How to write an IELTS essay – 1

This is the first in a series of posts about how to write an IELTS essay. In this one I sit in front of my webcam and tell you a story. For me, this can be a great form of teaching and understanding ideas. It’s a story I tell all my “real” students in my “real” classroom and I try to tell the story in exactly the same way I tell it to them – all done in one take with no rehearsal and no editing. So sorry if the video quality isn’t that great.

Video too long or not working?

If your video doesn’t work or if you live somewhere without access to Youtube, here are some of the key points in brief:

1. get a general picture of what IELTS writing is about before you start the practice. Going from the general to the particular is almost always a good idea.
2. treat IELTS as a test of English, not a test of intelligence (see IELTS writing – it’s not a test of intelligence)
3. understand how the writing is marked (see Writing band scores)
4. IELTS essays are not academic essays: it’s about the quality of your words, not the quality of your ideas
5. learn what the IELTS writing conventions are