Talking About Your Hobbies

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Part 1 & 2 Preparation

Intermediate

Learning Objectives

In this lesson you will:

Practice answering questions based on Part 1 and 2 of the IELTS Speaking test.
Learn and practice some different ways to talk about your hobbies.
Practice pronouncing /n/ as in "night" and /l/ as in "light."

Exercise 1

Warm-Up: Pronunciation Practice

Listen and Repeat

Listen and repeat after your tutor.

A) night

B) light

A) no

B) low

A) Jenny

B jelly

A) neon

B) Leon

A) snap

B) slap

Quiz

Your tutor will choose 5 words and say them aloud. After each word, say whether it is from Group A or Group B.

Quiz Your Tutor

Choose 5 words and say them aloud. After each word, your tutor will say whether it is from Group A or Group B.

Exercise 2

Helpful Vocabulary

Listen and repeat these sentences with your tutor.

Benefits

It keeps me fit.
It is relaxing.
It's a good workout for my mind/body.
It makes me feel connected to nature.
It is soothing.
It is fun.
It's a good way to catch up with friends.
It makes me happy.

Pictures and Questions

Choose from the Answer Pool below and say what each picture shows.

For example:

"Picture 1 shows someone gardening."

Answer Pool

gardening
playing computer games
listening to music
doing karaoke
doing a crossword puzzle

Picture 1

Picture 2

Picture 3

Picture 4

Picture 5

Use the phrases above to describe the benefits of each hobby in the pictures.

For example:

"Gardening makes me feel connected to nature."

"Doing karaoke is a good way to catch up with friends."

Exercise 3

Speaking Test Part 1 Dialogue

Read the dialogue based on Part 1 of the IELTS Speaking test with your tutor. You will be the examiner. At the end, you will need to answer 3 questions.

	Examiner What are some things you enjoy doing in your free time?
	Peter Well, since I've retired, I've had a lot more free time. I really enjoy gardening, listening to music and reading the newspaper. I also like doing crossword puzzles and going out with friends.
	Examiner What is your favorite hobby?
	Peter I guess I enjoy gardening the most, and it helps keep me fit.
	Examiner Why did you take up this hobby and how long have you been doing it?
	Peter I've been doing it for many years now. One day, I decided that I wanted to make the garden look nice and grow some of my own vegetables. I guess that's when I started gardening.
	Examiner What do you enjoy most about it?
	Peter I really like being outdoors. I also love eating vegetables that I've grown myself, and it makes me feel connected to nature.

Questions

What does Peter enjoy doing in his free time?

What is Peter's favorite hobby?

What does Peter like about this hobby?

Exercise 4

Fill in the Blanks

Read the dialogue based on Part 1 of the IELTS Speaking test with your tutor and fill in the blanks. Your tutor will be the examiner.

	Examiner What are some things you like doing in your free time?
	Hyun-woo Well I don't have a lot of free time, but there are a couple of (1) I like to do. I like to go to karaoke bars and catch up with my friends, or just (2) out at home and watch movies.
	Examiner What is your favorite hobby?
	Hyun-woo My favorite (3) is going to a PC room and playing Starcraft with my friends.
	Examiner Why did you take up this hobby and how long have you been doing it?
	Hyun-woo I've been (4) it for a couple of years. I really like (5) video games, so a friend of mine invited me to a PC room a while back. I found it more (6) to play games with other people around than alone at home, so I kept coming back.
	Examiner What do you enjoy most about it?
	Hyun-woo It's a good way to (7) up with my friends, and meet new people that are into the same things as me.

Choose answers from the options below that fit in blanks 1 to 7

Answer Pool (Questions 1-7)

catch
activity
playing
things
hang
doing
fun

Exercise 5

Part 1 Test Practice

Useful Language

Peter and Hyun-woo use these phrases to talk about their hobbies and to structure their answers. Listen and repeat with your tutor.

I really enjoy ...
I enjoy ... the most.
My favorite activity is …
I've been doing it for ...
... it's a good way to ...
I really like ...

Questions

Use the phrases above to answer these questions based on Part 1 of the IELTS Speaking test.

What are some things you like doing in your free time?

What is your favorite hobby?

Why did you take up this hobby and how long have you been doing it?

What do you enjoy most about it?

Exercise 6

Part 2 Test Practice

Complete this task based on Part 2 of the IELTS Speaking test. You have 1 minute to prepare your answer and up to 2 minutes to speak. Your tutor will stop you when the time is up.

Describe a hobby you enjoy doing.

You should say:

what it is and what equipment you need to do it
how you first became interested in it
how long you have been doing it for

And explain why you enjoy doing it.