Describe a journey you went on.

IELTS Speaking. Cue Card 1

Describe someone in your family who you really admire

You should say:

· What relation this person is to you?

· What are your first memories of this person?

· How often you see this person?

and explain why do you admire this person

Follow-up Questions:

· What are the values of family in your country?

· How family bonding is necessary for happiness in life?

· What type of family do you like? Nuclear family or joint family?

· How family value and bonding have changed over the last decade?

Possible Answer:

I've got a small family with only 5 members and all of us are very close to each other and we love each other very much. Among them I love my mother more than anyone else in the whole world. I adore my mother for her caring, loving, adorable behaviors and wit. She is the person I can share everything with and that's the reason I worship her so much.

Possibly she was the first human I saw when I opened my eyes in this world. A relationship with a mother is divine and all of my childhood memories are either related to my mom or my school. I can still remember a day I was late to come back home after school and that's because there was a ceremony at the school I did not know about. All of a certain I found that my mother was entering through the school-gate to find me. I was so frightened that my mother would rebuke me for being late unnoticed and she must be mad at me. But to my best surprise, when my mother saw me she had a warm smile in her face that I'll never forget till my last breath in this earth. Then she hugged me and gave me a kiss. I felt then that I love my mother more than me. She attended the program at the school and afterward we came back home together.

I spent my 19 years or so with my father and mother but I stay at a metropolitan city now for my education. Whenever I get vacation I meet my mother at my village home. On an average I spend 2/3 months with my mother each year but I talk to her over phone almost twice a day.

The reasons why I admire her are endless. She is caring, tender, she has got a big heart and she possesses love for everyone. She had been an ideal mother to raise 3 kids and making sure our education and moral values. She had made a lot of sacrifices all of her life and had never complained about anything to my best knowledge. She is the person who reminds me the power of love and caring.

Alternative Answer:

I have got 6 family members and all of them are very dear and close to me. If I need to pick one family member among them to talk about, that would be my father. My father’s name is (say your father’s name) and he is around 50 years old. He is the kind of person I would want my offspring to be. He did his graduation in a time when formal education was not people’s first choice. They would rather start earning from work rather than going to school. My father fought to ensure his education with the people who thought working or doing some sort of business has more value than education. But my father believed that education is the most important part of a man’s life. He heartily held the idea that education shapes a man’s life and is the kind of power and asset that would always accompany him.

I have lots of memories of my father and I see him every day. There exists a strong bonding between us that only two of us feel. I still remember those days of my childhood when I used to wait in the evening for my father to return from office. He would then play with me and help on completing my lessons. I vividly remember him sometimes taking me to the market and buy me gifts. When I was an infant he moved to the city from the village to ensure me better schooling and environment. That was a decision that has changed my life path. He himself helped me finishing my home works and lessons, always allured me of gifts if I could complete my study. Besides my education he taught me lots of moral values and important things of life.

He used to work in a Government organization and for his hard-working and kindness; he is revered by all of our relatives, his friends and neighbors.
He believes in humanity, good behavior, our creator, and leads a life that can be exemplary. He still does most of his own works and helps my mom on her house hold works. After retirement he has picked 2 new habits: gardening and teaching neighbors’ kids. He is a quiet and intelligent man who has benevolent heart and that what make him so admirable to me. He is still the pillar of our family and all of our family members love and respect him very much.

Tips for answering this Cue Card Sample:

You already know a lot about your family members and this cue card should be an easy one to answer. Just focus on the questions mentioned bellow the Cue card topic. Following questions may come for this cue card and note the quick answers of these questions:

1. Who is he/she?: My mother / My father/ My bother/ My sister etc.
2. Your relationship to this family member: She is my mother/ he is my father etc.
3. What you do together: We walk out together/ cook together/ study together/ talk a lot about family issues etc.
4. What is s/he like: He/ She is kind, talented, energetic, works a lot, dedicated, caring, possess a great personality, open minded etc.
5. How long do you know him /her: From my childhood/ all of my life/ for more than 20 years etc.
6. How often do you see him/her: Everyday/ once in a month/ most of the time I stay at home/ in every three months etc.
7. Why do you like him/ her or why do you admire him/ her?: S /he loves me a lot, very close to me, very caring, have a good heart, talented, helpful, my best mentor etc.

