Ielts speaking--how to improve your bandscore

How is brainstorming properly done for the Speaking test?
Brainstorming is extremely necessary in Speaking part 2. You are given a minute
to prepare for your two-minute talk. This should be used for brainstorming ideas
and vocabulary.
Brainstorm ideas for the questions in the cue card. Write keywords for your
answer (not sentences) for each of the wh- questions. Keywords can be nouns,
adjectives, adverbs, and verbs. For example, the examiner asks you about your
hobby.
What? reading books
Where? at home (bedroom)
When? before going to bed
Why? induces sleep
What? inspirational book
Whom with? alone
How? entertaining
Here are more examples:
Describe a subject you enjoyed studying at school.

You should say the following:
When/where you started studying it/primary school / hometown
What lessons were like they involved students’ participation / exciting
What made the subject different from other subjects taught by a native
speaker
Explain why you enjoyed the subject teacher taught well and was very
friendly
Describe an artist or entertainer you admire.

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You should say the following:
Who they are and what they do International singers
How they became successful exposure through concerts
How you found out about them media (TV variety show)
Explain why you admire them talented
Describe an area of the countryside you know and like.
You should say the following:
Where it is southern part of (country’s name)
What its special features are white sand beaches
What you and other people do in this area swim, stroll
And explain why you like it fewer people
Describe an enjoyable event that you experienced when you were at school.
You should say the following:
When it happened high school with classmates / made a Christmas tree out
of dry leaves
What was good about it working together / fun
Why you particularly remembered this event gathering of dry leaves in the
bushes
Read and understand each question on the cue card. Do not leave any of the
questions unanswered, as this affects your band score badly. So during the one-
minute preparation time, read and comprehend the question and write the
keywords of your thoughts. Draw a line to separate each keyword to avoid
confusion as you look at your notes when you answer.
For example:
Describe a thing which is important to you.

Significant thing: wallet/leather
Who gave it to you? friend’s / daughter’s birthday gift
What is the thing? red/heart-shaped wallet

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What does the thing mean to you? valuable / people do care
Use synonyms of the keywords of each question from the task card. For
instance, if the question asks you about the most significant event in your life,
you can use the word important to replace significant.
As much as possible, include 3 less common items of vocabulary for any of the
questions from the cue card, and list them down on a sheet of paper provided for
you so that you can glance at it while delivering your response.
For example:
What? Reading books
Where? At home (bedroom)/solemn place
When? Before going to bed / most convenient time
Why? Induces sleep
What? Inspirational book/ source of encouragement
Who with? Alone
More examples:
Describe a subject you enjoyed studying at school.

You should say the following:
When / where you started studying it primary school / hometown
What lessons were like They involved students’ participation / exciting
What made the subject different from other subjects taught by native
speakers / well-prepared lessons
Why you enjoyed the subject teacher taught well and very friendly / various
language-rich activities
Describe an artist or entertainer you admire.
You should say the following:
Who they are and what they do international singers / powerful pitch
How they became successful exposure through concerts / wasn’t on a silver
platter
How you found out about them media (TV variety show)
Why you admire them talented/humble

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During the brainstorming stage, be conscious of your grammatical structures.
Come up with a structure immediately in your mind that can increase your score.
You don’t need to write the structures and linking words for your answer since
you do not have enough time. Look at the examples and compare how a good
structure helps you.
I love reading books. I read inspirational books. I do this before I sleep.

Before going to bed, I enjoy reading interesting books.
There are no grammatical errors in the first group of sentences; however, the
sentences are simple and are not likely to get a high score compared to the
second set.
As you make notes for Speaking part 2, be careful of the tense your verbs are in.
For instance:
Describe the party you attended.
You should say the following:
What party it was
Where it was
Who you went with
What you did
How you felt about it
The tense of the verbs in the question is the same as the verbs you use in your
answer. In the given example, the verbs are in the past form, so you should use
the same tense in your two-minute answer.