Describe a time you enjoyed a free day off work or school: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

When the day was?
What you did during the day?
Who you spent it with?
And explain why it was enjoyable.

116 unique answers with expert feedback

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Cue 1:When the day was?

Mention a specific date or time frame to give context to your story.
Explain why this day was significant for you, such as a holiday or a personal reason.

Example

The day I enjoyed my free day off was on the 15th of August, which is India's Independence Day. I had planned this day off in advance to celebrate the occasion with my family.

Cue 2:What you did during the day?

Describe the activities you engaged in throughout the day.
Include a mix of relaxing and engaging activities to show how you made the most of your time.

Example

I started my day with a leisurely breakfast at home, followed by watching the flag hoisting ceremony on television. Later, I took a walk in the nearby park, enjoying the fresh air and the festive atmosphere. In the afternoon, I prepared a special lunch with my family, and we even watched a patriotic movie together.

Cue 3:Who you spent it with?

Mention the people you shared this day with, highlighting their importance to you.
Explain how their presence contributed to the enjoyment of the day.

Example

I spent this day with my parents and younger sister. Being together as a family made the day even more special, as we shared stories about our country's history and enjoyed each other's company.

Cue 4:And explain why it was enjoyable.

Reflect on the feelings and emotions you experienced during the day.
Discuss the significance of taking a break from work or school and how it impacted your well-being.

Example

This day was enjoyable because it allowed me to relax and reconnect with my family. After a hectic work schedule, having a day off to celebrate our independence and bond with loved ones was refreshing. I felt grateful and happy, which made the day memorable.

Conclusion

Example

In conclusion, my free day off on Independence Day was a perfect blend of relaxation and celebration. It reminded me of the importance of family and taking time for myself, making it a truly enjoyable experience.

Following this structure will ensure you cover all the essential points while providing a clear and engaging response to the cue card topic.

Tips to answer this Cue Card

1: Being Too Vague

Candidates often give very general answers without specific details. This makes the response less engaging and informative.

Tip

Include specific details about the day, such as activities, locations, and feelings to make your answer more vivid and interesting.

2: Ignoring the Cues

Some candidates forget to address all the cues provided, leading to incomplete answers that may not fully satisfy the examiner's expectations.

Tip

Make sure to answer all the cues: when the day was, what you did, who you were with, and why it was enjoyable.

Overly Complicated Language

Using complex vocabulary or sentence structures can confuse the listener and detract from the clarity of your message.

Tip

Use clear and simple language to express your ideas. Focus on being understandable rather than using difficult words.

IELTS Cue Cards asked last week

Reported by Leap students who gave IELTS

Describe your favourite food at a traditional festival or a special event in your country

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7.5

Pitampura Test Centre, New Delhi

Answer

I like to taste different types of cuisine. Here I would like to talk about my favorite dish at my traditional festival of Onam which is Sadya. Sadya is popular in my city. We are experimenting these cuisines on Onam festival day. Onam is a famous festival in my city. All family members get together in my home and we make a delicious Sadya. There are many ingredients includes that Sadya. Moreover, we make a big feast that day as well as we create a lot of memories together and we wear that day the traditional dress called Sari and men wear the Dhotis. That festival is really important to us because the whole day we are conducting different kinds of games at our homes and all the family members came together. It's a memorable day in my life. This is the festival. We are making the Sambar and Aviyal. These all the kinds of foods are making with the vegetables.

Talk about a toy you liked in your childhood

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 8

Sector 34 Test Centre, Chandigarh

Answer

The toy which I liked in my childhood was a panda doll, which makes me pleasant and makes me more blush. The pandas are the most beautiful creatures of the world, which looks gigantic and has pooshy cheeks and they are like stars in the clouds and they dream in me. Furthermore, these have been given by my father. My father is a very very beautiful artistic person, who makes me think of that. Every day you will face every difficulties and make you suffer and move forward. Pandas are always seen in Japanese countries. It is my lifelong dream to visit a Japanese country and click a photo with the original pandas, which makes sounds better.

Describe a time you were in a place where you didn't know the local language

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 6.5

Whitefield Test Center, Bengaluru

Answer

As India is a very large country full of diversity, so there are many places which have their own language and speak their native language. The place which I visited and I didn't know about their language was Leladakh, which is about 300 km away from my hometown and it is a very good place as it consists of different kind of trees, animals and have many scenic views and I visited over there last year in summers as it was the best time to visit because it has many, it was cold over there and we had summers in our area so it was the best time to visit over there and I went over there with my whole family.

Describe a time when your friend damaged something you owned

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7

Begumpet Test Centre, Hyderabad

Answer

When I was a kid, I had a little pencil box which had these four buttons which gave the pencil box an operative use. When you press the button, the box would open up. When you press the second button, a little part of it would slide out. Basically it was just a little electronical and a fun thing to have and I owned it when I was in 6th. One day after break, I was standing and talking there with one of my friends and another friend of mine was running through the hallway and accidentally she pushed my shoulder and my pencil box hit the ground and it broke into multiple pieces to the point that it was not functional anymore.