While talking about what is s/he like or what qualities he /she has or even why do you like/ admire him/her you can use some of the following points:

· For father: He is honest, brave, had a good heart, talented, leads an ideal life. has sacrificed a lot to up-bring us, is an exemplary person, everybody respects him, is the best person I have ever seen, Loves me very much, hardworking, punctual, talented etc.

· For mother: She is so caring, loving, hardworking and possesses a good heart, had done a lot to up-bring us, very close to me, very understanding, one of my best friends, knows a lot of things and has so many practical skills etc.

· For brother: He is so brave, talented, well mannered, knows a lot about different things, had always been supportive to you, loved by others, cooperative and have lots of memories together, like a mentor to me, is my best buddy, taught me almost everything he knows, always protects me etc.

· For sister: She is caring, a good friend, loving, a good mentor, helps you on study or on other tasks, supportive, a very good friends, talented and well-mannered.

If you prepare for this cue card you should be able to answer the following cue cards as well with very little changes:

Talk about someone who cares you a lot. 2. Describe a person who you like very much. 3. Describe the person whom you admire most. 4. Talk about a person you know for a long. 5. Talk about a senior person whom you like a lot. 6. Talk about a person who has a great influence in your life.

IELTS Cue Card Sample 2 - Your favorite restaurant

Describe your favorite Restaurant.

You should say:

· Where it is

· What it looks like inside and outside

· What kinds of foods they serve

What makes this restaurant so special to you and others

Follow-up Questions:

· Which one is better: home-made foods or foods from restaurant?

· What traditional foods do you have in your country?

· What are the tourist attractions in your city?

Cue card Answer 1:

Thank you very much for giving me the chance to talk about my favourite restaurant. The name of my favourite restaurant is (say the name of the restaurant you are going to talk about) and it’s situated at the centre of the city I am currently living in. Not only I like the spacious, serene environment, tasty menus that the restaurant serves, but I have lots of memories related to this restaurant. I remember that my parents celebrated some of my birthday parties there, our college friends arranged the get-together parties, one of my cousins’ marriage ceremony was celebrated there and similarly I attended lots of other parties at this very restaurant.

The restaurant has 3 floors and the sitting arrangement is quite nice. Paintings of famous artists have been hanging on the walls and the place is quite neat and clean. The interior decoration is charming and gorgeous feeling. The ground floor is spacious and can accommodate more than 50 cars' parking. The front view of the restaurant is different as the place gives the impression of an urban garden.

The restaurant offers several dishes including exotic desserts, ice-creams and also offers a separate place for the kids to play and have fun. The prices are reasonable and the foods are served quickly as opposed to some other restaurants where you will have to wait for a long for your foods to appear on your table. The waiters and other staffs are friendly and welcoming. The restaurant offers Chinese, Italian, Indian, Thai, Pakistani and local menus that gives you a wide ranges and options to pick from. The soft background music and instrumentals make the environment more enjoyable and soothing. The tables are not congested and people can chat over their personal topics without interruption. The long glass made windows offer the city view which makes the place worth visiting besides the delicious foods. The place must be a good place to be as I often found the foreign tourists visiting the restaurant. The authority lets the customers provide their feedbacks and comments on foods and the place and as I have noticed they take prompt action on a customer complaint.

In short, this is a really nice restaurant to go and enjoy the delicious meals.

Cue card Answer 2:

Today I am going to talk about my favourite restaurant. Where it is, what it looks like, the kinds of food it serves and why it is so special to me.

My favourite restaurant is in England! It is actually in the suburbs of the city of Sheffield which is where I live. The restaurant is on a busy street very near to a large park. It is quite a small and hectic place called Jonty’s because Jonty is the name of the person who set up the business.

From the outside the restaurant doesn’t look very impressive. It has large glass windows at the front, and some benches outside for people to sit on if they are waiting to go in. There used to be a large sign with the name of the restaurant written on it in big letters, but recently they have taken down the sign and not yet replaced it! Inside there are lots of square wooden tables, each with about four chairs around them. The restaurant is on two levels, I prefer to go upstairs to the first floor, because there you can sometimes get a window seat and enjoy watching people as they go past in the street outside.

