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F"EE IELTS LESS#N $ THE %ENE"AL T"AININ%
&"ITIN% TEST $ TAS' (
The IELTS General Training Writing Test Task 1 is, I feel, the part of GT test that people can prepare most for. Because
the scope of the task is fairly limited, you can practise etremely similar tasks, !hich !ill greatly prepare you for the
eam.
"ractice is the magic !ord though. E#en good English users need practice for the IELTS eam and it could mean all the
difference $et!een pass and fail. There is limited practice a#aila$le and it%s &uite epensi#e. That%s !hy !e !ould
recommend you do!nload our IELTS practice tests. 'ou !ill get more practice for less money. Go to the (ome "age to
find more information a$out our IELTS practice tests.
T)e IELTS %eneral Training Task ( &riting Test
The IELTS General Training Writing Test lasts for 1 hour and includes ) tasks. Task 1 is a letter and you must !rite at
least 1*+ !ords. 'ou should spend a$out )+ minutes out of the hour for task 1. Task ) is an essay and you must !rite
at least )*+ !ords. 'ou should spend a$out ,+ minutes for Task ).
T)e Task for t)e IELTS %eneral Training Task ( &riting
The IELTS General Training Writing Task 1 asks you to !rite a letter of a minimum of 1*+ !ords in response to some
situation or pro$lem. The task !ill pro$a$ly ask you to complain a$out something, to re&uest information, ask for help,
to make arrangements and-or eplain a situation. .ll these are fairly similar tasks.
*arking for t)e IELTS %eneral Training Task ( &riting
The IELTS General Training Task 1 Writing !ill $e marked in four areas. 'ou !ill get a mark from 1 to / on Task
.chie#ement, 0oherence 1 0ohesion, Leical 2esource and Grammatical 2ange and .ccuracy. 'our final $and for task
1 !ill $e effecti#ely an a#erage of the four marks a!arded in these areas. Task 1 !riting is less important than task )
and to calculate the final !riting mark, more !eight is assigned to the task ) mark than to task 1%s mark. To get a
good o#erall mark for The IELTS General Training Writing though, $oth tasks ha#e to $e !ell ans!ered so don%t hold
$ack on task 1 or gi#e yourself too little time to ans!er it properly. The marking system $elo! can also $e used for
marking IELTS practice tests and it is used to grade the eample !riting in our IELTS practice tests.
Task .chie#ement This !here you can really make a difference through careful preparation. This mark grades you on
$asically 3ha#e you ans!ered the &uestion3. It marks !hether you ha#e co#ered all re&uirements of the task suffiently
and !hether you presented, highlighted and illustrate the key points appropriately.
0oherence and 0ohesion These t!o are interrelated !hich is !hy they are done together. 0ohesion is ho! your !riting
fits together. 4oes your !riting !ith its ideas and content flo! logically5 0oherence is ho! you are making yourself
understood and !hether the reader of your !riting understands !hat you are saying. .n eample of $ad coherence
and cohesion !ould $e as follo!s6
1 We went to the beach because it was raining.
"ro$a$ly the !riter of this sentence does not mean 3$ecause3 as people don%t usually go to the $each !hen it is
raining. The !riter should ha#e !ritten6
2 We went to the beach although it was raining.
Sentence 1 has made a cohesion and coherence error 7as !ell as a #oca$ulary one8. 3Because3 does not 9oin the ideas
of the sentence together correctly and, as a result, the reader does not understand !hat the !riter !ants to say. This
is an eaggerated eample $ut it sho!s !hat I mean. Good cohesion and coherence is not noticea$le as it allo!s the
!riting to $e read easily. Good cohesion and coherence also includes good and appropriate paragraph usage.
Leical 2esource This area looks at the your choice of !ords. The marker !ill look at !hether the right !ords are used
and !hether they are used at the right time in the right place and in the right !ay. To get a good mark here, the !ord
choice should not only $e accurate $ut !ide ranging, natural and sophisticated.
