雅思口语题库（2022/09 - 2022/12）

Part 1 题目汇总

必备话题

Study or work

题目答案

Study

1.Do you work or are you a student?

2.What subject are you studying?

3.Why did you choose that subject?

4.What would you like to do in the future?

5.What are the most popular subjects in China?

6.Do you think it's important to choose a subject you like?

7.Are you looking forward to working?

8.Do you like your subject? (Why? / Why not?)

9.Do you prefer to study in the mornings or in the afternoons?

10.Is your subject interesting to you?

11.Is there any kind of technology you can use in study?

Work

(What work do you do?

Why did you choose to do that type of job?

Do you like your job?

Do you miss being a student?

Is it very interesting?

Is there any kind of technology you use at work?）

Study or work

1.Do you work or are you a student?

I'm a student at Tsinghua University in Beijing.

I'm a student, and I'm a freshman in Tsinghua University.

I'm a student, a high school student.

2.What subject are you studying?

I'm studying for a Master's degree in Tsinghua University, specializing in the field of Math Studies.

3.Why did you choose that subject?

I chose math because I liked it in high school. I was always strong in math and science, so it seemed like a natural progression. Also, I did some research on career opportunities, and it seemed to be a subject with a promising future.

4.What would you like to do in the future?

I would love to be a teacher. Most of the women in my family are teachers, they have a huge impact on my life. I think it is wonderful to get to change people's lives by what I say or do on the stage. It requires a person to be responsible and caring, and I want to be such a person.

5.What are the most popular subjects in China?

It's hard to say nowadays. You know, due to the globalization, our country is much more developed than ever. Every subject has something to offer to the society. Students just choose their subjects based on what they are interested in, which then, in turn, can become a trend.

6.Do you think it's important to choose a subject you like?

Definitely! I think interest is the best motivator, if I choose something I'm keen on, I will be willing to sacrifice my leisure time because it is a worthwhile sacrifice to me. In addition, when I face some difficulties, I will do my best to overcome the problems. Quitting in the middle will never be an option. We should consider carefully our choice from the start, rather than carelessly choosing the wrong path, then regretting it.

7.Are you looking forward to working?

I have been wanting to work full time, that's for sure. I can now imagine myself waking up early in the morning, getting my business attire on and sitting behind my office desk. I wonder how it feels to work with other professionals and with the boss always around… It could be stressful but interesting, I guess. The best part I would say would be to finally receive a salary and spend my own money. I would not have to bother my parents then. But, like most things in life, it really depends on what the job is and whether the environment is positive or not.

8.Do you like your subject? (Why? / Why not?)

Honestly, I don't. I am halfway through my college career. But reality struck me when the material we learned in class was much more difficult and the assignments weren't fun. I'm thinking about changing my own major now.

9.Do you prefer to study in the mornings or in the afternoons?

I am not a morning person, I'm afraid. But to be honest, studying in the afternoon is even worse. I get really sleepy from one to four in the afternoon. So, actually, my brain is at its best in the evening. It works better then. I can stay sharp even until very late at night.

10.Is your subject interesting to you?

Absolutely. I find computer science really stimulating. Imagine creating something useful just using codes and numbers. It requires a good level of imagination and quite a good level of number skills, critical thinking and logic skills as well as a keen ability to solve problems.

11.Is there any kind of technology you can use in study?

For studying I use a computer and my phone. I often download research papers and read them on my phone and make notes onto the notes section of my phone too. I use my computer to actually write essays and do other homework tasks.

(1.What work do you do?

I am a teacher at a high school. I started there in Jan 2015 after graduating from college. I would say it is a pretty challenging job.

Why did you choose to do that type of job?

Teaching is my passion. I don't view my career as a "job" per say. I see it more as my calling in life. It is my life's purpose.

Do you like your job?

Definitely! I enjoy the variety and special projects where I can take ownership of the final product. My job provides me with both, so yes, it is a good job and I find it very rewarding.

I'm not interested in my job… because it is so mundane and repetitive, two traits I despise and try to stay away from. I hope to find a better job that challenges me to aspire to new heights.

Do you miss being a student?

I definitely do! Sometimes I just wonder what would have happened if I had studied harder when I was in university. I just miss the days when I had nothing to worry about but the exams. Now, all the pressure from work and family is difficult to deal with.

Is it very interesting?

Most of the time, yes! The daily challenges from new projects provide constant opportunities to learn new things and to some extent re-invent myself. Every day is unique. My colleagues provide me with support but also healthy competition. I find my job most interesting when I am challenged to reach outside of my comfort zone.

6.Is there any kind of technology you use at work?)

I use mainly a laptop computer and my phone at work. Sometimes I also use a photocopier scanner, and a video camera if I'm making short promotional videos with my company. But mainly, I just use a computer.

7.Can you manage your time well when you work?

Yes, I am a project manager in my office, so I am quite good at managing my time and the other people's time on the team. I've worked as an IT manager for several years now.

8.Who helps you most at work?

My team members – I have a great team and they are all hardworking, supportive, smart and attentive to the needs of others and the project goals.

Hometown

题目答案

Hometown

1.Has your hometown changed much these years?

2.Is that a big city or a small place?

3.How long have you been living here?

4.For you, what benefits are there living in a big city?

5.Is there anything you dislike about it?

6.What do you like most about your hometown?

7.Where in your country do you live?

Part 1

Hometown

1.Has your hometown changed much these years?

Absolutely! Take traffic as an example, the most common transport facility used to be buses, it could be really crowded sometimes since people didn't have any other options. However, today, BRT and subway systems have made people's lives easier than ever.

2.Is that a big city or a small place?

This city is so huge. I often get lost here. Like the other day, I travelled to a new neighborhood that had this restaurant people were raving about. I made a wrong turn and it took me 20 minutes to figure out where I was.

3.How long have you been living here?

For about half my life, so that is about 10 years. I went to school here, and now I'm working in the same city. In fact, time has gone by really quickly because so there's so much to do here and I've been so active.

4.For you, what benefits are there living in a big city?

Well, first of all, there are a great number of opportunities for both education and job-hunting in big cities, which explains why people from small cities, towns and villages are flooding to big cities nowadays. Plus, the fact that cities offer more modern facilities and conveniences makes them even more attractive to people.

5.Is there anything you dislike about it?

Unfortunately, this city has a huge problem with pollution, especially air pollution. The air is so contaminated that we all have to wear masks every time we go out of the house. This problem has escalated to a serious level that it's been catching the attention of the international community. I hope that the government will be able to save this city before the problem gets worse.