The restaurant serves mainly breakfast and lunch meals. It does really good coffee – I like their latte’s best – and lots of sandwiches, salads and special soups. The restaurant also has a selection of delicious, gooey home-made cakes. However, when I go, I always have the same thing – scrambled egg on wholemeal toast with mushrooms, because that is what I like best!

The restaurant is very special to me and my friends because we meet their every Saturday. On Saturday’s about 500 people go to the local park for 9.00 in the morning to take part in a 5 km run. Afterwards, I like to go to breakfast at Jonty’s with three of my best friends. We feel we deserve a big breakfast after our run, and we enjoy catching up with each other’s news over a leisurely meal together.

So if ever you are in Sheffield, I hope you will find Jonty’s and enjoy it as much as I do.

Tips for answering this Cue Card Sample:

You should talk about a restaurant that you know about. Do not pick a renowned restaurant that you know very little. You are free to describe the interior design, service, external environment, dishes served of the restaurant the way you like. It does not have to be an exact match with the restaurant you actually go a lot. You should add some of your memorable events of this restaurant. Some of the common features that people like about a restaurants are:

1. Delicious dishes.
2. Reasonable price.
3. Easy to go there from home.
4. Quiet and nice environment.
5. Attractive decoration and view.
6. Playground for kids.
7. Open space.
8. Privacy.
9. Service and behaviour of the staffs.
10. Special treats for the regular customer.
11. Variety of foods.
12. Past memory related to the restaurant.
13. Recommendation from friends and family members.
14. Discounts, etc.

In your answer you can use the above mentioned points.

If you are prepared for this cue card sample you should be able to answer the following cue cards as well:

Talk about a place you often go to. (You can say that you often go to this restaurant) 2. Describe a place you would recommend your friends to visit. 3. Describe a party centre you went recently. 4. Describe a restaurant you recently visited. 5. Talk about a place where you often meet your friends.6. Describe a restaurant that you enjoyed going to.

IELTS Cue Card Sample 3 - Describe a book that had a major influence on you

Describe a book that had a major influence on you.

You should say:

· What is the name of the book and the author

· How did you first hear of the book

· What's the main story of the book

and why does it play such an important role in your life

Follow up Questions:

· How often do you read books?

· How books can impact on a man's life?

· Name some of the famous writer of your country?

· Have you ever thought about writing a book?

· How reading books is different from watching movies?

Possible Answer 1:

Whenever I get time, I try to read books and the ranges vary from profession related books, technical, religious, fiction, classic and contemporary books. The book I would like to describe is a novel called ‘ Kane and Abel ’ and is written by the famous British writer Jeffrey Archer. Sometimes I read book reviews on internet and after reading 2/3 books by Jeffrey archer, I tried to get the list of all books by Jeffrey Archer. I found that most of the Jeffrey Archer fans have recommended the book ‘Kane & Abel’. Some people even commented that this is the best book ever written by the same author. I made my mind at this very moment to read this book. After one month or so, I bought the book from a book store and started reading it.

The book was first published in 1979 in the United Kingdom and in USA in 1980. The book was the international success and reached No. 1 position on the New York Times best-selling book list. The story-line started with the birth of two infants named Kane and Abel in the year 1906. One of them was born to a life of prosperity and eases in USA in a rich family while the other one to a world of hardship and struggle. On different sides of the Globes, they grew up: one shaped by a luxurious upbringing, fine schooling and history he read, the other one who lost his mother at the time of his birth and did not know who his father was, well tempered by war, slavery and history he was part of. The story telling of Jeffrey Archer is magical and enchanting. Most of his story simply mesmerizes the readers and for Kane and Abel the attraction worked even more. Every page I turned tempted me to read further. Not for a single moment I could have stop thinking about the events and characters of the books and that had a major influence on me. The characters have their own charismatic powers and followed their own paths. One is gold, meritorious while the other one is steel and have forfeited the Dead himself. On their journey in life, they confront each other and became the ultimate adversary of each other. In their relentless battle, both men knew that there could be only one victor- and one vanquished.

