Do you hear what I hear? Recording yourself for speaking practice

Listening to yourself speak is always a little awkward.  Believe me, I know.   Once you overcome the initial awkwardness and surprise of, "Wow, is that what I really sound like,"   follows really strict scrutiny. 

That's why I recommend recording yourself when you practice speaking.  We are often our own worst critic so if you listen to yourself speaking you can pick up on some problem areas that need improvement. 

Just to show you that I practice what I preach, I signed up to soundcloud.com, which has a voice recording feature, and recorded an old blog post about pronunciation. 

I am still figuring the site out so I don't know if you need to register in order to hear my track (let me know either way) but here is the link:  https://soundcloud.com/helenesl/pronunciation (update 20/8/16:  I have since removed the track.  Email me for more information).

I hope you enjoy it!!

free advice

A lot of people approach me for free advice, tips or tricks for IELTS.   This is so common that I decided to write about it in this post. 

My first piece of advice is:  know your level.   There are tons of placement tests on the internet so you can see where you are on the CEFR scale.  If you  get A1 or A2 on these tests and you need a 6.5 or 7 on IELTS then you know you have quite a bit of work ahead of you.  You will first need to improve your overall English level before you can really prepare for IELTS.

Which brings me to my second piece of free advice:  don't wait until the last minute to prepare for IELTS.   How much time you need depends on many factors but it is best not to wait until a week or two before the exam.

Piece of advice #3:  Find a teacher who specializes in IELTS preparation.   This is true even if your English is at a high level.   The reason for this is that IELTS is a language test but there are some "speed bumps" that only an experienced IELTS tutor can help you overcome. When you self-prepare, you have no feedback on your performance and even if you do get a tutor to help you, unless the tutor knows the ins and outs of the exam,  you may not be prepared accurately or appropriately.

Speaking of being prepared accurately & appropriately, I recently wrote about the internet as a learning tool.  It is, and a wonderful one at that.  However, I have to caution you that all websites are not created equal.  While there are many websites on IELTS preparation, some of them with model essays and speaking,  the advice you may be getting may not be completely accurate.

So, in a nutshell, think of your IELTS preparation as an investment for your future.   Dedicate the time, resources and patience it deserves. 

Google - a useful tool for English language learners

I was recently reading an IELTS essay about whether newspapers should publish information regarding the private lives of people.   The essay had the word "information" 10 times.  When I asked the writer of the essay why she didn't use any other words that carry the same meaning, she replied that she couldn't think of any.

This is when Google is your friend.   While Google Translate is a thorn in the side of most people, the site has other tools that are useful for language learning.   I recommended that when stuck for a synonym that she use Google's Define feature. That is, Google:  "Information define," and Google will give you both definitions AND synonyms.  If the essay writer had known that, she would have been able to use words like details and particulars which fit quite nicely into an essay like the one she wrote. 

So this is a quick and easy way to expand your vocabulary.  If you are unsure about whether a word fits a particular sentence, again you can use Google.   For example, with the word, particulars,   Google:  "particulars in a sentence," and you will find links to sites like Yourdictionary.com  which provides examples of the word in a sentence.   

IELTS task one - do you always need an overview?

Most IELTS test takers know that you need an overview when describing a line graph, bar chart or pie chart.  But what about the dreaded process diagrams and maps?  Do you need one there, too?  The answer is yes.  The public band descriptors for Task 1 do not differentiate, so you need an overview no matter what kind of diagram you get. 

So, how do you write an overview for a process diagram? It needn't be too complicated.  You could mention that there are a number of steps/ machines/ people/ stages involved and you could mention what  the beginning and the end are.  If there are two process diagrams or two maps shown, you could say what the main difference between them is, of course, without going into too much detail because the overview shouldn't be about detail.   It should be able to give the reader the main, overall image of the information you have in front of you.  

Questions, please!!

I haven't been posting very much lately so I thought I would ask you, my readers, to pose any questions you might have.  Is there an area of IELTS/ ECPE/ CPE/ General English that has you confused?   Needing more information?   Awake at night?  Ask me and who knows, your question may be the subject of my next post. 

writing & speaking - grammar in band 7

If I seem to talk a lot about Band 7 it's because it seems to be such a highly sought band.  People need 7 for immigration, they need it for some advanced degree programs and even if you don't need a 7, if you need a 6.5 for a university course, for example, your 6.5 will only come if you have at least a couple of 7s or higher. 

I have written quite a bit about fluency, coherence & cohesion, and task response, but I haven't really discussed grammar and vocabulary that much.  I hope to correct that in this post. 

In the public descriptors both for writing & speaking, the descriptors for grammar at band 7 requires some complex grammar.  This of course, leads some people to then ask, "Well, what is complex grammar?"  Typically, a complex sentence is one that has more than one clause. A clause, as you probably know is a part of a sentence that contains at least a subject and a verb.  So, if you can make sentences with more than one clause, that is considered complex grammar.  For example,


Relative clauses:
Florence, which I have been to three times, is one of my favorite cities.

conditionals:
If I could visit any city in the world, I would travel to Florence.

Inversion:
Not only is Florence a beautiful city, but it is also full of historical importance.

Time clauses:
I will visit Florence as soon as I finish my studies.

Participle clauses:
Having been to Florence three times, I believe I know it fairly well.

These are just a few examples that came to my head. Of course, there are many more.   An advanced grammar book will give explanations as well as how these structures are made, how to use them and any other rules you may need.   If you need any recommendations for a good book of advanced grammar, please email me.

topic sentences in reading & writing

Today I was helping someone who was having a hard time with reading.  I suggested to her that she read the first sentence of each paragraph to find out what that paragraph was about.  When she was done, she had a good idea about the overall direction of the passage, as well as what each paragraph covered.  We then discussed how the first sentence of each paragraph, also known as the topic sentence, is basically an introduction to what follows in the paragraph.  It gives you the central idea, so, when you are looking for something, by reading the first sentence you can often tell if you are looking in the right place or not.  

Well, as helpful as  topic sentences are in reading, they are also extremely important in writing.  In the band descriptors, under Coherence and Cohesion, Band 7 tells us that each paragraph must have a central topic.   Assuming you have done all your brainstorming & organizing before writing, a topic sentence is a wonderful frame for making sure your paragraph is staying on track while basically providing an introduction to that paragraph for your reader.  If you're not sure what a topic sentence should look like, take a look at various reading passages for IELTS.  You'll see that the first sentence of each paragraph outlines for the reader what the paragraph discusses.   Read some good sample essays.  The topic sentence allows you to understand what you are going to read before you read it.  Plus, it shows that the paragraph has a purpose, a "central idea," which you are introducing in the first sentence of the paragraph.