Grammatical 2ange and .ccuracy (ere the eaminer !ill mark your appropriate, flei$le and accurate use of
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:ree Lessons The :ree IELTS General Training Test Lessons General Training Writing Test ; Task 1 Tutorial
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grammatical structures. <any people are !orried a$out their grammar $ut, as you can see, grammar is only one
section of four used to grade your !riting. IELTS is much more interested in communication rather than grammatical
accuracy. It is, of course, still part of the marking scheme and important as such.
Paragra+)ing for t)e IELTS %eneral Training Task ( &riting
This is a #ery easy thing to do $ut it can ha#e an enormous effect on the intelligi$ility of your !riting and, of course,
good use of paragraphing is part of the marking under the section 0oherence and 0ohesion. =ery often people use no
paragraphing in The IELTS General Training Task 1 Writing and the eaminer is faced !ith a 3sea3 of !riting !ith no
$reaks from start to finish. :or me, the $est !ritings are those !here there are paragraphs separated $y an empty line
and also indented. In this !ay your ideas are separated clearly. It sho!s and gi#es organi>ation to your !riting and
makes it more reada$le. "aragraphing is an important skill and something you can practise !hen doing IELTS practice
tests.
:or a longer section on paragraphing and ho! useful it can $e, see GT Writing Task ) Tutorial.
.reas to "repare
.s I said earlier, Task 1 is the $est for preparation. Belo! are some areas for you to consider6
( Answering t)e ,uestion-
.s I said a$o#e, task achie#ement 7ans!ering the &uestion8 is one &uarter of your total mark and it is an area in !hich
e#eryone should do !ell. This is often, ho!e#er, not the case.
What you must do is to !rite a letter, !hich !ould fully ans!er the needs of the pro$lem in a real life situation. E#en if
you ha#e co#ered all that the &uestion itself asks, ha#e you included e#erything in the letter needed to realistically
perform its function. :or eample, a &uestion I ha#e seen some!here gi#es the candidate the follo!ing task6
.ou )a/e some library books t)at you are unable to return as a member of your family in anot)er city )as
fallen sick an! you )a/e )a! to go an! look after t)em-
Write a letter to the li$rary eplaining the situation. .pologi>e for the incon#enience called and say !hat you are going
to do.
'ou should !rite at least 1*+ !ords.
This seems a fairly typical IELTS General Training Task 1 !riting &uestion. .ns!ering the &uestion in a !ay that !ill
get you a good Task :ulfilment grade needs a num$er of things for you to do.
(0 &rite at least (12 wor!s-
Writing less does not ans!er the &uestion, !hich tells you to !rite at least 1*+ !ords. If you !rite less than 1*+ !ords,
the eaminer marking your paper !ill gi#e you a maimum of * for Task .chie#ement or e#en less. <aking sure that
you !rite enough is one of the #ital things you can do !hen using IELTS practice tests.
30 Fully !o all t)e t)ings t)at t)e ,uestion asks you-
In this case it asks you to do ? main things6
eplain the situation 1.
apologi>e for the incon#enience ).
say !hat you are going to do ?.
The important part is to fully do these things. 4on%t take 1 line to eplain a$out your relati#e ; people !ho do this often
don%t make the 1*+ !ord limit. Enlarge on !hat the &uestion tells you. @se your imagination. It must $e something
fairly serious to make you lea#e to!n and you must $e the only one possi$le to look after the relati#e so go into these
things. Be realistic as !ell.
'ou%re !riting to a li$rary and you !on%t make it too personal. .pologi>ing !on%t take up much space $ut you can still
de#ote a couple of sentences to it. Saying !hat you are going to do should $e a full eplanation as !ell.
40 *ake your letter realistic so it woul! function in a real life situation-
This in#ol#es adding other things to the letter, !hich it may not ask you for, $ut !ithout !hich your letter !ould not
perform its function. :or this &uestion, it !ould mean introducing yourself $y name, gi#ing your li$rary card
mem$ership num$er, telling the li$rary the titles of the $ooks that you ha#e $orro!ed, the names of their authors,
their li$rary reference num$ers, !hen you $orro!ed them and !hen they !ere due $ack.