Across three generations and around a rapidly changing world, their war rages unchecked, for the love of a dream, the loss of an empire, and the lure of a fortune. Kane became the owner of the largest bank in USA while Abel came to USA as a penniless emigrant after the World War I. With intelligence Kane started flourishing the banking business, while Abel made his fortune at last in Hotel business. The first time they confronted each other as a bank owner and a debtor. Though Kane wanted to help Abel regain his business by financing further, but could not do so because of the bank’s board members’ decision. After that Abel considered Kane as his greatest enemy and sought to destroy Kane. As time passed both had to fight their own fates but the vendetta remained on their hearts. When both men finally grew older, their son and daughter fell in love and got married. They never agreed on the marriage because of their personal hatred of each other. Abel succeeded to buy the bank stocks of Kane’s Bank to hold the power to veto Kane. At the end of the story both confronted each other for the second and last time. After that Kane died and after his death, Abel learned that it was Kane who backed him financially to start his hotel business. The story was told like a magician and is a powerful portrait of a world and two men that a reader would never forget.

Alternative Answer 1:
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to talk about a book that had a major influence on me. I am going to tell you the name of the book and the author, what I remember of it and why it is so significant to me.

Funnily enough I was thinking about this book only the other day. It is called ‘ The Adventures of the Little Wooden Horse ’, I don’t know why I remembered it suddenly, but I had to google to look up the author. It is by Ursula Moray Williams, but I didn’t know that when I first read it.

As to how I first heard of the book, I can’t really say! It is actually a children’s book, and I think it must have been chosen for me by my parents as I don’t remember actually buying it with anyone, and I don’t think it was a birthday gift or it would have had an inscription in its front cover. The copy I had was a rather tatty paper back with an orange cover and published by a then famous book company called Puffin Books. It had a picture of crudely fashioned toy wooden horse on the front. The horse had a cylindrical body and straight legs fastened onto a board with four wheels on it. The horse had a flowing mane and tail, and in my copy was facing away from the reader, heading off on its’ adventures.

The story was so very sad! The horse in the title was a toy horse originally supposed to be sold by his maker. The little wooden horse is very loyal and wants only to stay with his Uncle Peder who crafted him. However, sadly the toymaker is forced out of business as mass produced toys become available, and the little wooden horse sets out to try and make his fortune so the two of them can stay together. Terrible things happen to the horse, he is sometimes lonely and unhappy. Eventually though, he does make his fortune (I can’t remember how) and returns home only to find the toymaker has vanished! It is heart-breaking. In the end the little wooden horse and the toy maker are reunited by chance and there is at last a happy ending after a harrowing set of adventures.

The reason this book is important to me is because it is the first book I remember really wanting to read for myself. My mum and dad would take turns to read me just one chapter at night, but there were lots and lots of chapters – about twenty I think, and I was so upset not knowing how the story would end if one chapter was finished and the poor little wooden horse was left in distress! I could read a bit, but not that well, and not well enough to read silently in my head. Anyway, one night, after my parents had closed the book and left me alone, I carried on reading all by myself. I had to read out loud, and the story was so sad I was sobbing as I read, which made it even harder for me to get the words out and finish the story. Even so, I carried on reading right to the end and fortunately the story did end happily! I can still remember this, even though I must have only been about four years old at the time. My parents remember the episode too. They could hear me in my room reading aloud and crying, and they said it was heart-rending to listen to, but also quite impressive, as I was so stubbornly determined to do this, and on my own.

I have never re-read the book as an adult. I’m afraid if I did and found it wasn’t really very good or very well written it might spoilthe memory for me. I prefer to imagine it as the most brilliant story ever written even if that isn’t true at all! So the book is special because it is probably the book that encouraged me to read, as well as being probably my earliest memory.

[ Written by - Lucy Marris | Careers Adviser (UK), TEFL teacher (Vietnam) ]

Alternative Answer 2:
The book that tremendously influenced me in my college level is titled " Pather Panchali " by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay. This book was published in 1929 and later a movie was made with the same title by Satyajit Ray. The book is a tragedy and family drama which is considered to be one of the finest literary works in Bengali literature.
This book deals with the life, happiness, sadness and inner-picture of Roy family in a rural area. Later they moved to a different place in search of a better life but they had to face great deal of anguish and loss during their travel to a new transition.

