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Describe your first day at school.: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • When & where did you go to?
  • What happened there?
  • How did you feel on that day?
Show all 183 answers

Cue 1:When & where did you go to?

  • Begin by mentioning the name of the school and its location to set the context.
  • Include the date or year to give a sense of time and personal significance.

Example

I started my first day at St. Xavier's School in Mumbai in June 2005. It was a bright sunny morning, and I remember feeling a mix of excitement and nervousness as I stepped into the school premises for the very first time.

Cue 2:What happened there?

  • Describe the activities that took place during your first day, such as meeting teachers and classmates.
  • Mention any memorable events or interactions that stood out to you.

Example

On that day, I was introduced to my class teacher, Mrs. Sharma, who was very welcoming. We had a brief orientation session where I met my classmates. I vividly remember playing games during recess, which helped break the ice and made me feel more comfortable.

Cue 3:How did you feel on that day?

  • Share your emotions and thoughts throughout the day, highlighting any changes in your feelings.
  • Reflect on how the experience shaped your view of school and learning.

Example

Initially, I felt anxious about fitting in, but as the day progressed, I started to feel more at ease. By the end of the day, I was filled with joy and anticipation for what the rest of the school year would bring.

Conclusion

  • Summarize your overall experience and its impact on your life.
  • Mention how that first day influenced your attitude towards school in general.

Example

Looking back, my first day at school was a pivotal moment in my life. It not only marked the beginning of my education but also taught me the importance of stepping out of my comfort zone. That day laid the foundation for many wonderful friendships and learning experiences.

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: Avoid Vague Descriptions

Using vague language can make your response less engaging and informative. Specific details help the examiner understand your experience better.

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Tip

Include specific details about the location, activities, and people you encountered on your first day to create a vivid picture.

2: Don't Rush Your Response

Speaking too quickly can lead to unclear communication and missed details. It's important to pace yourself for better clarity.

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Tip

Take a moment to organize your thoughts before speaking, and practice speaking slowly to ensure your ideas are conveyed clearly.

Neglecting Emotions

Failing to express your feelings can make your answer less relatable. Emotions add depth to your story and engage the listener.

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Tip

Share how you felt during your first day, whether it was excitement, nervousness, or joy, to connect with the examiner on a personal level.

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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
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Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7.5

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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
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Reported by

Anonymous student Band 8

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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
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Reported by

Anonymous student Band 6.5

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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
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Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7

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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
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Reported by

Anonymous student Band 7.5

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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

So my school, my first day at school was a rollercoaster experience, let me just tell you why. The school was just next to my building and I've always had a habit to get late and I didn't want to go to school so the morning that I knew that this is my first day at school I ran up from the house but I was just in the garden so my mother eventually found me, she gave me a nice beating, she dressed me and took me to school. The moment I arrived at school I was like any other child, I was crying, sobbing, screaming. The moment that I entered the school everyone got my attention, I was in everyone's attention. The teachers, the maids, the parents of other children, all of them were around me and I was crying, I was just crying and sobbing like crazy. These people, all of them, they were trying, not just trying, they were trying really hard to grab my feet and somehow get rid of the bar that I was holding in the school gate. I was just leaning like a superman who was flying in the air, I wasn't letting the steel bar go but eventually that was out of my hand and people took me in the school, I was just crying but eventually I was feeling very sad, I didn't want to lose my mama but I made few friends that I got to know that they also live in the same building where I come from so after the school ended I've come, I've exited with few of my friends and my mom saw me, she came to pick me up and the moment I saw my mom I just clung on to her, I was crying, I didn't want to go to school tomorrow and same thing happened like for a week and everything just got normal and I've made a lot of quite new friends, amazing friends to be honest.

Band 6-7

I would like to talk about the first day of my school. It was, I remember the first day even now. I hold my father's hand and we went to my school on my father's bike. It was a school near to my hometown. Since then I am very close to my mother and I haven't gone anywhere. So this was the first time I detached from my parents. So I cried while we go to school. When we reached there, I saw a lot of children. They are happy and playing. A teacher named Elizabeth, she is our class teacher, welcomed us. On the first day we studied Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. After mingling with the teacher and friends, my fear became...

Band 6-7

I still remember my first day at school. I was very nervous at initially about the first day by thought by thinking that I could able to make new friends or I could able to capture the lessons they took and by the teachers and at first day I as usual I woke up at early in the morning and started getting ready for the school. It was my mom who accompanied me for the school. I was very excited after entering the school to for creating new friends and to talk with them. There was an induction program held before starting the class and during that program that every teachers introduced themselves and motivated us for our first day and also there are some gifts provided by the school to encourage the children to stay in the school to make them excited for coming in coming at the school also. After that we all directed to the classes and I was in a class which has only 30 students. After I entered the class my mom say bye to me and she went to home and first time I still remember the teacher started with a poem about a bot and it

Band 6-7

My first day of school, oh that I do not remember because I was very young, but my first day of high school, I do remember because I went to APS Bhopal for the first time I entered my foot in the classroom and I just know that it, I just knew that it was going to be the best year of my life because there was really magnificent energies coming from it. I saw my friends and they were really nice to me. It was not something very special happening, very mundane task of life. We had homework, we had classes. The English literature class really impacted me and I still remember it vividly till date. So I think it's not about the things that happened there, it's more about the feelings it brought, being together with my friends and there was also a sense of nostalgia that it was the last year of my school life that I am going to never return to school after I've completed this class. So there was, oh, there were like really overwhelming feelings and emotional connection was also there. Then as I said, the English class really impacted me. I remember it so well. I felt like I can be anything there. So my first day of school was a very significant event for me because it was very cliche, it was very mundane, but it brought me so much joy and it brought me so much love and the class was really nice and I made really nice and new friends. So yeah, it brought me closer to myself and to people and I made really good connections with my teachers.

