IELTS Speaking Sample #10

Good morning. May I have a look at your passport?

Yeah.

Could you tell me your full name please?

My first name is Hanako, which means flower child or something like that. My family name is Hayashi, which is "woods" in English.

All right Hanako. In this first part I am going to ask you some questions about yourself. Let’s talk about where you live. What kind of place is it?

I live in the UK, in Canterbury. It’s most famous for its Cathedral. It’s quite a small town with lots of old buildings and green spaces.

What do you like best about Canterbury?

It’s very peaceful, and you can walk everywhere easily.

What kinds of jobs do people do in Canterbury?

A lot of people work for the university of course, and there are many new IT companies as well.

And would you say Canterbury is a good place to work in?

Yes, it is, because there are plenty of opportunities.

Now, let’s move on to sport. How much time do you spend playing or watching sports?

Not very much, maybe a couple of hours a week.

Which sports are the most popular in the UK?

Football, cricket and rugby. Actually, I’ve read that fishing is the most popular hobby in the UK. I’m not sure if that’s sport.

Which sports did you do when you were at school?

I played basketball at school, because I was a giraffe at a young age, six feet tall at the age of thirteen.

Do you think all children should do some sport?

Yes, I think it’s a good idea for children to learn to do some different physical activities. Through sports, they can learn about team working, achieving something through effort and skill.

Right, now let’s move on to food. Do you like cooking?

No, not much. But I do like food.

How often do you go to restaurants?

Quite often. About twice a week on average.

What kinds of restaurants do you enjoy eating in?

I like restaurants that aren’t too formal. I prefer the cosy kind. But it’s very important to me that the food is fresh and healthy.

What does a restaurant need to do to be successful?

I think a good restaurant should change its menu fairly frequently, and use food that is in season at the particular time of the year.

Ok Hanako. Now we move on to Part two of the speaking test. Have a look at this. Read it carefully. You have about one minute to think about your answer. Then approximately one to two minutes to talk to me about what's on the slip. You can use a pen and paper to make some notes.

Don't worry if I stop you , I'll let you know when the time is up.

All right. Are you ready?

Yes. I’m going to talk about a shop in Canterbury that I like going to. It’s in the centre of Canterbury and about ten minutes walk from my house. It’s “Hotel Chocolat”, and as you can imagine, it sells chocolate. It has a big range of chocolate related products. You can choose from a variety of dark and milk chocolate flavours, including dark chocolate with espresso, and milk chocolate with cherries, which are my favourites. The smell is delicious and the chocolate is too. The shop also sells lots of different teas and tea pots, coffee pots, cups and saucers as well as other nice things for your kitchen. It also sells a few very expensive and luxurious chocolate gifts. I tend to go there about once a week, normally on a Saturday and I buy enough chocolate to last me for the next week. I enjoy going there not just because of the nice chocolate, but also because the lady who works there is very friendly. So that’s my favourite shop.

Do your friends like the shop too?

Yes, they do. It’s a very popular place.

All right Hanako. We move on to Part three of the test now. We’ve been talking about a shop that you enjoy going to, and I’d like to discuss with you one or two more general questions related to this. Let’s consider first of all developments in shopping. Are there certain kinds of shops that are becoming more popular?

Well, I suppose shops that sell computers and computer games and also those that sell mobile phones. There seem to be more and more of them opening up. I suppose it’s not surprising. But I find these shops rather boring personally.

What disadvantages do you think there may be to an increase in consumerism?

For me, one of the main disadvantages is that increased consumerism seems to emphasise the difference between rich and poor people. Also another disadvantage is that many people already work too hard and with the increasing consumerism they drive themselves harder and harder just to make money to buy things they don’t actually need, or have time to enjoy.

In what ways do you think advertising affects people's attitudes?

The more advertising there is, the more people seem to want. And they never satisfied with what they’ve got. I suppose it’s really depends what you mean by advertising. Some of it could be seen as socially useful. For example, anti-smoking advertising campaigns.

In what ways do you think shopping may change in the future?

Well, I’m sure there will be an increasing online shopping, because more and more people have access to home computers. I also think that many small shops in the centre of town will close down, and bigger and bigger supermarkets will open on the outskirts. In some ways it may be more convenient, but I don’t know if these changes will really improve our lives.

Thank you Hanako. Your speaking test is over now. You can enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Thank you. I hope you have a good weekend too.