The book describes the rural life, the people of this rural place, their sufferings, their joys, the beautiful country-side, green fields, paddy-fields, flowers and many more things that become alive in the story. The story line, the mastery of story-telling ability, the scenic beauty of rural area, the tragic death of a touchy character all were so profoundly expressed that I was deeply touched. Moreover this book was written by one of the superior writer who has a talent to describe the rural beauty in a style that no other writer can do.

The book reminded me rural are I had once been. It was like travelling to the past in a time machine. Bibhutibhushan is a gifted writer and probably the best of his type. He had an ability to depict the rural life and scenic beauty profoundly and perfectly. The characters of his books come from ordinary places and lead ordinary lives, but the impression they create in readers' mind is extraordinary.

Tips for answering this cue card sample:

This cue card asks you to talk about a book you have read. You should pick a book that you know well. Let's say you have read a book which was very interesting but you have forgotten the name of the author or the publisher, you can't tell the story in an organised fashion, then you should not talk about that one. Rather pick a book which is interesting, you have read and you know the writer and story of the book. If you are not sure of such a book, think about one, google for the details of the book and remember the following information about the book:

1. Writer.
2. Publisher.
3. Publishing year.
4. Some other book names by the same author.
5. Story of the book.
6. Why the book was critically acclaimed.
7. Some characters of the book.

For the part why this book has a great influenced on you mention some of the following points:

1. The book was written by a writer who has a great way of telling a story.
2. The story is a page turner and you had hard time keeping it away.
3. You have learned an important lesson from this book.
4. The characters of this book gave you great impression.
5. Some of the trivia and facts about the book. etc.

If you prepare for this cue card, you should also be able to answer the following cue card topics:

Describe a book you have recently read. 2. Describe your favourite book. 3. Describe a book you read and remember. 4. Talk about a book you enjoyed reading. 5. Describe a book you would recommend your friends to read. 6. Talk about a book your one of your friends recommended you. 7. Describe a worth reading book.

Since the cue card topic is asking to describe a book that has a major influence on you, not necessarily you have to talk about a story book. You can pick any academic book, religious book or specific subject or technology related books as well.

For instance if you pick the major book of your religion, you can say how it has changed your view of life and world. How it had helped you learning morality and humanity and religious lessons that you follow in your life. There are so many things we learn from our religion and you can talk about these.

If you pick an academic book, let’s say JAVA programming language book, Introduction to business or Accounting you can tell how this book has changed your view on this specific subject and created a solid base on the subject and influenced you to later study on that subject further.

IELTS Cue Card Sample 4 - A journey you went on

Describe a journey you went on.

You Should say:

· Where did you go on your journey?

· Why did you got to this particular place?

· What did you do and with whom?

and describe why you enjoyed your journey? Or if not why?

Follow up Questions:

· What are the importance of traveling?

· What type of places do you recommend people to visit on vacation?

· What places do you want to visit in future? Why?

Possible Answer 1:
I like visiting famous places and whenever I get vacation, I try to visit new places or places that I have heard about. One such trip that I took with one of my friends was a journey to Holland. I would like to talk about this tour to Holland that we took 2 years age.

Both of us (me and my friend) wanted to visit Holland and specifically Amsterdam, Hague and Rotterdam very much because we saw pictures and heard stories from friends about how beautiful and wonderful the place is. So finally we applied for visa, bought plane tickets, booked a hotel, packed our bags and our trip began.

We spent a lot of time before our holiday, researching of all the interesting places to visit and all the sights to see. So we went to Rijks museum, Van Gogh museum, Amstell Beer museum, took a romantic sunset cruise in the water channels, drove to Volendam, a small prettiest fisherman village, visited a cheese farm. We went to Rotterdam, which is the architecture city of Holland that stimulates innovation. We enjoyed the architectures and building there as much as we did walking in the neat roads and besides the beaches. Visiting the famous Anne Frank house was an exciting moment for me. I've read the Anne Frank's Diary in my early childhood and witnessing the place was very much exciting.