6.What do you like most about your hometown?

What I love the most about it is the mystery. I mean there are so many places inside this city that I have yet to explore. I could spend years checking out every restaurant and attraction Beijing has to offer.

7.Where in your country do you live?

I live in Beijing. However, since the city is so big, it would take hours to even scratch the surface, but to sum it up, Beijing is the political and cultural heart, and one of the major economic centers of the world today.

Accommodation

题目答案

Accommodation

1.Are the transport facilities in your city very good?

2.Which room does your family spend most of the time in?

3.Do you live in a house or a flat?

4.Do you plan to live here for a long time?

5.Do you live alone or with your family?

6.How long have you lived there?

7.What do you usually do in your house/flat/room?

8.Which is your favourite room in your home?

9.What's the difference between where you are living now and where you lived in the past? (If you want to say you have not lived elsewhere)

10.What can you see when you look out the window of your room?

11.Would you be willing to live in the countryside in the future?

Accommodation

1.Are the transport facilities in your city very good?

Honestly, I wish they were better. I have to walk 20 minutes to the bus stop, and the subway takes another 30 minutes when I get to work. My dream home is a house located right next to a bus stop or subway terminal.

2.Which room does your family spend most of the time in?

My family loves to stay in the living room as this is the only place in the flat where we can do a lot of things together. We play board games, watch films and TV programs. We play cards sometimes and we spend time working on huge puzzles together.

3.Do you live in a house or a flat?

I live in a flat, and my flat is situated in a quiet little neighborhood on the north side of city. My parents first moved there in 2000 when they wanted to start a new life and raise a family.

4.Do you plan to live here for a long time?

Not really! I want to blaze my own trail and live in a place that forces me to reach out and meet new people. I was thinking about moving to Shanghai for a few days to gain a bit more cultural experience of the world.

5.Do you live alone or with your family?

I'm a student at the moment, and I live with my parents. Actually I quite like it, because my mother is the best cook that I know - it's always wonderful to have a tasty meal after a day of school work. We also talk about our days with each other while we're enjoying dinner, it just feels good.

6.How long have you lived there?

I've lived there for three years and I really love my place. Since it's on the 11^th floor, it's well ventilated and there is plenty of sunshine. I love to sink into the soft sofa to watch TV and eat snacks. There's a large shopping centre within 5 minutes' walk so it's very convenient for me to go shopping, watch movies and eat out. I wish it was my apartment.

7.What do you usually do in your house/flat/room?

At weekends, I spend most of my time studying and sleeping in my room. On weekdays, I spend time in the kitchen, baking some cakes or sweet stuff for my mother. Sometimes, we watch films in the living room. On Sundays, we usually clean the house and do some laundry.

8.Which is your favourite room in your home?

I think it must be my bedroom. My bedroom is not that big but quite neat. There are some posters of Kobe Bryant on the wall because he is my favorite basketball player. My room is kind of a private space for me - I usually play some video games, do my homework and play the guitar in it.

9.What's the difference between where you are living now and where you lived in the past? (If you want to say you have not lived elsewhere)

I have not moved home at all. I have lived in the same flat since I was born. I love our small place. I have a lot of good memories here, and I treasure them. I'd happily stay here for many more years?

10.What can you see when you look out the window of your room?

I can see the whole community from my window. In the morning, people are going to school or work, everyone is in a hurry. However, in the evening, it is not that fast-paced anymore. I can see parents taking a walk after dinner and children playing games in the neighborhood.

11.Would you be willing to live in the countryside in the future?

In the future, probably. There is a peacefulness I enjoy when visiting the countryside. People there are friendly and always willing to start a conversation. I think when I retire, living in the countryside is a nice option to me.

本季新题

Snacks

题目答案

Snacks

1 What snacks did you eat when you were young?

2 Do you often eat snacks now?

3 Do you think eating snacks is healthy?

Snacks

1 What snacks did you eat when you were young?

When I was a kid I used to love all kinds of street snacks – there were lots of little stalls selling pancakes and all sorts in my road. When I was a little older, fast food joints started to open and become popular, and I loved those, and thought they were a real novelty. There we ate burgers and fried chicken and things like that.

2 Do you often eat snacks now?

I still eat local snacks actually, and there is quite a strong street-snack culture still existing in China, and occasionally I go to fast food outlets with friends – which are more expensive, but more comfortable and convenient.

3 Do you think eating snacks is healthy?

Certain snacks are healthy, yes, indeed. Fried street snacks and fast food are not so healthy though; at least if you eat them often. One has to be careful what one chooses in the way of snacking – a lot of sweets, chocolates, fries and burgers and deep-fried food is definitely not healthy. Everything in moderation, as they say!

Birthday

题目答案

Birthday

1 What do you usually do on your birthday?

2 What did you do on your birthday when you were young?

3 Do you it is important for you to celebrate your birthday?

Birthday

1 What do you usually do on your birthday?

On my birthday I usually have a dinner with my parents, usually at a nice restaurant in the city. Then I might go out for drinks with my friends, or to the cinema or something like that. That’s been the habit, anyway, for the past few years.

2 What did you do on your birthday when you were young?

When I was younger… a child… we would just have a dinner at home, and I would receive some presents. And in school the class would sing a birthday song and I’d have a cake. That’s about it really. I found my birthday quite exciting as a child, as most kids do, I think.

3 Do you think it is important for you to celebrate your birthday?

I think it’s fairly important. It’s a milestone… a turning point in the year, and in life, and it is symbolic of the years passing, us getting older and more mature, so yeah, I think it’s important.

Social media

题目答案

Social media

1 Do you like social media?

2 Do you think your friends spend too much time on social media?

3 Do you want to work in a social media company?

Social media

1 Do you like social media?

Yes, I most certainly see and enjoy the benefits of social media. Although I can also see the downsides of it too – there's a lot of gossip, misinformation and nonsense on social media, as well as informative discussion and communication. So, like most things, it's a double-edged sword. But I like it yes – it's predominantly great for communicating with work, friends and family.

2 Do you think your friends spend too much time on social media?

YES! Some are really obsessed with social media – constantly posting on their weibo pictures of their dinner, or parties, or days out. It's a bit excessive to be honest. I think a lot of my friends are a bit over the top about it. I am not so passionate about such things, personally. I use it mainly for practical communication.

