Top Ielts Prep Tips you should never miss

1. Focus on the overall message and do not get frustrated about detail.

2. Take notes while you’re listening and go back to discover what expressions or clues in the audio helped you understand the message.

3. Don’t worry too much about unfamiliar words; if you hear something which is repeated in different sources, look it up in the dictionary and study it.

4. Try to guess questions you haven’t answered. This is especially important for “yes”, “no” or “don’t know” questions as the chance of you getting the right answer by chance is pretty high!

5. Before each section you are given time to read the questions. Use this time sensibly and read the questions carefully but not too slowly or the recording will start before you have finished reading.

6. Be sure to answer with the correct number of words. If the question asks for two or three words, don’t use four or five.

7. Read for speed. Set a timer and try to read a text within the time limit (e.g. 5 mins). Check your understanding. Reduce the time limit as you improve and get faster (e.g. from 5 mins to 4 mins to 3 mins).

8. Spend 20-30 minutes every day reading different texts: newspaper articles, blogs, books, textbook activities.

9.  Discuss some interesting texts with your friends and exchange ideas in English.

10. Familiarise yourself with the style of the exam and how long each part takes. You need to develop skills to answer each type of questions. Questions could take the form of any of the following:

• • Multiple choice
  • Short answer questions
  • Sentence completion questions
  • Notes/ table/ form/ summary/ flow chart/diagram completion questions
  • Yes, no, not given or True, false, not given
  • Classification questions
  • Matching
  • Choosing headings
  • Scanning & identifying location of information
  • Labelling a diagram which has numbered parts.