Band 6-7

So, 2009 July 1 was my first day of kindergarten. That was the first time I have stepped into an education field. I was 6 years old when I joined my kindergarten and the name of my school was Janata Sikshan Samiti High School. So, I was living in Malapur. I have been to school in a bus. First day of school, in bus I was sitting at the back seat with one of my new friend called Rahul. I reached school at 9.30 sharp and our class teacher enters with a white sari and her name was Ritu. She was so kind and very sweet to us. And Prem was my bench mate who was sitting beside me. After two hours, we got a short break. I brought fruits to have for my short break and later we had a physical training session for one hour. Thereafter, we were left for lunch. I bought my favourite dish which was Maggi. But, I got scoldings from my teacher since it was not good to have Maggi. After that, at the time of 4.30, the last bell rings and we go to home.

Band 6-7

So, my first day in my school called as Utpal Sanghvi Global School was in 2008 when I was in first grade. I don't remember much of this day, but definitely the memories do have a flashback. When I entered the building, I was so nervous. I didn't know anyone at the school. I was ready to make new friends as I'm an extrovert, trying to be friendly and gel in the environment. I spoke to many teachers. Everyone was so excited for their first experience of their school, excited to see all the books and the crayons and the different types of classes like dance, drama. We had so much of activities. We played with everyone. We had a chit-chat session. We had an introduction session with everyone. Also, I made four of my new friends, which are definitely my closest friends, I think made on the very first day of my school. I usually sit with them every day. On the first day...

Band 6-7

To be very honest, I don't actually remember how was the exact day of my school because I was barely 2 or 3 years old maybe. But as far as I remember, I went to kindergarten at the age of 2.5 or 3 maybe and first of all I remember was that I was crying and crying a lot. Just that the experience of going away from your parents for the very first time alone and doing something on your own was, I feel really just stress on your mind and the day when I actually sat in the bus, I was crying and then I just didn't look up and was just looking on the floor and when I went to the school first of all.

Band 6-7

On my first day of school I was not at all excited. I would say that I was like crying on any words of the time on that day but fortunately my teacher was very kind to me. She tried to handle me very calmly and even offered me some candies so that I convinced to sit in the class properly without having any issue. She also made sure that I don't feel like very strange and or a stranger in the class. Additionally there were some cute children at the time and they also from my neighbor who started to talk to me and my mood getting better on that day. That was the first time that I spent a lot of time outside my house. In addition to this I also experienced various kind of games that I didn't played before in my house. And finally I will say that that was a very good and scaring experience for me simultaneously because it was the first time I went out from the home that long and make very good friend and meet a very good teacher.

Band 6-7

So, the first day at my school, I studied in Kamal English School, which is in Bangalore, Padmanabhan Nagar. It was a school which I really wanted to go as also my friend used to go over there. This school was recommended by my father's friend. So even I was very excited to go to this school. So before entering the school, you need to write an exam, like an entrance exam to get in this school. So I had written the exam and I had scored really well. So I was really happy, my parents were happy. So I joined this school when I was in UKG. On the first day of school, I still remember my mom woke me up early in the morning. I got ready, I took shower, I prayed. You know the first day of wearing the school dress, it feels really happy to wear the clothes. And I had really nice, good uniform. It was not bad because few schools have really bad uniform. I had really good uniform. So my father and my mom took me to the school. We went, they spoke to my class teacher. I was really happy. But once I entered, I started feeling nervous because I had left my parents. I was feeling, you know, I was feeling really nervous and I was missing them suddenly. And I went, they made us to sit in the classroom. I sat with two or three girls and suddenly I was really nervous at that point. And the girl who was sitting beside me, she started crying. So even I got emotional after some time, she was crying, crying, crying for a long time. Then looking at her.

Band 6-7

I was in Sharjah till I completed my twelfth, so my first day of school was in my school named New Indian Model School, Sharjah. And there, as you know, we had different nationalities, and everyone didn't speak in my mother tongue. So it was very hard for me. And I remember that first day, it was my sister who took me to the class, and I wasn't willing to go in. I cried my eyes out, and the teacher had to finally push me inside the classroom and shut the door, which made me even more anxious. And I remember sitting with two kids who were Pakistanis, and I couldn't even talk to them as they spoke different languages. It was very stressful. After sitting for hours crying, I finally had the chance to get out of the classroom once the class was over. My sister again came to pick me up, and on the way to home, in the bus, I saw that my cousin sister was also there, whose first day was also today, I mean that day. So we both shared our experiences, and I felt a bit of calm in my heart as I came to know that someone else is also going through the same thing that I'm going through.
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