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Describe an important thing you learned (not at school or college): IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • When did you learn it?
  • How did you learn it?
  • Why did you think it was important to learn it?
  • How you felt when you learnt it?
Show all 89 answers

Cue 1:When did you learn it?

  • Mention a specific time frame when you learned this important thing, such as a few months ago or during a particular event.
  • Provide context about what was happening in your life at that time to make it more relatable.

Example

I learned this important lesson about financial management about six months ago when I started my first job. It was a significant transition for me as I was moving from being a student to a working professional.

Cue 2:How did you learn it?

  • Explain the method or source through which you learned this lesson, such as through a book, a workshop, or advice from someone.
  • Share any specific experiences or activities that helped you grasp this knowledge.

Example

I learned about financial management by attending a workshop organized by my company. The workshop was conducted by a financial expert who shared practical tips on budgeting and saving.

Cue 3:Why did you think it was important to learn it?

  • Discuss the reasons that made this lesson significant for you, such as future goals or personal circumstances.
  • Connect the importance of this lesson to your life or career aspirations.

Example

I thought it was crucial to learn about financial management because I wanted to ensure that I could save for my future and manage my expenses wisely. As I was starting my career, I realized that understanding finances would help me achieve my long-term goals.

Cue 4:How you felt when you learnt it?

  • Describe your emotions when you grasped this lesson, whether it was excitement, relief, or empowerment.
  • Reflect on how this knowledge has impacted your confidence or mindset.

Example

When I learned about financial management, I felt empowered and relieved. It was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders because I now had the tools to take control of my finances, which made me feel more confident about my future.

Conclusion

    Example

    In conclusion, learning about financial management was a pivotal moment in my life. It not only equipped me with essential skills but also changed my perspective on money and savings, setting a solid foundation for my future.

    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: Vague Responses

    Avoid giving vague or general answers. Specific details make your response more engaging and memorable. Candidates often lose points for not elaborating on their experiences.

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    Tip

    Use specific examples and details to illustrate your learning experience. Mention exact moments or feelings to make your answer more vivid.

    2: Ignoring the Cues

    Not addressing all the cues can lead to an incomplete answer. Candidates may miss important aspects of their learning experience, which can affect their score.

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    Tip

    Make sure to answer all the cues provided. Structure your response to cover when, how, why, and how you felt about your learning.

    Overly Complex Language

    Using overly complex vocabulary or grammar can confuse the listener. It's important to communicate clearly and effectively, especially in a speaking test.

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    Tip

    Use simple and clear language. Focus on expressing your ideas clearly rather than trying to impress with difficult words.

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    IELTS Cue Cards asked last week

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    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
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    Anonymous student Band 8

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    Sector 34 Test Centre, Chandigarh

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    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
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    Anonymous student Band 6.5

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    Whitefield Test Center, Bengaluru

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    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
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    Anonymous student Band 7

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    Begumpet Test Centre, Hyderabad

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    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
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    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7.5

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    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 6-7

    I'm not sure whether it's important but I find I felt it very different from the actual learning so recently during my vacation summer vacation to be more precise I got an opportunity to visit an NGO where I got to spend three days with them and though I learned a lot of things that cannot be seen in books like the theoretical knowledge apart from that you you have something called as emotional knowledge which you need to learn and which will cannot be provided in a college or a school and that was something very heart-touching to me and me along with my friend go to serve them have a discussion with them and get to know what their story is all about so I think I learned more to appreciate what I have in my life and that's something very huge and that was something where I had to realize a lot of things I'm grateful in my present life where there are times where I used to nag I used to like crib or be sad like why I don't have that so visiting them or seeing them made me realize and learn many things what and how unique and how grateful I should be in my life so I think that's something more important I can

    Band 6-7

    I learned how to make flatbreads during the COVID time, which is in 2020. As my parents got infected with the virus, it was only me and my younger brother who had to do all the chores, all the household chores. So, with the help of YouTube, a platform which is basically available to everyone, I learned how to make rotis. I did not expect myself to be so good at it. And I was very, very proud of myself once I actually made one because it helped my parents a lot. My mother only had to make vegetables because that is something I could not make. Making flatbreads is very easy. Honestly, although I did create a mess when I did it for the first time, my younger brother really did help me. And it was a very different experience, considering I had never thought that I would enter kitchen in my life before I completed high school, as I'm very busy in my usual schedule. But as everybody knows, COVID-19 pandemic was something nobody ever saw coming.

    Band 6-7

    One of the toughest and important task that I learned recently was driving. Until it was done, I thought it to be as an herculean task, but when I did it, I felt it was just a piece of cake. I started to learn driving for about 2 or 3 months and it was during the time when I had a vacation from college. I went to a driving school with my father and he had a friend over there at the driving school who taught me how to learn driving. That driver who taught me how to drive was quite helping and he led me to different stages at which we could learn the driving. From the very starting of how to hold the steering and handle the accelerators and such till that of how to direct the car while you are on the road. It was quite important because none of my friends out there are present who doesn't know how to drive. It was just me amongst my friends circle who didn't know how to drive. So I felt often ashamed thinking of the fact that I didn't know how to drive. When I accomplished the task, I felt over the moon because I never thought that I would be able to do it. But when I did it and when I'm on the road now, I feel free and happy. I also feel energetic and lively because I can handle a vehicle on my own without the help of someone else driving me to a place I wanted to be.