3 Do you want to work in a social media company?

No, I don't. Today there are too many rules and regulations governing social media and it's a minefield. I'd prefer to work in a more relaxing field that is not so connected to public information sharing, gossip and stuff like this. I am not a very public-facing kind of person really!

Names

题目答案

Name

1 Does your name have a special meaning?

2 How do people choose names for their children?

3 Does anyone in your family have the same name with you?

4 Are there any differences between how Chinese name their children now and in the past?

Names

1 Does your name have a special meaning?

Not really. I am named after my grandfather who was from Gansu, and apparently I have a name that goes back many generations in my family. I also share a character of my Grandmother's name as well. Apart from that, no there is no special meaning to my name.

2 How do people choose names for their children?

Some people seek the advice of a fortune teller or a wise person! Most people discuss it with their family and think about it for quite a long time, and choose something that means something to them, sounds lucky or is simply nice-sounding.

3 Does anyone in your family have the same name with you?

Yes, several people have the same two characters in their name as mine. I have three characters in my name. One of them is specific to me. The others are related to my grandparents and parents. I think this is pretty much the same for many people I know.

4 Are there any differences between how Chinese name their children now and in the past?

I am not sure to be honest. I think people are a bit less traditional in their choices of names than before, and young people try to think of more original and special character combinations. But, pretty much, in general, I don't think there have been big changes in naming customs and habits.

Weather

题目答案

Weather

1 Do you prefer hot or cold weather?

2 Do you prefer dry or wet weather?

3 What is the weather like in your hometown?

4 Do you have the habit of checking the weather forecast?

Weather

1 Do you prefer hot or cold weather?

I much prefer it when the weather is nice and hot. Obviously, I don't like it when it's extremely hot, but I like it pretty hot. Perhaps around 35 is a good temperature for me. However, I prefer it when it's a dry heat and not a really humid heat.2 Do you prefer dry or wet weather?

I prefer dry weather, but it's nice to have a shower of rain from time to time. It clears the air and is good for the plants – I don't like it when it's months of hot dry weather with no rain. So, ideally, I like pretty hot weather, with a good shower of rain once a week or so.

3 What is the weather like in your hometown?

In my hometown it is hot and very humid for about 6 months of the year. It's unbearable when it's too hot and humid to be honest – it's hard to breathe and you sweat profusely as soon as you leave the house. Like I mentioned before, hot and dry weather is my favourite, with the occasional rain shower.

4 Do you have the habit of checking the weather forecast?

I check it fairly often actually. For no particular reason really, just because it pops up on my phone every morning when I wake up, so I look at it. Where I live in China the weather is highly predictable all year round, so we don't really need to be checking the weather forecast all the time, like people do in the UK, for example.

Singing

题目答案

Singing

1 Do you like singing?

2 Have you ever learnt how to sing?

3 Who do you want to sing for?

4 Do you think singing can bring happiness to people?

Singing

1 Do you like singing?

I love singing. I thoroughly enjoy going to KTVs and singing on my own at home to music, too.

2 Have you ever learnt how to sing?

No, not really. To be honest, I’m not very good at singing – I think I might be tone deaf, even. In school plays and performances I was never chosen to be one of the leading singers, and in KTV with friends, I usually try to keep a low profile and mouth the words – I really can’t sing well.3 If

you sing, who would you sing in front of?

I wouldn’t want to sing for anyone – I’d be way too embarrassed and self-conscious. As I said, I’m a terrible singer! I would find it uncomfortable, so no, I would not sing for, or in front of anyone, if I could avoid it.

4 Do you think singing can bring happiness to people?

I understand that singing, if you’re good enough at it, can make people feel very happy. The person singing as well as those listening. Singing is a great form of musical expression, and there’s nothing more lovely than the human voice. So, yes, it can bring happiness for sure.

Public Transport

题目答案

Public Transport

1 What kind of public transport do you usually take?

2 Did you take public transport when you were a kid?

3 Do most people prefer public transport?

4 When do you usually take public transport?

Public Transport

1 What kind of public transport do you usually take?

I usually take the subway and a bus on a daily basis, to go to work, and on the weekends I grab a taxi, to go out to meet friends in town – to go to a restaurant or a bar or so. So, I take a few different modes of transport usually – I don't own my own car, so I rely on public transport most of the time unless a friend gives me a lift somewhere.

2 Did you take public transport when you were a kid?

I took public transport with my parents yes. We always used to go on the bus in those days, because there weren't many subway lines in our city, and none near to where we lived. Now, however, there's a lot more public transport.

3 Do most people prefer public transport?

Well… not really. I think most people find public transport in Chinese cities a bit overcrowded. Everyone would prefer to have their own car, in an ideal world. Though, public transport is very cheap, it's not always convenient.

4 When do you usually take public transport?

I usually take public transport each morning and evening on weekdays, to go to the office to work. And, on weekends I take public transport if I need to go somewhere to meet family and friends – I'll take a taxi if it's not convenient to get a bus or subway. Occasionally I take a hire-bike from the street if the distance isn't too far.

Cooking

题目答案

Cooking

1 Do you like cooking?

2 Would you like to learn how to cook?

3 Who normally does the cooking in your family?

Cooking

1 Do you like cooking?

I love cooking. Well, if I have time. Cooking well can sometimes take quite a bit of time and energy, so I mainly enjoy cooking on the weekends, when I don't have to go to work. Especially in winter, I like to cook in winter because we spend less time going outside and more time focusing on things to do in the home.

2 Would you like to learn how to cook?

I already know how to cook! I love cooking. I learnt to cook from my grandmother. She is a really excellent cook and she can cook anything from traditional Chinese dishes to western cakes and pastries. I enjoy cooking all sorts of different foods, and today you can find a lot of recipes online. So, I'd say I am already a pretty decent cook, and I constantly try to learn new dishes.

3 Who normally does the cooking in your family?

My mother does most of the daily cooking, but my father cooks on occasions or helps out in the kitchen. Both my mother and father are good cooks, and both enjoy cooking, but my father is the one who likes to experiment with different recipes a bit more.

Geography

题目答案

Geography

1 Have you ever studied geography at school?

2 Do you like geography?

3 Do you want to travel to a country because of its geographical conditions?

Geography

1 Have you ever studied geography at school?

I did study geography, yes. Physical geography, like plate tectonics – volcanoes and things like that, as well as land formation, and farming and the water cycle, and all of that type of stuff. We also studied human geography as well – population, demographics and things like that.

2 Do you like geography?

I do, actually. I find it quite interesting – especially physical geography. I’m interested in things related to the natural environment and the planet. And I am concerned about climate change and environmental issues facing us today, so I find geography relevant as well as interesting.

