Unit 2: Exercise 1

In IELTS Speaking Part 2 it is a good idea to avoid repetition.

Read the task card, paying attention to the words in bold. Then match the words
from the task card with words and phrases that have a similar meaning.

Describe a place where you had a holiday that you enjoyed.

You should say:

             where the place was
             when you went there and how long you stayed
             what you did while you were there
and explain why you enjoyed having a holiday at that place.

1. holiday vacation
2. enjoyed liked
3. say explain
4. place location
5. how long length of time
6. stayed visited
7. while during
8. explain why the reason why

Unit 2: Exercise 2
Read the task card. Then complete the student’s notes. Use the words in the
box.

Describe a place where you had a holiday that you enjoyed.

You should say:

             where the place was
             when you went there and how long you stayed
             what you did while you were there
and explain why you enjoyed having a holiday at that place.
Notes

 where the place was

We __ had _ a holiday in Pingyao, China = historical small town

 when you went there and how long you stayed

It __ was this year (June) / we stayed for 2 or 3 days

 what you did while you were there

We ___ went _ shopping and _ Bought __ some local things

 explain why you enjoyed having a holiday at that place

The people who __ ran the hotel ___ were _ very friendly

Unit 2: Exercise 3
Read the task card again. It asks you to describe a holiday that you enjoyed, so you should
use the past simple tense in your answer.

Complete the table with the past simple forms of the verbs.

Describe a place where you had a holiday that you enjoyed.

You should say:

             where the place was
             when you went there and how long you stayed
             what you did while you were there
and explain why you enjoyed having a holiday at that place.

Bought did enjoyed had ran stayed went were

verb past simple form

Enjoy --enjoyed----------------
Have ---had---------------
 Be Was/ ---were-----------
Go ------went------------
Stay -----stayed----------
Do -----did-------------
Buy -----bought-----------
Run ----ran--------------

Unit 2: Exercise 4
Read the task card. Then watch the video of a student doing IELTS Speaking Part 2. The
student makes some mistakes and uses the wrong tense in her answers. Correct the ten
mistakes using the past simple form of the verbs.

You will get a maximum of 2 points per mistake (1 point for finding the correct part to
change, 1 point for making the change correctly).

Describe a place where you had a holiday that you enjoyed.

You should say:

   where the place was
   when you went there and how long you stayed
   what you did while you were there
and explain why you enjoyed having a holiday at that place.

1. I really wantED to go there.

2. We stayED there for two or three days.

3. We travelling/TRAVELLED there and go/WENT around there and …

buy/BOUGHT some local things. (3 mistakes)

4. We have/HAD two days in a hotel.

5. It’s/WAS quite a small hotel. play.MP4

6. I really enjoyED this holiday.

7. After that, we go/WENT around another city nearby ...

8. And then we go/WENT back to Beijing.

Unit 2: Exercise 5
Read the information. Then complete the sentences using the past simple forms
of the verbs in brackets.  

The past simple:

Positive form
subject + past simple verb + object
Example: You enjoyed the holiday.

Negative form
subject + did not + past simple verb + object
Example: You did not (didn't) enjoy the holiday.

Question form
Did + subject + past simple verb + object
Example: Did you enjoy the holiday?

1. Positive: In Greece, we __SWAM___ in the sea every day. (swim)

2. Negative: When I was in Los Angeles I __DIDN’T EAT____ any hamburgers. (eat)

3. Positive: My friend _SPOKE________ Portuguese when we were in Brazil. (speak)

4. Question: _DID YOU VISIT_____ the Colosseum when you were in Rome? (visit)

5. Question: __DID YOU LEAVE_______ your bags at the hotel? (leave)

6. Positive: I FORGOT to visit the Fabergé Museum when I was in St. Petersburg.
(forget)

7. Question: _DID YOU PUT__ your camera in my suitcase? (put)

8. Negative: In Tokyo I __DIDN’T DRINK a lot of green tea. (drink)

9. Negative: We __DIDN’T DANCE at all when we were in Cuba. (dance)

10. Question: DID YOU ENJOY the trip to the zoo? (enjoy)

Unit 2: Exercise 6
Read the information. Then watch the videos and complete the students’
answers. Use the words from the information box.
You can use words like and, or, but, so and because to give more information in your
answers.

1. I’m happy they could choose this period of time to spend with me and my
sister, _SO________ I have good memories of this trip.
1.MP4
2. The place where I had a holiday that I enjoyed was in the Maldives, AND it’s
now two years ago.
2.MP4
3. It’s a historical place. It’s a very small town, __BUT___ a lot of history has
happened there.
3.MP4
4. So first we were relaxing _BECAUSE__ the Maldives, ...  is a place where you
can really relax.
4.MP4
5. We stayed there for two days __OR three days.
5.MP4

Unit 2: Exercise 7
Match the two halves to complete the sentences.

1. When I was in New York I lost my wallet, so I had to cancel my credit card
2. I loved the food in Germany, but I hated the weather.
3. We didn't speak Chinese because they could not speak English.
4. Sometimes people in Warsaw spoke to me or Arabic, which meant that we had to speak
in Polish, English.
5. I visited Egypt, so I saw the pyramids
6. One thing I liked about Alaska was the and another thing was the wildlife.
scenery,
7. My father gave me a camera for my so I took a lot of photos on the holiday.
birthday,
8. I didn't feel lonely in India because the people were so friendly.

Unit 2: Exercise 8
Watch the video and read the information.
Then match the descriptions with the sentences. The sentences include words
and phrases that you can use in the IELTS Speaking test to sound more natural.

You can use words or phrases like basically, for a start, I mean,

now and actually to sound more natural.

Did you notice how the student in the video uses actually to talk about a
surprising fact?
play.MP4
Example:

... and it was actually the first holiday that we were together.

1. It's a good place to visit. I mean, for a holiday. adds or clarifies information __

2. We spent the whole holiday on the beach. Every day, basically. _ simplifies or
summarises information _

3. There is a lot to see in this city. For a start, there are so many museums. gives an
example

4. Now, let me tell you about the hotel …_ introduces a new topic __
5. I thought it would be hot but actually it was cold. __ shows surprise about a fact _

Unit 2: Exercise 9
Choose the correct answers to complete the sentences.

1. I expected the weather in Jamaica to be lovely but actually/basically/for a start/I

mean/now it was really bad.

2. The weather was really bad. Actually/Basically/For a start/I mean/Now , it rained

every day!

3. Swedish winters are much worse than British winters. Actually/Basically/For a start/I
mean/Now , it always snows in Sweden, plus it’s a lot colder …

4. We loved the food in Italy. Actually/Basically/For a start/I mean/Now , I have to tell

you about the ice cream …

5. It’s an expensive city. Actually/Basically/For a start/I mean/Now , it isn’t as

expensive as some other cities, but it’s not cheap.

Unit 2: Exercise 10
You are going to do IELTS Speaking Part 2. You will need some paper and a
pencil.
Listen to the examiner. Record your answer. Play to hear your answer

Describe a place where you had a holiday that you enjoyed.

You should say:

    where the place was
    when you went there and how long you stayed

what you did while you were there

and explain why you enjoyed having a holiday at that place.

play.MP3