Describe your favourite way to relax.: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

What is it?
How effective is it for you?
When and how do you relax?

67 unique answers with expert feedback

Show all 67 answers

Cue 1:What is it?

Begin by clearly stating your favourite way to relax, such as reading, meditating, or watching movies.
Provide a brief explanation of why this activity is your preferred method of relaxation.

Example

My favourite way to relax is by reading books. I find that immersing myself in a good story allows me to escape from the stresses of daily life and enter a different world.

Cue 2:How effective is it for you?

Discuss the benefits you experience from this activity, such as reduced stress or improved mood.
Mention any specific instances where this method of relaxation has helped you cope with challenges.

Example

Reading is incredibly effective for me as it helps me unwind after a long day at work. Whenever I feel overwhelmed, diving into a novel not only distracts me but also lifts my spirits. For instance, after a particularly stressful week, I read a gripping mystery that kept me engaged for hours.

Cue 3:When and how do you relax?

Describe the times when you usually engage in this relaxing activity, such as in the evenings or on weekends.
Explain your routine or environment when you relax, like a cozy corner at home or a park.

Example

I usually relax by reading in the evenings, right after dinner. I have a cozy nook in my living room with a comfortable chair and a warm lamp, which creates the perfect atmosphere for getting lost in a book. On weekends, I also enjoy reading at a nearby park, surrounded by nature.

Conclusion

Summarize the key points about your favourite way to relax.
Reiterate why this method is significant to you and how it contributes to your overall well-being.

Example

In conclusion, reading is my favourite way to relax because it transports me to different worlds and helps me manage stress effectively. It is a cherished part of my daily routine that contributes significantly to my mental well-being.

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 can make the response less engaging and informative, leading to a lower score.

Tip

Provide specific examples of your relaxation method, including details about what you do, where you do it, and why you enjoy it.

2: Lack of Structure

A disorganized response can confuse the listener. Failing to address the cues in a logical order may result in a less coherent answer.

Tip

Follow the cue card prompts in order: start with what it is, then discuss its effectiveness, and finally explain when and how you relax.

Overly Short Responses

Some candidates give very brief answers, which can limit the opportunity to showcase language skills and depth of thought.

Tip

Expand your answers by including personal anecdotes or feelings related to your relaxation method to create a more engaging narrative.

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 6-7

Well, there are many relaxing places but here I would like to talk about my favorite relaxing place which is none other than my room. I feel very peace in my room and I feel very relaxed when I come or sit in my room. Apart from this, whenever I feel I want to relax, I do meditation in my room. I feel very relaxed and do other much more activities which are more effective to relax my mind such as listening music, doing my favorite hobbies to divert my mind which really help me to relax and most of the time I spend my quality time with my family members so that I can also feel relaxed and it is also an effective way to feel relaxed.

Band 6-7

My favorite way to relax is watching kdramas. In my free time I used to watch kdramas. In my favorite part of kdramas is there is different concept. In every kdrama there is different story which is not seen in the Indian TV serial. In the Indian TV serial what I used to see that there is a constant fight between a mother and son-in-law and father-in-law all these get old stuff. I want to see something new that's why I used to watch kdramas in my free time. And this is my favorite way to relax. In a day I can watch about 15 to 20 episodes of kdramas daily if I want to relax. For me my favorite kdrama is Boys Over Flowers. Actually it is a romantic drama but I enjoy it very much. First time when I saw it then it gives me a different step. It leaves a different stamp on my heart.

Band 6-7

There are multiple ways which one can relax doing meditation, yoga, going on a drive or just speaking with someone but personally my favorite way to relax is by taking a long drive on a quiet road with my friends, family, just anyone, especially during the evening. It's something that instantly just calms me and helps me unwind. I enjoy the peaceful atmosphere that when I'm driving with soft music playing in the background. It just allows me to clear my mind and forget about the stress of the day. The changing scenery also feels really refreshing. Last weekend, I drove to nearby countryside area which is Khadakwasla and the view of the open field and the water, even the sunset was just so calming. It was like escaping into another world, even if it was just for a couple of days. This activity was not just something which helped me to relax but also helped me think more clearly and I often whenever I feel confused or I am overwhelmed, then these places, good drive really helps. I often feel more positive and motivated after doing it. So personally for me, driving is more than just transportation. It's my little escape from day to day life and from all of the stress of the week. It's the best way to discharge my energy according to me and it really helps me calm my nerves.

Band 6-7

Human beings need rest to repair and rejuvenate their health both physically and mentally. Today I would like to talk about my favorite way to relax that is visiting a beach. In my hometown there are a lot of beaches available in which people in my area used to go and enjoy their evening. So for me relaxation means sitting somewhere calm and quiet and enjoying the scenery. For that beaches are very good choice. In beaches you can see a lot of natural places and also food, entertainment and many parks will be available. By utilizing all the facilities people can relax in their own way. Additionally I would like to relax in my home itself. If I don't have any work means I would simply go to my room switch on my laptop and watch some movies. This is one of the best way to take your mind into another level of meditating state. Through this process I get a complete feeling of relaxation in which both my body mentally and physically is relaxed.

Band 6-7

My favorite way to relax myself is listening to music. Music is a universal language, even though it involves various beats, various languages involved in it, music is something beyond limitations set by human beings. Music is a... Music can even unite the world when used in the proper form. By listening to music, I am able to concentrate even more. And this enhances my level of clarity in my mind. And at times it gives an emotional release for me. It decreases the cortisol level in my mind and increases the happy hormones which floods me with enthusiasm to do the next task. I think music can diminish all the division between human beings and by that I value it as much as I value air. Music is the dancing of the air. It makes me happy whenever I listen to music and it is much more helpful in reducing my stress level and improving my concentration level.

Band 6-7

Here I would like to describe a favorite time to relax, which is nothing but I like to relax with my family because I'm working in a nine to five job of nursing practice, so I end up with a busy schedule, like I have to spend about 40 hours a week with my job. So as a result, I don't get enough time to spend time with my family. So just after in the weekends, I just relax with my family, like most probably in the Saturdays and Sundays, so I enjoy with them by feeding nutritious and nutrition food. So primarily, I like to cook a lot different kind of cuisines when I get free time. So I take that day as advantageous to cook different kind of meals like Italian pasta pizzas. So my family not only enjoying my company as well as they likes to eat different kind of cuisines what I make, especially pasta and pizzas. Then I just like to engage with reading books and as well as listening to some calm music because those are my favorite part of tranquilize myself with those activities. That also helps me to rewind from my routine.

Band 6-7

In my life, whenever I feel stressed, I go for some things that really ease out my tension like usually I do some leisure activities like painting, sometimes I watch movies but the most effective method to feel relaxed and calm that is doing yoga. Yoga is the best exercise I have ever done in my life because it has not enhanced my mental health or improved my mental health but also my physical health because with the help of yoga we could be able to increase our concentration level and I believe that it's the best part in which people can enhance their peace mind and they can also increase their focus and their dedication towards their goals by motivating themselves and keeping their mind healthy. Yoga is a kind of thing that is really beneficial that it is good for our physical health and if the person's muscle or brain cells or something is not going well so with the help of yoga and the asanas we can become more stronger as well as productive. Yoga is not just, it is not just exercise for the mind, it also helps us to feel relaxed and usually do meditation at holy temples like usually I also I prefer to go to some hilly areas like in Kasauli and in mandirs, at religious places I do meditation and I've learned this yoga from my school because my teacher encouraged me to take part in this because I used to stress a lot about my studies and my career so this really helped me to manage my stress level and helped me to minimize my anxiety.

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