3 Do you want to travel to a country because of its geographical conditions?

Yes, I think so. At least it is one of the reasons I would choose to travel to a country, yes. For example, I am interested in lakes – I would like to spend some time in Sweden at the lakes – I heard they have a lot of lakes and it’s common to spend holidays at the lakes, go in boats and things like that. So, yes, I would choose a country with lots of lakes and water.

Puzzles

题目答案

Puzzles

1 Did you like doing puzzles when you were a kid?

2 When do you do puzzles, during trips or when you feel bored?

3 Do you like doing word puzzles or number puzzles?

4 Do you think it is good for old people to do puzzles?

Puzzles

1 Did you like doing puzzles when you were a kid?

Yes, when I was a kid there were lots of puzzles we could do – with string, and wood, and jigsaws and all sorts of little stuff like that. Now, there isn’t so much – there’s a lot of puzzle games, and games involving cryptic thinking on apps on phones and tablets, though. Those are popular today.

2 When do you do puzzles, during trips or when you feel bored?

I usually play such puzzle games on my phone when I’m on the train or on a bus, or something like that. I also fiddle with my phone in bed too, like a lot of people, and yes, sometimes I play games which you could call ‘puzzles’ I guess.

3 Do you like doing word puzzles or number puzzles?

I prefer number puzzles – I am really good at math, and I like solving little math problems. There are plenty of games which involving solving number puzzles and I enjoy doing these. I get a great sense of satisfaction from getting the answers right.

4 Do you think it is good for old people to do puzzles?

Yes, most certainly. I think old people should do these things to keep their minds active – a lot of research shows that older people remain mentally sharp for longer if they keep engaging their brains in puzzles and activities that involving thinking and solving things.

Writing

题目答案

Writing

1 Do you write a lot?

2 What do you like to write?

3 Do you prefer typing or handwriting when you are writing something?

Writing

1 Do you write a lot?

I don't write much at all, actually. Now that I've graduated I no longer have to write endless essays and assignments, like I've been used to for the past three or four years. So, I don't write much – I write job application letters, and emails, but I don't have to write a lot at the moment.

2 What do you like to write?

I don't really like to write much these days. I write emails to my family, and text messages to friends, and that's about it at the moment. Like I said, I'm enjoying having a break from years of having to write assignments.

3 Do you prefer typing or handwriting when you are writing something?

Most definitely typing, I think - to be honest, my handwriting now is awful – I'm just not used to writing by hand anymore.

Morning Routine

题目答案

Morning Routine

1 Do you like to get up early in the mornings?

2 What is your morning routine?

3 Which one is your favorite morning in the whole week?

4 Do you want to change your daily routines in the future?

Morning Routine

1 Do you like to get up early in the mornings?

Not really. I’m not a morning person… but I’m not a night person either. I guess you could say I’m an afternoon person? Or more precisely, a person who “loves to sleep” kind of person!? Either way, it’s a daily struggle to peel myself out of bed, so I need all the help I can get.

2 What is your morning routine?

I wake up around 6:00am when my alarm goes off, and snooze for a few minutes. When I finally roll out of bed, I take a shower, quickly put on my makeup, blend my daily smoothies, then I am out of the door. If it’s a non-working day, I’ll hit the gym, or I’ll just chat with my boyfriend for a bit, before taking a shower.

3 Which one is your favorite morning in the whole week?

My favourite morning is Saturday morning because I don’t have to get up for work and I can lie in bed for hours reading or watching TV series. Saturday morning is most certainly my favourite morning and it always has been.

4 Do you want to change your daily routines in the future?

If there’s one thing I could change it would be having a lie-in in the morning. I always wake up really early and get out of bed as soon as I wake up which means I never really have a lie-in. Sometimes I get a bit tired in the afternoon and I think it’s because I get up too early. So yeah I’d like to be able to have a lie-in sometimes.

Technology

题目答案

Technology

1 What technological products do you often use, computers or mobile phones?

2 What electronic devices have you bought lately?

3 Are there any technological devices you want to buy?

4 What benefits does technology bring to us?

Technology

1 What technological products do you often use, computers or mobile phones?

I use both - computers, mobile phones, and I have a tablet. I use all of them for both work and social communications. Today, pretty much everyone needs a phone, at least, and most people who work in my field will have a tablet and a computer too.

2 What electronic devices have you bought lately?

I haven’t bought any electronic devices this year. Last year I bought a new tablet, because my old one was several years old and the memory was full, which meant it had slowed down to the point where it was no longer efficient to use. But since then, I’ve not bought anything else electronic.

3 Are there any technological devices you want to buy?

I’d like to buy a really good pair of noise cancelling headphones. I have a small pair of headphones that come with my mobile phone, but they don’t block out the noise of people and traffic when I’m commuting to work. So, I want to buy a nice quality pair of headphones that are great for sound, but block out the outside noises really effectively.

4 What benefits does technology bring to us?

Technology brings us a host of benefits. It would take too long to list them all! But, in short, the main things technology offers to society is fast, effective communication which enables us to streamline business and personal interactions and communications and get things done quickly.

保留旧题

Emails

题目答案

Emails

1 Do you often send emails?

2 Is sending emails popular in China?

3 Do you think sending emails will be more or less popular in the future?

Emails

1.Do you often send emails?

Yes, I send emails all the time. My university assignments are all submitted via email, and I correspond with my family regularly via email still, although a lot of communication today takes place over wechat, our messaging app in China.

2.Is sending emails popular in China?

Yes, sending emails is quite popular, although using more mobile applications for messaging and sending and receiving documents is getting pretty common.

3.Do you think sending emails will be more or less popular in the future?

I think we will send emails less and less as mobile messaging apps are able to send much larger files, and smartphones are much better at dealing with productive work-tasks like writing, editing documents and creating presentations.

Feel bored

题目答案

Feel bored

1 Do you often feel bored?

2 What kinds of things would make you feel bored?

3 What would you do if you feel bored?

Feel bored

1 Do you often feel bored?

I rarely feel bored, actually. I’m always quite busy – I’ve got my studies, sporting activities and a fairly busy social calendar. I’m a very active person and I never seem to have time for all the things I want to do – so I’ve certainly no time to get bored.

2 What kinds of things would make you feel bored?

When I feel bored it’s usually when I’m commuting and stuck in traffic. I find travelling by car quite frustrating in the big city, and it really affects my mood when there are big traffic jams. So, getting stuck in traffic or moving really slowly in traffic makes me feel both frustrated and bored.

