowers start blossoming. It’s a really beautiful season and most places are at their best at that time. Unfortunately, it’s a busy time for tourists as well but that still doesn’t diminish the beauty of the countryside.

Q. Where would you recommend a foreign to visit in your country?

A. Without doubt, London. Not only is it our capital, but it also has some of the most iconic buildings in our country. I don’t think any visit to England is complete without seeing the Tower of London, London Bridge or Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. They really are very impressive pieces of architectural work and can’t be missed.

Transport

Q. How did you get here today?

A. I came by bike because the roads are pretty congested at this time and a bike is quicker. It only took me about 15 minutes to get here.

Q. Do you often use public transport?

A. Yes, I do. I use the bus almost everyday. It’s the cheapest way to get around even though it’s really overcrowded and not particularly punctual.

Q. How could the transportation system be improved in your country?

A. Well, I think the first step to improvement would be to widen the roads and build to overpasses and underpasses to help traffic flow more freely which would reduce the congestion in the city center. Also, it would help if the bus service was improved to make it run more frequently which would help with the overcrowding in rush hour. I think those are the two main changes that need to happen.

Recommended

Speaking Part 1 Topic of Sleep with a Sample Answer and Vocabulary

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,

IELTS Speaking Part 1 Topic: Travel & Transport

by 7 Comments

It is common to get the topic of travel or transport in IELTS speaking part 1. These topics can actually be divided into subtopics which are all be asked in part 1, see the list below:

  • Holidays
    • Weekend Breaks
    • Hotels
    • Traveling Abroad & Culture
    • Public Holidays (Celebrations and Festivals)
    • Days off work
    • Trips
    • Journeys
  • Tourist Attractions
    • Historical Attractions
    • Museums and Galleries
    • Statues and Monuments
  • Private & Public Transport
    • Bicycles
    • Cars
    • Driving
    • Buses
    • Trains
    • Planes
    • Walking
  • Getting Around
  • Roads
  • Traffic

As you can see above, there are a number of subtopics for the topics of travel and transport. Make sure you prepare a range of ideas and vocabulary for all topics and subtopics.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: ,

Tourism and The Local Community

by 32 Comments

Below are some ideas for the advantages and disadvantages which tourism brings to a community. These ideas can be used both for speaking part 3 and also writing task 2 in IELTS.

Essay Question

Over the last few decades, there has been an increase in international tourism. Some people think that tourism is beneficial for local communities and should be encouraged.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Speaking Part 3 Questions

  1. Do you think tourism is a good thing?
  2. Why do you think some people  believe tourism to be bad for local communities?
  3. Do you think local communities change as an effect of tourism?
  4. Do you think there are more advantages than disadvantages of tourism for local communities?

Don’t forget we are looking at the effects of tourism as an industry rather than a tourist as a person. Don’t confuse the two.

Advantages of Tourism

  1. Tourism brings money and boosts the economy.
  2. It offers employment to local people.
  3. It offers fresh perspectives on life and culture.
  4. Locals usually need to learn English to talk to tourists which can have beneficial long term effects.
  5. To boost tourism, local communities often invest money on improving the infrastructure which has lasting positive effects.

Disadvantages of Tourism

  1. Tourism can create a economic dependency which can be detrimental to the community if it is not sustainable.
  2. Tourism can have a negative impact on the local environment in terms of pollution.
    1. noise pollution from tourist entertainment
    2. air pollution from increased transportation
  3. Tourism can cause friction between locals and tourists, if local culture is not respected.
  4. The bulk of the money brought in by tourism rarely finds its way into local hands and instead lines the pockets of the middle man (the tour operator).

 

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking, IELTS Writing Task 2 Tagged With: ,

IELTS Speaking Part 2: Will I get a low score if I speak for less than 2 mins?

by 452 Comments

In speaking part 2, you will be given a topic, 1 min to prepare and then  you will need to speak for between 1-2 mins. The examiner will not move on to part 3 until 1 minute has passed of your talk and the examiner will stop you at exactly 2 minutes to prevent you speaking further. So, this means you have between 1 and 2 minutes available to you for your talk.

Speaking part 2 is the only part of the test where you can show the examiner that you can speak at length. So, if you are aiming for a higher score, this is a great opportunity to impress the examiner with fluency.

However, if you run out of things to say after 1 minute then tell the examiner you have finished so that the examiner can move on to the next part of the test. You can say ‘I’ve finished’.

Here are some more points to consider:

  • It is better to give a strong, fluent talk for 1.5 minutes than a weak, hesitant talk for 2 mins.
  • You can still get a high score if you only speak for 1.5 minutes but only if the quality of your talk is very good.
  • The criterion of fluency accounts for 25% of your marks and is taken from your overall performance in all parts not only in part 2.
  • If you wish to lengthen your talk,  then add more information. The prompts (the points on the topic card) are only guidelines – you can and should expand on each one.

Get my free lessons by email

Subscribe for free to get my new IELTS lessons sent to your email inbox.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: ,

IELTS Speaking Part 3: Technology Questions and Model Answer

by 25 Comments

Technology is a popular topic in speaking part 3. Below are some common questions with a model answer underneath.

  • What modern technological devices are most common in your country?
  • Do you think modern technology is useful?
  • Do you think people rely too much on technology?
  • Do you think men and women view technological devices differently?
  • Why do you think people spend so much money buying the latest devices?

Model Answer

  • Question: Do you think men and women view technological devices differently?
  • Answer: Yes, I do. For starters, men are usually more obsessed with gadgets. They are almost like children with the way they want to play with the latest gizmos and learn all their new functions. They are constantly fiddling around with their new toys. I also think that gadgets are a kind of ego for men. I mean they often compare their new toys with each other to see who has the best one. Women, on the other hand, are more down to earth and see devices more rationally as a means to communicate with others or to perform a particular function. Of course, this is pretty stereotyped but it seems to hold true for most men and women I know.

Useful Expressions

  • fiddling around with something = playing with something
  • down to earth = realistic, practical
  • stereotyped = putting people into a group or categorising them not based on fact

Note:  As you can see this model answer is from a woman’s perspective, if you would like to give a sample answer from a man’s perspective, please post it in the comments box. Feel free to post your answers to other questions as well.

Recommended

Technology Vocabulary for Speaking

Get my free lessons by email

Subscribe for free to get my new IELTS lessons sent to your email inbox.

Filed Under: IELTS Speaking Tagged With: , ,
error: Content is protected !!