You recognise a useful expression in a model answer. A few days later, when you try to speak, it will not come to mind. Or you remember the whole sentence but it describes somebody else’s life. The missing step is using the language to express something of your own.
Jobin Thomas’s Speaking with Impact pairs model responses with vocabulary explanations. Its topics include home, work, hobbies, travel, influential people and personal experiences. This guide shows how to turn that material into active practice without borrowing the model speaker’s biography.
Look at what the phrase helps the speaker do
A useful phrase has a job in the answer. “Set aside” helps explain how someone makes time for an activity. “Within walking distance” describes convenience. “A bit rusty” can describe a skill that has weakened through lack of practice.
Study the phrase in its sentence before copying a definition. Notice the words it connects with and the situation it describes. Then ask whether you have a reason to use it. You do not need every expression in every answer.
For example, someone can be rusty at playing the piano after a long break. A timetable is not “rusty” merely because it is inconvenient. Knowing an approximate definition is a start; choosing an appropriate context makes the expression useful.
Replace the model’s details with yours
The book’s hobby responses explain what the speaker does, how the interest developed and how it fits into a week. You can study that movement without claiming the same hobby, family history or schedule.
Original personalisation exercise
Question: How do you make time for a hobby?
Useful expression: set aside time.
Illustrative answer: “I try to set aside half an hour for sketching on my days off. My work schedule changes, so I keep a small notebook with me and draw when I have a quiet moment.”
Your turn: Choose an activity you can talk about comfortably. Explain when you do it and one practical detail about your routine. Use the expression only if it fits.
The detail about the notebook makes the response more specific. It gives a listener something to understand or ask about. Adding several impressive adjectives would not necessarily explain the routine any better.
Develop an answer through connected ideas
A direct response can lead to a reason and a relevant example. If you enjoy a place because it is convenient, explain what is nearby. If a teacher influenced you, describe something they did and why it mattered. This makes the vocabulary part of the message.
Use this as a practice route, not a rigid script for every question. A question about how long you have lived somewhere needs a different emphasis from a question about what you would change. Listen for that difference before extending the answer.
Which detail develops the answer more clearly?
Starting point: “I enjoy living in my neighbourhood because it is convenient.”
A: “It is very amazing, fantastic and wonderful.”
B: “The library and bus stop are both within walking distance, so I rarely need a car for everyday errands.”
B explains the specific convenience. A adds positive adjectives without showing what the speaker means. Your own answer can be simpler than B and still be clear if its details fit the question.
Use longer models as material to analyse
The book includes extended responses about experiences such as learning a skill or making a difficult decision. Label their main moves: setting, difficulty, action, outcome and reflection. Then choose a different experience and make brief prompts for your own response.
Do not assume that a printed model’s length is a speaking target. A page can contain more detail than you can use naturally in an available speaking period. Practise selecting the most relevant ideas, and follow the instructions for the task you are attempting.
Test the phrase with a changed question
After describing a hobby, ask a partner to change the question: what makes it difficult to practise, how did you begin, or would you recommend it to someone else? Keep useful language when it fits, but change the content to answer the new question.
Keep the phrase, its meaning in context, one sentence of your own and a different question that could lead you to use it. Review by speaking before looking at your written sentence.
Explore IELTS Speaking — Course 1 for the course linked to Speaking with Impact. For personal feedback, request online one-to-one IELTS lessons at dates and times that suit your shifts and busy life. Your preferred schedule is agreed with your tutor, subject to availability.
Your next step
IELTS Speaking — Course 1
Explore the complete course outline and related practice topics.
Source: 1. IELTS Speaking with impact.epub, Jobins Training. Examples labelled original or illustrative were written for this article. Independent exam preparation; no affiliation with or endorsement by the examining body. Practice does not predict an official score.