3 What would you do if you feel bored?

If I feel bored I usually get quite annoyed, and that makes me want to talk to friends to get things off my chest. So, usually I will message my friends or give them a call and talk about my feelings, ask them about their day, gossip about daily life… things like this. This kind of thing usually relieves my boredom and frustration temporarily.

Meeting places

题目答案

Meeting places

1 Where do you usually meet your friends?

2 Do you think there are some places suitable for meeting others?

3 Have the meeting places changed now compared with the past?

Meeting places

1 Where do you usually meet your friends?

I usually meet friends at places where we do sports together. I’m a really sporty person and I like to spend my free time playing basketball and tennis. These are my main hobbies. So, whenever I’ve got free time and my friends want to play, then we will meet at a local sports club where we have memberships, and play. Sometimes we meet in a café in a mall not far from home or a restaurant.

2 Do you think there are particular places that are suitable for meeting others?

There are a lot of places suitable for meeting up with other people. I mean, it really depends on what kind of things you do – some people meet in bars, or cafés, others, like myself, always meet up at the gym or sports club. Others tend to meet at shopping malls… It really depends.

3 Have the meeting places changed now compared with the past?

I think today, especially in cities, people have a wider range of options of things to do and places to meet. There are more activities and entertainment facilities compared to the past, for example, so often people will meet at those places, according to their hobbies and interests.

Computers

题目答案

Computers

1 In what conditions would you use a computer?

2 When was the first time you used a computer?

3 What will your life be like without computers?

4 In what conditions would it be difficult for you to use a computer?

Computers

1 In what situations would you use a computer?

I usually use a computer for work. I used to use a computer for playing games and reading the news, too, but now I do these things on my phone and tablet – so, yes, I only use my computer for work really.

2 When was the first time you used a computer?

I first used a computer when I was in middle school. A friend of mine invited me round to his house and his father had one. I can’t remember what type it was now, but it had some fun games. I was very excited about it at the time.

3 What will your life be like without computers?

Well, I can’t imagine how I’d write essays and do my studies, but apart from that I think my life would be okay – I do everything else on my phone and tablet.

4 In what conditions would it be difficult for you to use a computer?

It would be hard for me to use a computer while on public transport, or in my grandmother’s house in the countryside. You see, I work online mainly, and the internet is terrible in her village.

Collect things

题目答案

Collect things

1 Do you collect anything?

2 Are there any things you keep from childhood?

3 Where do you usually keep things you collect?

Collect things

1 Do you collect anything?

I don’t collect anything really. I used to collect small plastic figurines when I was a kid – characters from cartoons I watched, in fact. But now, I can’t think of anything I collect… nothing really. My brother, however, collects football T-shirts!

2 Are there any things you keep from childhood?

I don’t keep much from my childhood to be honest. We have moved house so many times, and always to fairly small flats, that I never really managed to keep or collect much. I have some old family photos and some books – that’s about it.

3 Where do you usually keep things you collect?

Well… I don’t actually collect anything, but if I were to collect things, I’d keep them in my room. That’s what my sister does with her collection of soft toys – she keeps them in her room – some on her bed, carefully arranged, and some in the wardrobe.

Watch

题目答案

Watch

1 Do you wear a watch?

2 Have you ever got a watch as a gift?

3 Why do some people wear expensive watches?

Watch

1 Do you wear a watch?

Yes, I wear a watch – I have a smart watch which I wear all the time. I use the watch to set calendar reminders, send short messages, make quick calls and make notes, as well as monitor my health stats and daily steps.

2 Have you ever got a watch as a gift?

Yes, the smart watch that I wear almost all the time – this was a gift from my uncle a few years ago.

3 Why do some people wear expensive watches?

Some people genuinely appreciate a fine, precision-made watch, and others enjoy the status symbol of having an expensive watch. Some people care about both!

Reading

题目答案

Reading

1 When do you read books?

2 How often do you buy books?

3 Have you ever read a novel that has been adapted into a film?

4 Which one do you prefer, reading books or watching movies?

Reading

1.When do you read books?I usually read in the evenings, when I’m in bed relaxing before sleep. I read books on my phone most of the time, although I do enjoy reading physical, print books more, really. It’s just that in my dorm it’s not that convenient to turn the light on at night to read. The light of my phone screen is dimmer and more convenient.

2.How often do you buy books?

I read every night. It’s almost like a ritual of mine. Even if I am studying a lot, I always read a novel or a story at night. I usually have a novel on the go, a romantic one, that I read bits of each night.

3.Have you ever read a novel that has been adapted into a film?

I have yes. I’ve read Jane Austin’s Pride and Prejudice, some of the Lord of the Rings, and a few others I can’t recall off-hand. I’ve read a few. I enjoy reading the novel first ideally, then watching the film.

4.Which one do you prefer, reading books or watching movies?

I think reading books. That’s just my preference. I know that today most people prefer to watch films, but I have always been a book person. And it’s part of my daily routine, to read in the evenings before sleep.

Part 2 & 3 题目汇总

新题汇总

描述一个你认识的来自不同文化的人

题目答案

Describe a person you know who is from a different culture.

You should say:

Who he/she is

Where he/she is from

How you knew him/her

And explain how you feel about this person

Part 3

How can we get to know people from different cultures better?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of cultural diversity?

How can traditional culture and other cultures coexist?

Describe a person you know who is from a different culture

You should say:

Who he/she is

Where he/she is from

How you knew him/her

And explain how you feel about this person

The person I’d like to talk about who is from a different culture is a co-worker of mine called Jez. Jez is from America. We have a lot of exposure to Americans and the key symbols of American culture, from the world of music, cinema and popular culture. One could argue that American world domination has come in the form of commercialism, big business, and a drive for free markets and entrepreneurship. Whatever we may think of America and Americans, of the good things and the bad things – the point is: Jez really is from a different culture to me, and the more we work together the more I realise what some of these differences are. I’ll talk here very concisely about a couple of positive and negative aspects of his culture, the way I see it. Americans seem to be quite open, direct, and general motivated and positive on the surface. They aren’t very reserved really – at least not about superficial things, and at least not in public. They exude a certain confidence, and that can be inspiring and welcoming, too, because they can also be quite positive about others. I’ve had a lot of encouragement from him at work, for example. On the other hand, I can’t help thinking that sometimes he’s a bit simple-minded. At times, it seems that they are too open and outspoken and put on too much of a ‘positive face’ with everything, and at the same time are too critical of other people’s cultures, and don’t make that much effort to really deeply understand them. So, with Jez, I have experienced both positive and not-so-positive aspects of American culture. I feel good about him, though, he’s a colleague and friend and after all. We have to accept people have different ways in the global world we live in today.

