Hello, everyone.
I'm Maria.
And my name is Rory.
And we are the hosts of the IELTS Speaking for Success podcast, a podcast that aims to help you improve your English speaking skills, as well as your listening skills, along the way.
Right.
We started this podcast to give you a look at how a native English speaker would answer some of the IELTS speaking questions.
I'll be giving Rory questions and he'll be answering them using grammar and vocabulary for a high score.
For every episode, we choose some of the most common IELTS speaking topics.
So, today's topic is age.
In Speaking Part 1, examiners can ask questions about anything, and age is quite a common topic anyway, so let's discuss it.
Yes, that could be very strange to get questions about age.
So Rory, are you ready?
I was born ready.
Excellent.
Okay, so my first question is, are you happy to be the age you are now?
Yes, I'm quite content with how old I am.
I thought I wouldn't be, but everything seems to be working out rather well.
When you were a child, did you think a lot about your future?
I didn't speculate about technology.
I think most people speculate about this kind of thing.
But I prefer to think about the kind of job I would have instead, and I focused a lot on that.
Do people change as they grow older?
Um, yes, I think so.
Not just as a result of the biological reality.
For example, as you get older, moving into your 30s, you're capable of doing more.
And then of course, you change in terms of being able to do less as well.
But also you change in terms of experience as well.
When you're a child, you know almost nothing.
And then when you're older, you know a lot more.
Do you think you've changed as you've got older?
Definitely.
I think I'm a lot more confident and knowledgeable now compared to how I used to be.
Although if people asked me previously if I'd changed, I'd focus on the bad aspects, but now I focus a lot more on the positive ones.
What will be different about your life in the future?
I think my life will be more stable.
Not that it's unstable now, it's just it's a bit more hectic because obviously I work a lot.
However, I think it will be more stable generally, and then, more specifically, I'll have family with children in the home of my own.
Excellent.
Is childhood the happiest time in a person's life?
If people were able to appreciate it better, then yes.
But since they can't, because like I said, children aren't very experienced, then not so much.
Super.
Now let's have a talk about the vocabulary and super grammar Rory has just used.
Okay, Rory, so you said that you are quite content with your life, right?
What does it mean to be content?
To be content is just to be happy with how things are going.
Although, of course, you would use a word like content with the modifier beforehand, quite.
Just to, again, increase the range of your vocabulary.
This is what people doing the IELTS speaking exam are looking for.
Yeah, you can say I'm quite content with my life or I'm content to be on my own.
Like I'm happy, I'm content.
Absolutely.
Also, you've used an advanced word, a C2 word, actually proficiency level.
Speculate, speculate about.
What does it mean to speculate about something?
Well, to speculate about means basically just to think about things, but speculation is more precise and refers to thinking about the future.
So if you speculate about something, then again, it's this higher level vocabulary.
Right, yeah.
Could you give me a sentence?
Ah, yes, I'd like to speculate about what my next wage slip is going to look like.
Yeah, exactly.
Or scientists are speculating... About climate change.
Right, scientists are speculating about climate change.
Can you say speculate on something?
No, it's got to be speculate about.
Right, yes.
You've also used the nice words, respond to biological reality.
What's biological reality?
What is it?
Biological reality is again, much more precise way of talking about how your body is at any moment.
So, for example, the biological reality of being a child is that you can't do things that an adult can do.
Could you use it in a sentence?
Inconvenient biological reality that we have to deal with is the fact that we're getting older all the time.
Sorry, that's very depressing.
Dear listeners, you should be very positive talking about age, okay?
It's just an exam, so let's stay positive, everyone.
You've used a nice verb, gain something, like gain experience, for example.
Gain basically means to get something.
Yes, but to get something can be used in many different ways.
When you gain something, it means that you've put in some effort or some money.
So again, it's much more precise and specific vocabulary rather than just saying...
Exactly.
I can say, for example, I gain a lot from this podcast.
Exactly.
And so do I. Super.
And our listeners, right?
You've used adjectives such as confident, right?
So I'm a confident person.
Well, I'm a more confident person, yes.
And knowledgeable.
Knowledgeable basically means that.
Well, knowledgeable basically means that you have more knowledge.
Again, you can say you have more knowledge in the exam, but if you want a higher score for more precise vocabulary, then you've got to start getting more words like this in.
Yes, like my brother is a knowledgeable person.
Exactly, or my colleagues are knowledgeable people.
Exactly, right.
You've used a nice grammar structure, could you give me a sentence and what does it mean?