Every evening we took long walks along the channels, resting in small gardens, which Amsterdam has a lot of. Street artists were performing everywhere and a lot of people came to watch their show.

We enjoyed very much everything we did and especially in such a beautiful country. Having my friend by my side on this trip made it even more fun. Since we have never been to Holland, everything we saw and did seemed interesting and completely new to us. The people, their way to interpretation their culture attracted us very much. Before leaving the place, both of us agreed that the place is worth visiting and someday we would come back to re-explore it.

Possible Answer 2:
Once I was reading an article when I came across the lines of Rabindranath Tagore highlighting the beauty of Taj Mahal. It stated, “The Taj Mahal rises above the banks of the river like a solitary tear suspended on the cheek of time.” The lines encouraged me to visit the monument of love, The Taj Mahal.

Taj Mahal is included in the Seven Wonders of the World. So, before even I think of visiting any other site, it becomes more of a responsibility to give a visit to the heritage site of India. It was the prime reason I visited Taj Mahal.

It was a short trip with my family. My parents and my brother accompanied on my trip. It was a fun-filled trip as after a long time I got an opportunity to spend time with my family. Moreover, we opted for a road trip so that we had the flexibility to visit other famous places in Agra. It is rightly said, that journey matters, and not the destination, and this is what I experienced during my short-trip.

Tips for answering this Cue card question:

You are free to talk about any journey you are comfortable to talk about. It can be journey to another city of your country, to a historic or tourist place, a foreign country or to a relative or friend's house to a different location. While talking about this cue card, take some notes about a journey you remember particularly where you went, what was the purpose of going there, how you travelled there, what you saw on your way and at the place, what you did, how long you stayed, whom you met there, who you went there with.

If you liked the journey tell about some exciting things you watched and did there than the usual things you do. For instance: you can mention some of the great places you visited there, the sightseeing of the journey. Do not focus too much on the place you went rather emphasize what happened on the way. This cue card is bit different that 'Describe a place you have visited' where you would mostly describe things you watched and did on the place but for this cue card you should mostly tell about your experience during the journey.

Some key points to mention for this cue card:

· You had a plan to visit this place for a long time and when you had the journey, you had been excited about the whole thing.

· You would meet a friend or relative after a long and that made you feel good.

· You have some memories related to this place and visiting there was a good experience for you.

· If this is a foreign country, say that you had a longing to visit this country.

· The weather was comfortable and there was no interruption on the way.

· You had friends with you and you enjoyed their company as well as the vehicles.

· This was not a typical journey that you usually take.

· The natural beauty surrounding the roads was charming.

· You observed some different custom and culture there.

If you plan to say that you did not enjoy the journey focus on the following points:

· You did not intend to go there but you had no other choice.

· The weather was not good and that made the journey difficult.

· You did not like the vehicles that you took for the journey.

· It took a very long time which was tiresome.

· You got sick during the journey.

· There was no interesting thing to do or watch.

· The vehicle was a public transport and stopped several times.

Some other cue cards that you should be able to answer if you prepare for this cue card:

1. Talk about an interesting journey you took recently.
2. Describe a visit to one of your relative's house.
3. Describe your journey to your home town.
4. Describe a journey you took to a foreign city.
5. Talk about a journey you disliked.
6. Describe a journey you remember.
7. Describe one of your memorable journeys.

Follow up Questions:

· What are theimportanceof traveling?

Answer: There are many important elements associated with traveling. It plays a vital role in developing a person’s character. It helps an individual to break the barriers of mind and become open minded. The closed bubble gets burst, and people get an opportunity to come outside of their comfort zone. Traveling is the way to escape from the daily chores and get some time for your own self. Sometimes it is really what a person needs to move forward in life.

· What type of places do you recommend people to visit on vacation?

Answer: When I say traveling is about breaking barriers, I would restrict myself from recommending any particular places, as it will act as a barrier in deciding future destination. Even I would like to leave it on time, and would prefer to take every opportunity as and when it comes.

· What places do you want to visit in future? Why?

IELTS Cue Card Sample 5 - A website you often browse

Дата добавления: 2015-10-28