描述一个时髦的人

题目答案

Describe a person who is fashionable.

You should say:

Who he/she is

What he/she does

What kind of clothes he/she wears

And explain why you think this person is fashionable

Part 3

Are older people as fashionable as young people?

Are women more fashionable than men?

Why is fashion more important to some people?

Describe a person who is fashionable

You should say:

Who he/she is

What he/she does

What kind of clothes he/she wears

And explain why you think this person is fashionable

A person I know who is really fashionable is my friend, James. Actually, I’d say he was a fashion victim. Although he’s a good friend of mine, I must say that we don’t always see eye to eye about everything. And the one thing that I don’t really like that much about him is his obsession with following the latest trends and fashion brands. He’s a student, actually. He studies physics in my university. He mainly wears sporty clothes – and recently there are loads of new styles in the ‘sports genre’ that keep coming out. He seems to always be buying new sneakers, new tops, new hoodies, new plastic-rubber slip-on sporty sandals… you name it! He also buys bags, bracelets or wrist bands, water bottles and all the kinds of accessories they sell in these stores or online. It’s as if he’s a huge victim of their advertising campaigns. I mean, it does make him one of the most fashionable people I know – there’s no doubt about that – but, personally I think it’s quite over the top and I don’t see the attraction at all. I’ve never really worried too much about following fashions; I like to wear what I think looks nice and is comfortable, and I think I have good eye for coordinating clothes, but when it comes to following fashion trends or buying the latest stuff, I’m not that bothered. Anyway, my friend is a cool guy and a nice kind person.. so, hey, I guess we all have different interests.

描述一个你认识的喜欢种植物的人

题目答案

Describe a person you know who loves to grow vegetables/fruits.

You should say:

Who this person is

What he/she grows

Where he/she grows those vegetable/fruits

And explain how you feel about this person

Part 3

What do you think of the job, being a farmer?

Are there many people growing their own vegetables now?

Describe a person you know who loves to grow plants (e.g. vegetables/fruits/flowers etc.)

You should say:

Who this person is

What he/she grows

Where he/she grows them

And explain why he/she enjoys this activity

A person I know who loves to grow plants is a lady I met in Scotland when I was in university. In fact she was my neighbour. I was living in a shared house in Bruford Road in Edinburgh, and next door lived a fairly old, but very energetic lady, called Nan. Nan was always changing her hair style, always wore long flowing dresses, and was quite moody, but a lovely lady, nevertheless. She had a small front garden and a quite long back garden. In the front garden she had wonderful flower beds of brightly coloured flowers, and a small lawn with a stone bird bath on it. And in the back garden she had bushes and a vegetable patch and some more leafy plants. I don’t remember the names of all these plants in English, to be honest! Anyway, she spent quite a bit of time in her garden carefully looking after her plants, tilling the soil around the vegetables, watering them during the dry summer months and pruning the rose bushes. Because that summer I stayed there and spent a lot of time reading in the garden I would talk to her over the low fence which divided our gardens and we became quite good friends. She told me a lot about her love for plants and flowers and it seemed like this was a hobby that really kept her positive and happy in life. She wasn’t so into people, or doing social things, but she did enjoy her garden. We chatted a lot that summer, and I think a learned a thing or two from her about how to appreciate nature and the simpler things in life. I think tending to her garden was really good for her mental and physical health, actually.

描述一位你最喜欢的童年玩伴

题目答案

Describe your favorite childhood friend

You should say:

Who he/she is

Where you met each other

What you often did together

And explain what made you like him/her

Part 3

1 Why do people lose contact with their friends after graduation?

2 How does modern technology influence friendship?

3 Do you think people’s relationship with friends will change when they get older?

Describe your favorite childhood friend.

You should say:

Who he/she is

Where you met each other

What you often did together

And explain what made you like him/her

A childhood friend who I had a lot of fun with was a guy called Matthew. We met in school in the very first year. He lived in the street nearby, and we used to have great times together. You see, we lived in a small town then, by a really nice woodland – we would both go off and play in the woods almost every day, at least in the holidays. We’d make dens, play hide and seek, climb trees, and play imaginary fantasy games. We were the kind of kids who were not so into sports like football and basketball – we were more excited by riding bikes and having adventures in the countryside. Plus, when you grow up in a small town there are less entertainment options than in cities, so you end up using your imagination more, and bonding with your friends a lot more – because there are less distractions, and a lot of nature around. There was also a river, and Matthew had a small wooden boat his uncle had made him, sort of a raft really – and we used to go down the river on that and try to catch fish. Things like that. I enjoyed his company because he was funny, too. He had a very mischievous sense of humour and loved playing practical jokes – we enjoyed playing pranks on our parents. That was quite funny actually. So, yeah, I liked Matthew a lot, and we still keep in touch, from time to time on social media. He is in Shenzhen studying business in university. Occasionally, at Spring Festival we see each other in our home town, if we both are visiting at the same time.

描述一个激励你做有趣事情的人

题目答案

Describe a person who inspired you to do something interesting.

You should say:

Who he/she is

How you knew him/her

What interesting thing you did

And explain how he/she inspired you to do something interesting

Part 3

1 What qualities make someone a role model?

2 Who can influence children more, parents or teachers?

3 Why should children learn from role models?

Describe a person who inspired you to do something interesting.

You should say:

Who he/she is

How you knew him/her

What interesting thing you did

And explain how he/she inspired you to do something interesting

Someone who inspired me to do something that I think is really interesting, is a friend of mine who I met at a local café that I go to to study. She is called Banyan, and she is always in the same café with friends or studying, herself. We became friends one afternoon when she came over to me and just introduced herself. After that day, we talked together almost every time I went there to study, and we ended up doing all sorts of things together – going for walks, going out to bars, parties, all sorts of fun occasions in the city. She was so inspiring and so much fun – she seemed to be afraid of nothing, and up for anything. Meeting Banyan was a real turning point in my life really. Anyway, one day she introduced me to her yoga teacher – one of her hobbies was a kind of Indian yoga – she does it every Sundays at a local club with a professional teacher. Anyway, she introduced me to the yoga club and I joined. It was great! I loved it. It involves manipulation of the body, which is brilliant exercise, and meditation – which is so good for the mind and the mood. I became really into this yoga and I still do it now, every Sunday. In fact, I’ve become quite good at it. It takes quite a while at first to get good, and be able to feel comfortable in all the different positions, but when you finally get to grips with that, you end up feeling incredibly elevated by the meditations. So, yes, this is something really interesting I did, and still do, which I think was very inspiring. And that’s thanks to my friend, Banyan.