:inally, in this &uestion, the situation might in#ol#e you getting a fine for the late $ooks so you could ask politely for
that to $e cancelled due to the circumstances. Without this information, the letter !ouldn%t help the li$rary much in real
life and, e#en though the &uestion doesn%t ask you specifically to include it, the eaminer reading your !ork !ill $e
looking for such things. These are things that are needed to get a / for task fulfilment and, theoretically, anyone,
!hate#er their le#el of English, should $e a$le to get a good mark here.
3 T)e #+ening %reeting of t)e Letter
'our letter !ill pro$a$ly need to $e a reasona$ly informal letter to a friend or a semi;formal letter. The opening of
Free IELTS General Training Writing Test - Task 1 http://www.ieltshelpnow.com/general_training_writing_test_1.html
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your letter should reflect !hich one you are !riting.
. friendly letter !ill open !ith 4ear follo!ed $y a name !hich should then $e follo!ed $y a comma, eg6
4ear Aohn,
. semi;formal letter !ill also open !ith 4ear and then $e follo!ed $y a name, 7if you decide that in the situation you
!ould kno! the name8 or $y Sir 7if it%s a man8, <adam 7if it%s a !oman8 or Sir-<adam if you don%t kno!, eg6
4ear <r. "hillips,
4ear <rs. "hillips,
4ear Sir,
4ear <adam,
4ear Sir-<adam,
The &uestion also might specify ho! you are to $egin so follo! !hat it says.
4 T)e #+ening Paragra+) of t)e Letter
In a semi;formal letter, I feel it is important to state the reason for the letter straight a!ay. 'ou could use the
follo!ing to help you6
I am !riting to ask- tell--inform you that...
I am !riting to ask-in&uire...
I am !riting !ith regard to...
I am !riting !ith reference to...
I am !riting in connection !ith...
I am !riting in response to...
In reply to your letter, I am !riting to... 7if the &uestion indicates that you
ha#e had a letter8
If the letter is a less formal one to a friend then you should open the letter in a friendlier !ay. EG6
4ear Aohn,
(i thereB It%s $een so long since I%#e heard from you. I hope you are doing !ell and I hope all you family are doing
fine. I%m pretty good in spite of !orking hard. .ny!ay, the reason I%m !riting is...
5 T)e Substance of t)e Letter
I%#e already gone into detail a$out ans!ering the &uestion fully and using your imagination to produce a realistic letter
fulfilling all functions so I !on%t repeat that. Through great eperience !ith IELTS, I can say that &uestions tend to ask
you to do certain things. (ere I !ill gi#e you some ideas a$out some language to use in the su$stance of the letter
!hich !ill help you to ans!er the task !ell.
Asking for Hel+
I !ould like you to...
I !ould $e grateful if you could...
I need to ask your ad#ice a$out...
I%d like to ask for information a$out...
What I%m looking for is...
0omplaining
I%m !riting to epress my dissatisfaction-annoyance- a$out...
I%m !riting to epress my anger at...
I am not happy a$out...
... is not !hat I epected-!as epecting.
I !ant to kno! !hat you are going to do a$out this situation.
CB When complaining, don%t get too angry. I%#e had students !ho really $ecame too heated in their complaints. In a
polite semi;formal letter, this should not happen. .lso, do not o#er;eaggerate. If it%s a reasona$ly small and
understanda$le pro$lem, do say that you%re not satisfied $ut sho! that you understand and stay calm in your
epressions.
T)anking
I%m #ery grateful for...
I%d like to thank you #ery much for...
I #ery much appreciated...
.pologi>ing
I%m #ery sorry that-a$out...
"lease forgi#e me for...
I%d like to apologi>e a$out...
"lease accept my apologies
Df course it is hard to remem$er all these things. By using IELTS practice tests, you can use these !ords and phrases
under controlled conditions and later you !ill $e a$le to use them $etter in the pressure situation of the real test.
