Hi Queen!

For the IELTS, practice speaking with teachers/tutors on italki as much as you can!

As for writing, try and write a paragraph every day (it can be when you wake up in the morning, or before you go to sleep). Alternatively, use the notebook section of italki and have native speakers correct your grammar.

The below website is a great site to use for preparation materials!:

<a href="https://ieltsliz.com/ielts-writing-task-1-lessons-and-tips/" target="_blank">https://ieltsliz.com/ielts-writing-task-1-lessons-and-tips/</a>;

Good luck!

Interesting ..

Hi Queen,

Here are a few simple suggestions which can change your IELTS writing from "average-poor" to good.

1) Read the question. If you can, underline the keywords. Too many students go off-topic, and this simply shows that they cannot follow instructions. Understand that the question is your "to-do" list.

2) Take a few minutes to prepare your notes. Just react to the keywords and write any ideas that you think of. Your ideas don't need to be "good". Just write a few ideas quickly and choose the best one. If your first idea is terrible, then you have other ideas to use. You can also organise your ideas, and make a list of vocabulary/grammar that you plan to use.

3) Manage your time. If you have 40 minutes, then decide how much time will be for preparation, how much time will be for writing your first version, and how much time will be for revising and rewriting. I see fast writers finish early, but the result is rarely good.

4) Never be afraid to rewrite. Writing is not like reading, We don't start at the first word and finish at the last one. You can start writing in the middle, then add the beginning and end later. Then you revise it all. If you physically write your text a second time, you can improve it and correct any errors.

Remember, the examiner doesn't correct your text. That's your job. ;)