描述一张你为之自豪的照片

题目答案

Describe a photo you took that you are proud of

You should say:

When you took it

Where you took it

What is in this photo

And explain why you are proud of it

Part 3

1 Why do some people like to record important things by photos?

2 What can people learn from historical photographs?

3 Is taking photo the best way to remember something?

Describe a photo you took and you are proud of.

You should say:

When you took it

Where you took it

What is in this photo

And explain why you are proud of it

A photo I took that I am really proud of is a picture of an ex-girlfriend of mine from university. You see, in my first year at university I had a bit of a photography phase – I got quite into taking photos, and created albums based on a number of different themes. I had a period of taking photos of trees, for example, another period of taking photos of old buildings, another of taking photos of markets – you could say that photography is a form of art, in this sense. Anyway, I had a phase of taking portraits of people, and the whole project was in black and white. People look quite striking in black and white, and I think it’s a lovely way to photograph people. Anyway, one of the best, and most meaningful photos I took was of my girlfriend at the time. We took a series of photos around campus – our campus was an old and very attractive place with lots of curious plants, trees and gardens within it. The photo I liked the most, and still like, was perhaps the most natural of them all – she was not posing at all, or trying to look attractive or conscious of the camera – she was bending down to stroke a small dog that an old man was walking. The morning sunlight was just perfect, casting a long shadow across the path – shadows of her, the dog and the man and a tree behind, all extending beautifully and sharply. Her face was a perfect, natural smile of joy and the old man also had a pleasant look of contentment on his face. It’s hard to describe art or photography in my own language, let alone in English, but this is the best way I can describe it anyway – it was a perfect configuration of elements, wonderful lighting and lovely genuine expressions on the faces of the old man and my girlfriend. So, I’m very proud of it, and I got it framed, too, and it’s on the wall at my parent’s house back in Guizhou.

描述一个你认为漂亮的物体

题目答案

Describe an object that you think is beautiful

You should say:

What it is

Where you saw it

What it looks like

And explain why you think it is beautiful

Part 3

1 Do you think there are more beautiful things now than in the past? Why?

2 What beautiful scenic spots are there in your country?

3 Where do you think people usually come into contact with beautiful things?

4 Why do you think people create beautiful things?

Describe an object that you think is beautiful

You should say:

What it is

Where you saw it

What it looks like

And explain why you think it is beautiful

An object that instantly comes to mind that strikes me as really beautiful is a painting my friend Jayne has in her house on the staircase wall. It’s a painting of a field of tulips – I think it’s in Holland. It’s a huge field of pink and red tulips stretching out into the distance, with a cobalt blue sky above it. It’s a particularly beautiful painting because of the way the painter has captured the light. I think that he must have been painting the field in the morning, as the morning sunlight, cast its light across the field and onto the flowers – the light casts shadows and brings out the brightness of the flowers. Almost as if they are moving or about to move in an incredibly light breeze. I think the painting is especially beautiful for two reasons – firstly because, as I’ve described above, it’s a fantastic painting by an excellent oil painter, and secondly because I am especially drawn to nature and paintings of the natural world. They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and this is very much true in my opinion – I am never attracted to abstract or even impressionist works of art, I find immense beauty in the simple natural, still lives and pictures of landscapes, mountains, fields, lakes and trees. So, it is true that beauty, and the perception of beauty, really is decided by personal opinion and personality. I think that paintings are more beautiful than photographs, because we know they have been created with the care, dedication and talent of a skilled painter, who has patience, calm and diligence. I think this also adds to the beauty of art – thinking about how much talent and effort went into creating the piece.

描述你最近想再看一遍的电影

题目答案

Describe a movie you watched recently and would like to watch again.

You should say:

What it was about

Where you watched it

Why you like it

And explain why you would like to watch it again

Part 3

1 What are the differences between watching movies at home and in a cinema?

2 Are actors or actresses important to movies?

3 Why are there fewer people going to the cinema to watch movies?

Describe a movie you watched recently and would like to watch again.

You should say:

What it was about

Where you watched it

Why you like it

And explain why you would like to watch it again

I watched the movie Prey, which is the latest movie in the series of Predator movies – based on the idea of a strong and predatory evil alien coming from another planet and landing on earth, in the jungle or wilderness. It’s kind of scary, though I wouldn’t call it a horror film, as such. It’s more of an intense action thriller, really. Basically, in Prey there is a north American Indian girl, who is out in the woodlands hunting rabbits and she suddenly sees this strange phenomenon in the sky – strange lights like an alien space craft above the clouds – something like this. Then, a few days later she sees huge footprints in the woodlands, and strange things start to happen. Eventually she actually sees the alien fighting with a bear and realizing that there is this awful creature out there… the creature notices her and chases her. She manages to hide but eventually it finds her, and the rest of the film is about how she tricks the alien and eventually kills it. It’s a movie that really keeps you on the edge of your seat… it’s thrilling, and the scenery is impressive too. I would like to watch it again because I was watching it online on my computer, and frankly, this kind of movie is much better on the big screen, so I’d like to see it in the cinema.

描述一个你喜欢看的节目

题目答案

Describe a program you like to watch.

You should say:

What it is

What it is about

Who you watch it with

And explain why you like to watch it

Part 3

What programs do people like to watch in your country?

Do people in your country like to watch foreign TV programs?

Do teachers play videos in class in your country?

Describe a program you would like to watch

You should say:

What it is

What it is about

Who you watch it with

And explain why you like to watch it

A program that I’d like to watch that I’ve heard about but not yet seen, as a TV series actually. I guess that counts as a program! The TV series is called The Sandman and is based on a cartoon character, who is the Lord of Dreams. It’s obviously fantasy – but from what I’ve heard it’s also quite philosophical and meaningful in the way it is done. It touches upon all sorts of aspects of our thoughts and lives – life, death, suffering, human ambitions, and so on. I would like to watch this with my friend Michael – he’s really into these kind of TV series, and he loves to talk about them afterwards, too. I enjoy watching films and series and then having someone to discuss them with after – I think this is really interesting and makes them all the more exciting. The reason the Sandman is so interesting to me is because I’m really into fantasy stuff, but also I like things which involve meaningful reflections on life, have philosophical messages or insights into people and society and things that make you feel you’ve learned something afterwards, not simply watched something for fun. So, that’s why I’d choose The Sandman – though, as I said, I’ve not seen it, I’ve read reviews about it online, and I’ve a few friends which have recommended it to me.