Free IELTS General Training Writing Test - Task 1 http://www.ieltshelpnow.com/general_training_writing_test_1.html
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1 En!ing your Letter
:irst of all, in English !e often end letters $efore the sign off !ith certain phrases. These can $e included in most letters
and !ill make your letter seem realistic and polished. :or a formal letter, you could use6
If you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thanking you in advance for your help, I
look forward to hearing from you soon.
:or a more informal letter you could use6
If you need to know anything else, ust get in touch with me as soon as you can. Thanks a lot for your help and I hope
to hear from you soon.
Be careful thoughB IELTS eaminers &uite rightly look for !riting that has $een memorised and 9ust repeated so, if you
use epressions like the ones a$o#e, make sure that they fit in !ith the rest of your letter.
:inally you%ll need to sign off your letter. :or a formal letter use6
'ours faithfully, D2
'ours sincerely,
2emem$er the commas 7it makes a good impression on the eaminer if you use good punctuation8 and spell
3sincerely3 correctly 7a lot of people don%tB8.
:or an informal letter, lo#e is not al!ays appropriate though English speakers use it a lot. Better !ould $e to use6
2egards,
'ours,
Best !ishes,
#t)er Hints for t)e IELTS %eneral Training Task ( &riting
4DC%T copy any part of the &uestion in your ans!er. This is not your o!n !ork and therefore !ill $e disregarded $y
the eaminer and deducted from the !ord count. 'ou can use indi#idual !ords $ut $e careful of using 3chunks3 of the
&uestion tet.
4on%t repeat yourself or the same ideas. This gi#es a $ad impression and the eaminer realises that it isn%t adding to
the content of your letter.
If you are !eak at English grammar, try to use short sentences. This allo!s you to control the grammar and the
meaning of your !riting much more easily and contri$utes to a $etter coherence and cohesion mark. It%s much easier
to make things clear in a foreign language if you keep your sentences shortB
Think a$out the tenses of your #er$s. If you%re !riting a$out something that happened in the past, your #er$s !ill need
to $e in the past tenses. If you%re arranging something in the future, you !ill need to use the future tenses. If it%s a
ha$itual action, you%ll need the present simple tense and so on. If you ha#e time, a &uick check of your #er$s at the
end of the eam can help you find errors.
.s I 9ust said, if you ha#e finished the eam !ith time to spare, 4DC%T 9ust sit thereBB 0heck !hat you ha#e done. If
you ha#e time after the check, check again. .nd so on....
4on%t $e irrele#ant. .lthough you can use your imagination to epand on your ans!er, if any part of your letter is
totally unrelated to the &uestion and put in to 9ust put up the !ord count, then the eaminer !ill not take it into
account and deduct it from the !ord count.
If you !ant to impro#e, there%s no secret. "ractice. "ractice. "ractice. 'ou !on%t get $etter sitting and doing nothing.
E#en good English users need practice for the IELTS eam. It could make all the difference $et!een your getting the
$and that you need, and getting half a $and less than you need and ha#ing to do the eam again.
:inally, there are no correct ans!ers or methods. (ere I%#e gi#en you some ideas to guide you and hopefully to help
you $ut the &uestions can $e ans!ered !ell in different !ays. Good luck !ith the IELTS General Training Task 1
Writing. I hope that this free tutorial has helped youB Belo! are links to the other free IELTS General Training
Tutorials. We strongly recommend that you practice for the tests !ith good IELTS practice tests. Df course, !e !ould
like you to use ours as !e $elie#e ours are ecellent and the cheapest on the market, $ut any good IELTS practice
tests !ill do.
The IELTS General Training Listening Test Lesson
The IELTS General Training 2eading Test Lesson
The IELTS General Training Speaking Test Lesson
The IELTS General Training Writing Test ; Task ) Lesson
Free IELTS General Training Writing Test - Task 1 http://www.ieltshelpnow.com/general_training_writing_test_1.html
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