How to Prepare a Cue Card?

The Cue Cards Question type in the IELTS Speaking Module can be challenging for many IELTS Aspirants who do not feel comfortable speaking in English at length. However, through every day practice, you can prepare yourself to speak on any given unseen topic with some dedicated study and mastering a few key skills.

The IELTS cue cards are an essential part of the IELTS speaking test module. This comes in the second part of the test. These tests require a number of skills developed over time to tackle them effectively, the least of which includes being able to come up with a story in just two minutes.

There are a host of things that can come to your rescue when you are put under the spotlight such as– preparation, confidence, breathing right, checking your body language and having that smile even when we are losing words.

IELTS Cue Card

You will be given an IELTS cue card topic, it will consist of one main question in the form of an incident or memory or a piece of art and this will be followed by 3-4 questions that will guide you on how to answer the said question. The cue card does not come with an option to switch, therefore, put your mind on it immediately.

You will be given a pen and paper to write down your thoughts. You have to speak for 2 minutes and stop when the examiner asks you to.

Example:

Talk about a shop that you recently discovered.

Model Answer

• What shop it is
• How did you find out about it
• Why do you like it
• And share your experience in this shop

So how does one prepare for something that needs to be done impromptu? There are certain things you can do to shine.

• Underline the keywords
• Create a story line and add up information as the task proceeds
• If planning for some drama, then keep some for the end to make the climax stand out.
• Mind map is one practical strategy that helps the test taker during the crucial time of preparing a story for the cue card.Mind map helps you visually organize ideas in an order.Therefore you can prepare one with Wh questions like: When, Where, Who, Why etc..
• You can be imaginative, so go ahead showcase your creative side
• Sound normal, even when you are panicking, have a confident smile and bring in emotions when necessary.
• Control your body movement, which reflects your level of confidence.
• No excess information is required, keep the theme in mind and talk accordingly.

Prep Up Before The Exam:

• Speak about anything at a stretch for 3 to 4 minutes
• Record your talk
• Talk in front of the mirror.
• Try adding some vocabulary, idioms, colloquial expressions to make it sound interesting.
• Refer recent speaking tests and cue cards
• Make use of good vocabulary that goes along with any topic

What Not To Do?

• Never pause, if you feel you are running out of words or having a starting trouble or you need time to think, then start off with saying: oh that’s a good question…, I am not sure…, I don’t know much about it but….
• Don’t sound under confident.
• Don’t feel shy to ask the examiner to repeat the question and clear your doubt rather than giving an answer which has no sense.
• And avoid answering questions in one word.

See also : 

• IELTS Speaking preparation tips
• Linking words for IELTS Speaking
• IELTS Speaking recent actual test
• Sports Vocabulary IELTS
• Work Vocabulary IELTS
• Idioms for IELTS Speaking
• IELTS Pronunciation Guide
• Common English words in IELTS Speaking
• Ough words