Task 1 questions are ‘easy’, aren’t they?
Just simple questions about everyday life?
The danger is that simple questions get simple answers.
This 28-Day Task 1 Speaking Challenge will help you start making an excellent first impression in Task 1.
Because you never get a second chance to make a first impression!
*Please note that there are more detailed Speaking tips on the main Speaking page.
The problem with Speaking Part 1
Speaking Part 1 is designed to be ‘easy’ so that everyone has a good chance of answering the questions.
The examiner starts by asking you familiar questions such as where you live or your job or studies (Do you work, or are you a student?).
Then the questions move on to everyday topics like food, daily life, travel, shopping, etc.
They won’t ask you to suggest ways of reducing the rate of global warming or how to bring about world peace!
But you do have to give full and natural answers.
How can you use Part 1 to get the highest possible speaking score?
The aim of the challenge is to:
- increase your fluency and confidence
- help you extend your answers and speak for longer
- give you lots of ideas of what you can talk about
- improve your pronunciation
- practice choosing the right tense
- develop your independent study skills so you can practise at home
- get you to Band 7 criteria of someone who ‘speaks at length without noticeable effort‘
You can do the challenge yourself at home.
Get the Part 1 Speaking Practice booklet here, or Part 1 and Part 2 Speaking Practice Booklet with 100 most mispronounced words.
Need more help with Speaking?
We have a weekly Speaking Group class in the Members Academy, and you also get my individual feedback videos when you submit a 2-minute long turn recording.
All of my action points link you to Speaking, Pronunciation, Grammar and Vocabulary lessons in the Academy that you need to review.
Other pages on this site:
- Can you improve your Speaking by yourself? The 30-Day Task 2 Challenge.
- What to expect in the IELTS Speaking Test.
- The best websites and apps to help you prepare for the Speaking test by yourself.
Do you need motivation, high-quality materials, a roadmap, feedback, guidance and an IELTS specialist teacher?
Join the Members Academy today.
Get instant access to all courses, challenges, boot camps, live classes, interactive and engaging classes, 1:1 support, and a friendly tight-knit community of like-minded learners to get you to Band 7+.
Hello Fiona,
I was wondering whether all three parts in the speaking test contribute equally to the final speaking score. I think the answer is no because the final part should be by design the most challenging one?
Many thanks and have a nice Easter break.
Best,
Adam
Hi Adam. I’m back from a nice Easter break thank you!
Each part of the test is designed to assess different aspects of your speaking ability (Fluency and Coherence, Lexical Resource, Grammatical Range and Accuracy, and Pronunciation). Each part uses the same band criteria and all three parts are equally important in determining your final score.
For example, though Part 1 questions are about ‘familiar topics’, this is still a good chance to hit the higher band criteria by demonstrating your ability to use colloquial and idiomatic language in a fluent, accurate, appropriate and natural way.
However, Part 3 is more challenging, so if you can demonstrate your ability to
– discuss the topic in more depth and detail
– answer longer and more abstract questions
– discuss opinions and evaluate arguments
– use more complex language, critical thinking skills, and flexibility
– express your ideas clearly and coherently
– speculate, compare, predict, and justify your opinions
this will help you reach the higher band criteria too.
Dear Fiona! It’s amazing being with you: all materials, teaching style, kindness, advice all! I’ve learnt more and still continue, thank you!
Best regards Dilara
Hello my dear Dilara. Thank you very much for your kind comment! I’m so happy you enjoy my materials. Good luck with your preparation!
Best wishes
Fiona
Thanks Fiona….your content is very useful
Thank you for your comment Ramadhany. You’re very welcome, Best wishes, Fiona.
Thank you for explaining each step in accurate way. I’ll definitely fellow these tips so I can avoid in exam.
Hi there Harkamal. I’m glad you found the steps useful. Good luck in your exam!
Hi dear Fiona
Your tips are very helpful and I’m sure everybody likes them.
I really appreciate and please continue.
My best regards
Shahrzad
Hi dear Shahrzad!
Thank you so much for your lovely message!
All the best to you,
Fiona
This was very helpful for us, keep updating more
Thanks for this advice,
Hi Ajmal! Congratulations – you are the first person to ever post on my blog! I’m sorry I didn’t notice it sooner – it never happened before, so I wasn’t checking! I’m so excited and happy that you found my post useful. I’ll do more now thanks to your comment! All the best, Fiona