IELTS Speaking Part 2, also known as the ‘long turn’, requires students to speak with an IELTS examiner for two minutes. Many students worry they won’t be able to talk for two minutes without running out of things to say.
The key to overcoming this worry is having a strategy to help you perform well on test day.
In this post, we will explain how the Speaking Part 2 topic task card is the foundation of your strategy and why it has all the information you need to guide your answer. The trick is better understanding what information the task card gives you, finding it quickly and using that information to your full advantage.
Key Takeaways
- Be mentally prepared for IELTS Speaking Part 2, knowing the task card will see you through if you use it effectively.
- Don’t waste valuable preparation time memorising topics and templates- master the question-and-answer format instead.
- Practise using the IELTS Speaking Part 2 task card topics and video that we provided below
- Key Takeaways
- IELTS Speaking Part 2: Overview and Process
- What to expect at your IELTS Speaking Part 2 section
- Understanding the Topic Card Structure: Identify, Describe and Explain
- IELTS Speaking Part 2 Topics and Practice Answers
- Final tip: Keep it Simple! Natural Language and Appropriate Vocabulary
- Next Steps
Related Resources
- IELTS Speaking: Tips & Strategies to Get a Band 9
- IELTS Speaking Part 1: Topics, Tips and Sample Practice Questions
To get a better sense of what the Speaking Part 2 task involves, watch our video below:
IELTS Speaking Part 2: Overview and Process
The IELTS Speaking test has three parts. If you want a summary of all three parts, click this link for a quick overview of the entire Speaking test.
IELTS Speaking Part 2 has been designed so the examiner can listen to you speak for a more extended period to assess your English proficiency against the IELTS Speaking marking criteria.
What to expect at your IELTS Speaking Part 2 section
Part 2 begins when your examiner gives you a topic card and asks you to talk about a topic for up to two minutes.
You will also be given a piece of paper and a pencil to make notes. On the card, you will see the speaking prompt and some points you can cover in your talk relating to this. This is what the task card looks like:
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Describe a film you have seen recently You should say: – What it was – When you saw it – What it was about and explain how you felt about this film |
Note Making Time
You will have precisely one minute to prepare your answer before you speak. This one minute is critical in setting yourself up for what you will say. Use this time to plan your answer to ensure you touch on all the points listed on the task card and have enough to talk about for two minutes.
Speaking & Delivering
After the one-minute preparation, you will be asked to begin, and the examiner will listen to you for two minutes. They may ask you a couple of follow-up questions when the time is up before going on to the next section.
IELTS Speaking Part 2 Strategy: How to take good notes
The key to mastering Speaking Part 2 is being prepared. This does not mean memorizing possible topics and answers or using templates you have found online. IELTS continuously revises the Speaking Part 2 questions, so there is no guarantee you will be given a question you have memorised. There is a much better way to use your valuable preparation time.
Our strategy for Speaking Part 2 stems from your understanding of how IELTS designs the Speaking Part 2 topic task card and how you can use the one-minute preparation time to better prepare and be clear about your sequence of talking points.
Drawing from this helpful IELTS article, here’s an example of an IELTS Speaking Part 2 topic task card:
You risk delivering an unstructured response if you quickly read the task card without identifying critical information that should guide your answer. IELTS examiners don’t like answers that lack structure.
Understanding the Topic Card Structure: Identify, Describe and Explain
Understanding the topic card structure will help you prepare and deliver a more organised and better-structured answer.
Think of a typical IELTS Speaking Part 2 topic task card giving you 5 or 6 talking points. Finding these talking points quickly is essential because each gives you something to discuss. If you talk about these in an orderly sequence, the structure of your answer will take care of itself!
Using the topic card above, let’s learn & apply the Identify, Describe, Explain approach tactics.
| Task Card | Talking Points | Your Note-taking Focus |
| Describe something you own which is important to you | Identify the subject of your talk, and then expand. · Tell the interviewer what you will be talking about (Something that is important to me is… xyz), then· Expand on that (It is important to me because… xyz). Hint: it will be about:· a person· a place· an object | Make a very quick decision about what you will talk about. Once you have decided, commit to that decision and start planning your answer. |
| You should say:where you got it fromhow long you have had itwhat you use it for | Describe (who, what, where, how…etc.) and expand each of the bullet points (3 times in sequence) 2. where… 3. how long… 4. what… | Focus on describing the ‘what’. The bullet points give you 3 or 4 specific things you can describe. By describing, we mean simple, clear description. The examiner is not looking for anything profound or insightful because they are not grading your response. Don’t get fancy with these responses, just describe! |
| and explain why it is important to you | Explain and expand of relevance- opinion, thoughts, feelings) 5. Give reason and expand | State your thoughts, feelings, insights or opinions on the subject you are talking about. |
Now, let’s take a minute and go back to the task card above and mark it up highlighting the 5 ‘talking points’:
Let’s put our approach into action now. Here we go:
| The 5 Talking Points | Sample Answer(re-state prompt and expand) | |
| 1. Subject/What: something important to you | Identify: Something that is very important to me is my piano. Expand: It is an antique baby grand piano that was made in Canada in the 1930’s and has been in my family for quite a long time. | |
| 2. where did you get it? | Describe #1: My Dad bought the piano from his older brother, my uncle. Expand: My Uncle got the piano when he bought a big old house. The piano was part of the furniture that came with the house when he bought it. My uncle already had a piano, so he decided to sell it. | |
| 3. how long have you had it? | Describe: #2: the piano has been in my family for most of my lifetime. Expand: I remember going to my uncle’s house when I was quite small. I would have been around 5 years old when I first saw it in his big old house. | |
| 4. what do you use it for? | Describe #3: Of course, I use the piano to play from time to time. Expand: Sometimes I like to play it when I am bored or feel like trying to play something I have heard on the radio or streaming. | |
| 5. Explain Significance | Explain talking about an opinion, feeling or why you think it is significant or relevant: I guess that it is significant to me because it is part of my personal history. Expand: I learned how to play piano on that piano. It always been around, and I take it with me wherever I move. Learning to play it gave me a much greater appreciation of music. Even since, I have always loved music. | |
IELTS Speaking Part 2 Topics and Practice Answers
Now that you know how to analyse the IELTS Speaking Part 2 topic card, let’s practice analysing and taking notes in a way that makes the best use of your 1 minute preparation time!