Absolutely.
When I was a child, I used to play with toys, but I don't know because obviously I haven't grown up.
So we use it like I used to do something.
Absolutely.
In the past.
The other thing about used to is for a higher band score connected with pronunciation using weak form of to.
So never saying, I used to play with toys.
Used to, must be.
Used to, used to.
Used to?
What is used to?
So, I used to dance belly.
What did you used to do?
Me?
Oh, I didn't used to dance ballet.
Alright, okay.
Yes, another advanced adjective is hectic.
I've got a hectic life now.
Hectic.
What does it mean, hectic?
Stressful?
Hectic.
Hectic is bordering on stressful, yes.
It's very close to this.
It's, again, it's more precise than saying something like busy.
Busy is very common, but people in the exam are expecting to hear less common vocabulary than hectic, like very busy, very stressful lifestyle.
This is much more precise.
Yes, so hectic is for band 9.
Stable, secure, right, when we talk about our life, career.
Stable also could be, for example, unstable, right?
It can be, it's another flexible word, you could add things to it.
Stable, unstable, stability.
Yeah.
And I can say, for example, I got a stable career or I wish I had a stable career.
Yes.
Right.
Secure also.
Yes, secure just in terms of how you feel about something.
If something is secure, then there is no chance that it's going to be going wrong any time in the future or any time in the near future.
Stable is more to do with things being consistent.
Could you give us an example with stable?
With stable.
I have a very stable life right now.
And secure?
The same idea.
For example, my job is secure because I'm working here for well.
I have been working here for many years and I will work many years in the future.
Have been working.
Everybody, present perfect continuous.
So, I've been working here for many years.
You started, you are still working, and you will be working.
So, yes, super grammar.
Appreciate.
You've also used the word appreciate.
So, people appreciate... or something in life?
Absolutely.
Although I used it with under before it, so underappreciate.
That means not to appreciate things.
And you could say someone doesn't appreciate something.
But if you can use the words flexibly again, this will result in a higher score if you do it consistently.
Yes, for example, like, someone please may feel underappreciated.
Yeah, if they don't have a boss that recognizes their work or congratulates them when they do well yeah, they will feel underappreciated.
Yeah, or we can say, we should appreciate every moment of our life.
Absolutely.
Every day.
Or if we use appreciated, then I feel appreciated at my work.
Exactly, yes.
Another advanced structure is the second conditional.
If people were, or if people could appreciate Yeah, for example, if people could appreciate their childhood more then they would definitely say it's the happiest time.
But you can't, when you're a child, you don't have this experience yet, so you don't know.
So we use this like if people appreciate it, so the past.
If plus the subject, then the past form, and then would.
So if people could appreciate their life, they'd be happy.
So they would be happy.
Absolutely.
And this is unreal, but again, we are talking about the present or the future.
Now that we've looked at the vocabulary in grammar, could you listen to the answers again and notice these lovely super grammar structures and precise vocabulary?
Okay, so my first question is, are you happy to be the age you are now?
Yes, I'm quite content with how old I am.
I thought I wouldn't be, but everything seems to be working out rather well.
When you were a child, did you think a lot about your future?
I didn't speculate about technology.
I think most people speculate about this kind of thing.
But I prefer to think about the kind of job I would have instead.
And I focused a lot on that.
Do people change as they grow older?
Yes, I think so.
Not just as a result of the biological reality.
For example, as you get older, moving into your 30s, you're capable of doing more.
And then, of course, you change in terms of being able to do less as well.
But also you change in terms of experience as well.
When you're a child, you know almost nothing.
And then when you're older, you know a lot more.
Do you think you've changed as you've got older?
Definitely.
I think I'm a lot more confident and knowledgeable now compared to how I used to be.
Although if people asked me previously if I'd changed, I'd focus on the bad aspects, but now I focus a lot more on the positive ones.
What will be different about your life in the future?
I think my life will be more stable.
Not that it's unstable now, it's just a bit more hectic because obviously I work a lot.
However, I think it will be more stable generally, and then, more specifically, I'll have a family with children in the home of my own.
Excellent.
Is childhood the happiest time in a person's life?
If people were able to appreciate it better, then yes.
But since they can't, because like I said, children aren't very experienced, then not so much.
I think it's much better to live in the present moment and appreciate that now, when you're an adult and you're able to appreciate it much more.
Thank you very much for listening.
We hope you've appreciated our podcast.
Thank you very much.
We'll see you soon bye.