Describe a book you recently read

Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7.5

CBD Belapur Test Centre, Navi Mumbai

Answer

It Ends With Us is a book I read recently. It's by the author Colleen Hoare. It's mainly a story about two teenagers, Atlas and Lily, and how they just handle their life going through high school, adolescence, and just domestic violence at home. Both of them come from very, very different families. However, they have one common determining factor between them, which is domestic violence. The abuse that they've seen their moms go through is just insane, and they connect through that on a different level. They're actually in the same high school, but they never speak to each other until Atlas actually crashes into an empty house next to Lily's villa. When Atlas is homeless and he doesn't have anywhere to go, he just comes and breaks into the house next to Lily's, and Lily helps him with all the daily necessities like clothes and food, medicines and stuff. Furthermore, their friendship blossoms into love, but it doesn't really fructify as Atlas has to leave. This book really gave me a lot of knowledge about domestic abuse and how to deal with it.

All Answers

Here are all the answers by real-users practicing speaking for IELTS Cue Cards on our IELTS Prep App.

Band 6

I remember a time when I had just moved to Delhi and I was working in IIT Delhi. It was my first day off there after a week full of work and assignments and projects. I befriended one of the lab members and we decided to explore Delhi.

Band 6

The day I enjoyed a free day off from school is when I was 18 years old, I just completed my intermediate and so I got a good score in the intermediate and I got holidays, I got summer holidays and so on the holidays I went to my friends home and that was the first time I ever went to her home, so I was in her home for a whole day and we have talked about everything and nothing, we just we have done many things on that day and that was very enjoyable and she was my very best friend, very first best friend whom I ever close, I ever been close with and she was like, she was such a kind girl and we have, we had a lot of fun on that day, we have roamed all over the city and purchased many things and we have, have eaten many good things from the local street stores and that was a great day for me because that's the first time I ever went outside without my parents and my parents were okay with it because that's the first ever time I was asking my parents to let me go out, let me go off alone with my friend and they agree with that and I was so happy on that moment and I just got ready and went to her home and had a very wonderful day and had talked with her parents and they were so nice and yes, that was just a great day, I will never forget that in my life.

Band 6

No audio text available

Band 6

I think each and every person is really busy in their life, whether they are children or whether they are adults, because nowadays everyone gets to achieve their goals, so in order to achieve their goals, they do hard work, which keeps them busy, and I am one of them. So now I want to describe a time when I had enjoyed a free day off from my work, from my school, and it had happened a couple of days back, as I am taking my language classes, so during only the Sunday, I get off from my work, and during that day, I spend my whole day with my family members, with my mother and with my younger brother also, I spend all the time during, in sleeping, as well as watching the movies also, even I try delicious dishes that are made by my, that were made by my mother also, apart from this, in the evening, I go out with my family members in the restaurant to have a great meal with them, apart from this, I go for the evening walk also, which refresh my mind, moreover, I spend whole time with my family, which is really a good time for me, I felt over the moon for that time, as I love their company, moreover, I love their company also, and it is really a good time for me, because after a long break, even after a lethargic day, I felt refreshed, and I felt really exhausted for the very first time, because all the days are really busy for me, but after a long break, I finally get relaxed from my work, I felt really happy for the very first time, because even I also get busy in my daily schedule life, and yes, it is really a good moment for me, I felt over the moon for the time, I enjoyed all the time.

Band 6

I think the time when I enjoyed a free day of work or school was actually, I think it was a Friday, and there was a sudden renovation in my school, so my school decided to give everyone a day off. It was a very genuine surprise for me at first, but then it also gave me a lot of time to come and relax at my home. This day kind of helped me to take a breather, and from the hustle and bustle of the school, it was kind of like a getaway for me, staying at home one day and then just relaxing in your own cozy, comfortable house. I spent it with my family, my mom and dad and my little dog and my brother. We were just talking and making jokes and arguing and everything, what and all we used to do when we used to have a lot of time back then. When we were kids, we were just doing that. It just brought out a lot of nostalgia, spending it with them. Nowadays, everything is getting busier and my school is getting kind of stressed out, so it's very nostalgic to relive the experience with my parents and spending time with them. We played a lot of games and we watched a wonderful movie, which was very fun, and especially when you watch it with your loved ones and when you're at the own comfort and coziness of your house, it's always great and there's nothing that could beat that. And this day, I think it's just like a happy day. It's a very happy, peaceful, restful day.

Band 6.5

Lately, I have been extremely busy at my work doing all the tasks and it was very stressful and pressurizing to meet the deadlines because the volume of tasks this time was five times the normal. So, after the due date, it was like last Saturday that I got off from office and it was such a relaxing day because after such a heavy routine, there was finally a space to dream and just do nothing for the whole day. So, I planned to spend it with my husband because we work opposite shifts. So, it was definitely a very much needed break for both of us to like enjoy each other's company and do something we love. So, we went out for a movie and then we went out to have lunch at our favorite place, Bhabhi Ke Nation. We loved the food over there. After that, we went to Sukhna Lake which is a very famous spot in Chandigarh and the weather that day was amazing. It was all cloudy and winds were blowing and it was very nice. After that, I visited Gurudwara which is a religious place and we sat there for 30 minutes just to absorb the peace and get some positivity to relax our minds. I think it was a very much needed break from the heavy routine that I was having. So, it totally relaxed my mind and charged me up for the next tasks and I enjoyed it.

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