    Band 6-7

    One of the most important things I learned in life is to stay calm no matter what the situation is. Learning to stay calm is not taught at school, nor any college, nor any institute, nor any teaching facilities or educational places. It is taught by personal experience. I would like to share one of my personal experiences in which I learned and I realized that I need to stay calm. It was at a time when I was preparing for an exam and I was so nervous, so nervous for that exam, I started getting panic attacks. So when, during the exam, I was so nervous, I had to tell myself to stop panicking. I had to learn it the hard way and I had to legit force myself to stay calm, which I successfully did. After that, I trained myself in such a way that I need to stay calm in every situation I come across. Because life throws lemons at you. Life is not always good. Life will throw all the bad things at you. It will put you in such difficult situations that you will lose your mind, but by developing this skill or this important thing, by staying calm, you can handle any, any situation life throws at you in such a good way. Therefore, everyone, I suggest everyone, no matter what the situation is, you need to stay calm and focused and think with

    Band 6-7

    Firstly I would like to describe an incident and why I am describing this incident is because it actually gives me many lessons. This happened when I was doing my postdoctoral fellowship at Regional Cancer Center, Triandrum. Mother of a child who actually suffers with a terminal cancer. So she came to us for a counseling session. So at that time she describes how she felt. She described how she felt. She told God gives such scenarios or such situations to only those parents who have the ability to sustain it. And she felt that since she can sustain this situation, that's why only God gave her such situation. This opened my eyes because what an understanding that lady is having about the meaning of life. Even everything in the life is momentary. For example, for that lady, sadness, happiness and each moment with the child is actually momentary. But still she feels or she considers a reason for moving ahead. And this type of thinking from people actually should be taken by us. Because not all people can have such understanding. So the meaning of or the deeper meaning of life actually that is what that lady's...

    Band 6-7

    So I learned a very special thing which is self-discipline in the past three years, three years ago and yes I learned it through mistakes and analyzing all of the all of the things that I did incorrectly and that lead to having me self-discipline and and yes it is very important in life because I have learned that I have learned a self-discipline is way too important in life and that teaches you to be productive and work on yourself which is very important as as of now which is in a which is in a very destructive world you have to be protective and you have to be attentive also and yes I think self-discipline factor has helped me a lot in various aspects like working on my goals working on the things that matters I think yes it is very valuable and I think having self-discipline is a very very useful trait for anyone and I think every person should have this kind of trait it's very invaluable in the life of a person

    Band 6-7

    I would say I've learned time management. I've learned this skill when I've joined my professional advocate. I'm an advocate by profession, so I've learned this skill time management because time management really helps us to achieve goals on time. So before that I used to submit my work very late at late times and I used to fail to submit representation in courts and I used to forget things. I used to not submit my work on time. So I decided I should start time managing. So I learned time management last year. It really helps me to achieve goals on time and to prepare for my work and to start a day and it really keeps me going on life and people really appreciate me for the time management that I do because time management is really quite important.

    Band 6-7

    The important thing I learned in my life experience, that is hard work. There are a lot of qualities and values we need actually. Many skills we need to acquire during our lifetime. Even though we will get school or some college or we inspired some persons, may be your friend or your teacher. So we can change a lot. After getting experience, we can change a lot. So according to me, during my profession time, I believe hard work is very important. That I say now because each and every work we should do, we should do dedicationally or we must hard work. Thank you.

    Band 6-7

    There are a lot of things which I learned in my spare time to improve my productivity. But here if I am talking about one skill which I learned in my past without any assistance like an educational institute is the typing skill. I was learning by myself from some tutorial videos like on YouTube channels and with the help of my friend, little bit help I would say because he is very good in typing. So it's a valuable skill for me as I go for research and write up my thesis also. So it's a very valuable thing for me. Apart from that I also do the practice of typing with the help of my laptop. I purchased it before 6 months ago I guess and it is a good experience for me when I type on my laptop. The keys are very smooth and so yeah that's it.

    Band 6-7

    I learned Hindi language out of college and school with my friends who were also learning Hindi language in a community. Hindi language learning is very important for me so that I'll be able to translate movies and will be able to work as an Indian translator. However, those people who wanted to learn were not able to talk fluently. It compelled me to come to India and learn Hindi language in the society. Here in India, I made so many friends and most of the time we were talking in Hindi. Furthermore, watching Indian movies as well as hearing Indian songs enabled me to learn Hindi in a more fluent as well as effective way. Additionally, it is crucial to mention about the importance of Hindi in current world. For a person like Afghan, as I am an Afghan nation, it is very crucial to learn Hindi language so that I'll be able to contribute in the exchange of cultural nuances between Afghanistan and India. There is excessive importance in the field of cultural exchange between India and Afghanistan as well as the broad field of job in translation as well as becoming a teacher.
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