Here are some quizzes relating to one word family that is commonly used in professional situations, academic research, and exams like the IELTS test. * - analysis, analytical, analytically, analyse - * https://www.italki.com/quiz/set/21642?utm_source=copylink_share&utm_medium=share_content&utm_campaign=share_quiz

I've now taught hundreds of italki sessions to people preparing for the IELTS exam, and specifically for the speaking part of the test. Despite being exam practice in the end, these classes can be really fun, and I haven't had a class yet where a student hasn't smiled at some point. But apart from being enjoyable, frequent practice like this also gives students numerous benefits: - One of the biggest lessons is a logical one. The more regularly students practise speaking, the more quickly their fluency and confidence increases. We must never underestimate the importance of consistent commitment to improving. - Once you know the structure of the test and what's expected in each part, the next challenge is thinking on your feet and responding appropriately to all of the different topics that could come up. Teachers can help here by giving vocabulary suggestions where students' variety of language is low, or by really challenging you with tough questions. - Pronunciation is another key point that students need to practise, to make sure that the examiner can easily understand what they're trying to say. And having a teacher there to highlight and remind students where improvement is necessary is extremely helpful. - Habitually listening and responding to questions is the best way to reduce nerves linked to comprehension challenges in the exam. It's completely normal to be nervous, but strong preparation is a sure-fire way to keep anxiety to a minimum. - In class, I add notes on grammar, vocabulary, or pronunciation into the chat, so students have some resources to review their performance after class and practise with their areas for improvement. One of my favourite parts is being able to see students' progress, and to share with them the areas in which they've improved over the course of our classes. And then, of course, when they tell me they've got their desired score, that's the ultimate prize.

What's the difference between a level 5 and a level 7 in the IELTS speaking exam? How can you move from a 5 to a 7? Well, the examiners focus on fluency, vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation, so let's look at those four points: 1) FLUENCY: At level 5, candidates still struggle to use complex speech, and repeat themselves a lot. But at level 7, candidates link ideas together more comfortably, with more variety and for longer. 2) VOCABULARY: At level 5, candidates have enough vocabulary to discuss topics, but this is still limited. At level 7, meanwhile, vocabulary is more varied and candidates can paraphrase comfortably. They can also introduce some less common words or phrases. 3) GRAMMAR: At level 5, candidates can generally get the grammar right with simple structures, but with more complex ones they find that difficult. However, level 7 candidates can generally use complex structures well (even if there are occasional errors). 4) PRONUNCIATION: Level 5 candidates can get many sounds correct, but may still be difficult to understand sometimes. Those at level 7, on the other hand, can produce more natural sounds and are usually easy to understand. So to go from a 5 to a 7, you need: - To learn more linking phrases and practise using them so they come more naturally. (For this, it's important to speak to someone else in English on a regular basis.) - To increase their range of vocabulary, including some that is less common. (Reading is probably the best way to do this.) - To study all aspects of grammar at an intermediate level, and practise producing these features. (Writing is a great way to do this, but speaking practice is also a good idea.) - To get pronunciation feedback from a teacher or native speaker to identify where to improve. When you have this feedback, you can practise independently by reading texts slowly as clearly as you can. You can do that with a teacher too, or practise speaking in general and get feedback on your progress.

Have a go at reading this tongue twister as quickly as you can. If you can record yourself reading it, that would be even better! "Thinking about three theatres, the first was fairly full. The second one was thriving, but also rather dull. In the third and final theatre, there was a thousand-thespian fair. Training their throats and thinking of theories, they forgot the audience was there."