Tip #1: Highlight the Keywords

I am going to share 5 tips with you to help you write the essay for the IELTs exam much faster.  These tips will also help you get a higher band score.  There are many words you should study to prepare for the IELTs writing task two.  These are words that are commonly used in English and that can strengthen your lexical resource score.

  On the IELTs exam, you will have 40 minutes to write more than 250 words.

An Example of an IELTS Task 2 Essay Topic:

The growing number of overweight people is putting a strain on the health care system in an effort to deal with the health issues involved.  Some people think that the best way to deal with this problem is to introduce more physical education lessons into the school curriculum.  To what extent do you agree?

• Highlight the Key Words:The growing number of overweight people is putting a strain on the health care system in an effort to deal with the health issues involved.  Some people think that the best way to deal with this problem is to introduce more physical education lessons into the school curriculum.  To what extent do you agree?

 

 

Tip # 2: Substitute the key words with synonyms 

Some of the most common words can be substituted, which shows your ability to use lexical variety and to vary your word choice.  It is a terrible idea to restate the essay topic word for word. DON’T COPY THE TOPIC SENTENCE! 

 

You can use the highlighted words to brainstorm synonyms.  The more you practice creating graphic organizers like the ones you can see here, the more expansive your vocabulary will become. 

 

On the IELTS exam, you typically write about social issues on task 2 such as: environmental issues, health-related issues, and questions about technology to name a few.  Therefore, it is a great idea to master the type of vocabulary you could use to talk about problems.Click here for an extensive list of IELTs Writing Task 2 topics! 

 

 

Tip #3: Re-write the Introduction for the IELTS task 2 Essay:  

Here is an example of what your introduction might look like.  I italicized the words I changed :

The soaring number of obese people is putting an unnecessary burden on the health care system.  Many people hold the opinion that the best way to tackle this pressing issue is to add more physical education lessons into the school curriculum.  I completely agree with this statement and feel that creating healthy habits and routines is one of the best ways to prevent weight problems in youth early on, positively impacting future generations. 

 

Tip #4: Brainstorm Words Related to Obesity

• Sedentary lifestyle
• Lack of exercise
• Childhood diabetes/ heart disease 
• future generations
• Sports
• Healthy habits 
• School as a place to establish healthy routines and teach health

 

Tip #4: Structure your essay into paragraphs

 

In this essay, I might suggest writing the first paragraph about the causes of obesity and the second paragraph about the importance of routines and physical education classes to prevent obesity.  Then, move on to the conclusion.

Tip #5: Write a conclusion

Your conclusion can be your introduction, but paraphrased.  You could add words like:

• To sum up,
• To conclude,
• In conclusion,
• Finally,
• In summary,

I would suggest changing the sentence order and using a few of the other synonyms like “manage” or “handle” or “address” in the conclusion.

Would you like additional practice with this topic? Get your IELTS essay writing resource today. 

This is a digital writing activity that I use with my students who are preparing for the IELTS and TOEFL IBT exam and who need practice with word choice and sentence structure in essay writing. Once you purchase the product, I will share a link with you so that you can make your own copy of the google slides activity.  The essay topic is about two environmental issues: global warming and deforestation. Students are given a structure to plan their essay and I help them brainstorm related vocabulary words. I give them a step-by-step process for writing their essay and constructing their paragraphs.

The goal of this lesson is to help students learn how to paraphrase. I use a two-step strategy: 1) word choice. Students are presented with a number of “drag and drop” activities to substitute words in the sentence with a variety of synonyms, which is fun and interactive. 2) sentence structure. Students learn to put the second clause of the sentence first, playing with paraphrasing ideas through sentence structure.

*There are audio instructions on every slide so students can do this independently

*There are transition words to help students use more transitional language in their paragraphs