Simon’s ielts writing task 2

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Simon
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IELTS Writing Task 2
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Saturday, March 04, 2017 
Students' questions: how many ideas per paragraph? 
A student asked me this useful question: 
In writing task 2, isn't it better to write about just one idea in each main body paragraph? If we put two 
or three ideas in the same paragraph (e.g. firstly, secondly, finally), we can't explain each idea in as 
much detail.
Here's my answer to this question: 
Some questions require you to put more than one idea in each main paragraph. For example, if the 
question asks you to explain the advantages, disadvantages, reasons, causes or solutions, you must 
give more than one. Therefore a "firstly, secondly, finally" paragraph structure is perfect. If the 
question doesn't contain a plural word, one idea per paragraph is fine. 
To learn the two methods that I use for writing paragraphs, study 
this lesson
. 
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Wednesday, March 08, 2017 
IELTS Writing Task 2: analyse this paragraph 
Here's a main-body paragraph for the essay question in last week's 
lesson
:
In my opinion, people buy new things rather than repairing damaged items because manufacturers 
and advertisers encourage this behaviour. Companies know that to maximise profits they must 
constantly update their products. They do this either by making technological improvements, 
especially in the case of gadgets like phones and laptops, or by creating new fashions, in the case of 
items like clothes or homeware. As a result, consumer goods quickly become obsolete, and there is 
no incentive for people to repair damaged items when a new and more desirable model is available. 
Furthermore, modern products tend to be difficult to repair, and it is often cheaper to simply buy a 
replacement.