IELTS Speaking Part 2 Practice Activity, Analysis and Sample Answer #1
| Describe a favourite present you received from someone. You should say: – Who you gave it to – What kind of present it was – How it compared to other presents you have given and explain why you like this particular gift. |
| 1. Identify the Subject/What: a favourite present | One of the presents I have received that I really like the best is my cordless earbuds for my phone. I have them with me all the time these days. In fact, they are in my pocket now! | |
| 2. who gave it (describe the person) | My best friend gave me these earbuds as a birthday present. My friend has always been very thoughtful and generous. They must have known I would not buy a set for myself because I am usually broke. | |
| 3. what kind or present (describe the present more) | My cordless earbuds don’t have cords, of course, and have great sound quality. The sound is so much better than my old cordless earbuds. My old earbuds weren’t that great. I was always getting the cords tangled up. No matter how hard I tried to coil them up neatly, they still got tangled up. | |
| 4. how compares (describe other presents you received) | Compared to other presents I have received, the best thing about my earbuds is that I use them every day. My Mum always gives we clothes. Some I don’t really like and get put in my closet and forgotten about. | |
| 5. Explain Significance | I love my cordless earbuds. Music is a huge part of my life, so I just love my earbuds. I could not live without them now. I listen to music all the time, on the train to work, when I am working and when I am exercising. | |
IELTS Speaking Part 2 Practice Activity, Analysis and Sample Answer #2
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Describe someone you admire and has had an impact on you. You should say: – What do you admire – How you came to know him/her – What qualities this person has and explain why they have had such an influence on you. |
| 1. Identify the Subject: a person you admire | A person I admire very much is a high school math teacher, Mr Yan, that I had years ago. I admire Mr Yan because he inspired me to appreciate mathematics in a way I did not appreciate before I took his class. | |
| 2. what do/did you admire (describe the person) | I admired how Mr Yan made math understandable and interesting. Before I had Mr Yan, learning math was difficult and boring to me. I think I just switched off in class because I often felt lost. Instead, Mr Yan really made math fun and more relevant to real life. | |
| 3. how did you come to know him/her (describe the how you met more) | I met him because he was my Grade 10 math teacher. I got to know Mr Yan better because I had to ask him for help after class several times. Overall, I was behind in math. He helped me catch up and pointed me in the right direction. | |
| 4. what qualities does this person have (describe most memorable) | Mr Yan has several admirable qualities. The ones that most come to mind are his patience and passion. Because he was so patient and took the time to help me catch up with topics that I was behind in, I was able to catch up and move forward. At the same time, he really made math interesting. | |
| 5. Explain an opinion, feeling, significance or relevance | I feel indebted to Mr Yan because he helped change my life’s direction. Mr Yan’s passion for math rubbed off on me. I learned to enjoy the challenge of math so much that I have applied to take engineering at university. I would be happy to work with mathematics and physics every day. | |
Final tip: Keep it Simple! Natural Language and Appropriate Vocabulary
You can see from the examples above that the student’s responses were simple and clear without being too short or overly complicated. To help keep you on track, THINK SIMPLE!
In our discussion with an IELTS examiner, they told us that they listen for whether a candidate is using appropriate language. That does not mean complicated, obscure or fancy words just to try to impress your examiner.
Try to speak naturally. This will help your answers sound more coherent and will enable your speaking to flow more naturally. You already have a lot to think about without putting more pressure on yourself!
Finally, remind yourself that you can relax a bit. Your IELTS examiner is a trained professional that will be friendly and pleasant. Watch our video to learn valuable techniques for any topic of IELTS Speaking.
Next Steps
So, what should you do now? Go to e2language.com and use our high-quality materials to practice your IELTS Speaking Part 2 so you can be ready for test.
To improve your IELTS Speaking score, we recommend all the IELTS Speaking practice activities, assessments and mock tests on the E2 website. Even though the IELTS Speaking test might seem challenging initially, if you use our methods, tips & strategies, you will master all Parts of the IELTS Speaking test. Start a free trial of our IELTS Test Preparation course and improve your Speaking and other English skills with the help of our experts.
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