描述一件你学到的重要的事情

题目答案

Describe an important thing you learned (not at school or university) .

You should say:

What it is

When you learned it

How you learned it

And explain why it was important

Part 3

What can children learn from parents? What about grandparents?

Do you think some children are well-behaved because they are influenced by their parents?

Is it necessary for adults to learn new things?

Describe your favorite childhood friend.

You should say:

Who he/she is

Where you met each other

What you often did together

And explain what made you like him/her

A childhood friend who I had a lot of fun with was a guy called Matthew. We met in school in the very first year. He lived in the street nearby, and we used to have great times together. You see, we lived in a small town then, by a really nice woodland – we would both go off and play in the woods almost every day, at least in the holidays. We’d make dens, play hide and seek, climb trees, and play imaginary fantasy games. We were the kind of kids who were not so into sports like football and basketball – we were more excited by riding bikes and having adventures in the countryside. Plus, when you grow up in a small town there are less entertainment options than in cities, so you end up using your imagination more, and bonding with your friends a lot more – because there are less distractions, and a lot of nature around. There was also a river, and Matthew had a small wooden boat his uncle had made him, sort of a raft really – and we used to go down the river on that and try to catch fish. Things like that. I enjoyed his company because he was funny, too. He had a very mischievous sense of humour and loved playing practical jokes – we enjoyed playing pranks on our parents. That was quite funny actually. So, yeah, I liked Matthew a lot, and we still keep in touch, from time to time on social media. He is in Shenzhen studying business in university. Occasionally, at Spring Festival we see each other in our home town, if we both are visiting at the same time.

描述一个你读过觉得有趣的故事或小说

题目答案

Describe a story or a novel that you have read and you found interesting.

You should say:

When you read it

What the story or novel was about

Who wrote it

And explain why you found it interesting

Part 3

How does technology help people tell stories?

Why are mystery novels so popular these days?

What kinds of stories do children like?

Describe a story or a novel that you have read and you found interesting

You should say:

When you read it

What the story or novel was about

Who wrote it

And explain why you found it interesting

I story I found really interesting that I read to my little sister yesterday, was a kid’s story called “My Secret Unicorn”. It’s a book about a girl called Lauren who lives on a farm with her parents and brother. She has a horse called Twilight. One day Lauren visits an old bookshop in town, run by an old lady called Mrs. Fontana. Mrs. Fontana gives Lauren a beautiful book about unicorns, and hints to Lauren that unicorns are, indeed, real and live in the world amongst us, if we look carefully enough and open our minds. Lauren goes home and gradually begins to realise that her pony, Twilight, might be a unicorn. She finds a spell in the back of the book and one night when her parents are asleep she casts the spell, and Twilight changes into a unicorn! Lauren is amazed, but she must keep this secret – if anyone finds out, she could be putting Twilight in danger. The rest of the story spans over 3 volumes, and is a series of adventures that Lauren and Twilight have together. They save people from danger, solve all sorts of problems, flying around at night – always at night – and keeping their secret closely guarded. I won’t spoil the story by going into any more details – but it’s really a fantastic story, especially for young girls – and has some powerful and positive messages for children too. It’s written by a woman called Linda ‘something’. To be honest I forget her full name. It slips my mind right now. She isn’t especially famous, as far as I know, and neither is the story, but I think it’s a fantastic story and often myself or my mother read the stories from these three volumes to my little sister before bed.

描述一个受欢迎的运动场所

题目答案

Describe a popular place for doing sports (e.g. stadium).

You should say:

Where it is

When you went there

What you did there

And explain how you feel about this place

Part 3

What are the benefits of children doing sports?

Do young people like to do sports?

Is it necessary to build sports venues?

Describe a popular place for doing sports (e.g. stadium)

You should say:

Where it is

When you went there

What you did there

And explain how you feel about this place

A popular place for doing sports, is actually a modern gym near my office in Haidian. It’s a really cool gym and sports centre. In fact, it’s really a lot more than that because it also has modern, slick working areas you can even go to and have team meetings or work alone with laptops; it has a café and healthy snack bar, it has a spa and massage center, as well as all the usual things a gym has – exercise machines, sports areas and personal trainers. There’s also a swimming pool. It’s described as a “360 degree leisure and health center” and I can see why! The membership is pretty expensive if you want access to everything, but you can also just join selected things if you wish. I do a dance class there – modern hip hop dancing with a professional instructor, and my friend just subscribes to the gym and swimming pool. Another friend has a membership to the spa and massage center and goes there only once a month. So, as you can see there is some flexibility – and there’s a host of combined membership plans and “menus” you can choose from. The last time I went there I went for my dance class, but actually I also signed up for the swimming pool too – I bought a three month trial membership. You see, I am not totally sure yet if I have the time or dedication to go swimming as well as do the other activities I’m involved in, so the special discount trial offers are really handy – you can have a go for 3 months and if it suits you, you can sign up for the year. I feel great about this place, because usually I don’t like gyms and sports centres, but this place really feels great and is decorated really minimally and tastefully, and has friendly staff and a very professional approach to everything to do with leisure, health and exercise.

描述一个你熟悉并经常拜访的人

题目答案

Describe the home of someone you know well and you often visit.

You should say:

Whose home it is

How often you go there

What it is like

And explain how you feel about the home

Part 3

What are the differences between houses or buildings in the city and in the countryside?

Do you prefer to live in the city or in the countryside?

What are the safety risks in residential buildings in cities?

Is it expensive to decorate a house or an apartment in the place where you live?

Describe the home of someone you know well and you often visit.

You should say:

Whose home it is

How often you go there

What it is like

And explain how you feel about the home

There is a home that really sticks in mind! It’s the home of my friend, James, and his family, who live just in the community next to ours. The reason I find it particularly interesting is because it’s in a much older community – and those old residential buildings are, in my opinion, much better, because the rooms are really big, and the ceilings are high, and they all have balconies. The modern residential buildings may look cooler, but they are often small, they don’t have balconies and the ceilings are much lower. I visit there often because the family are really welcoming and kind and relaxed. And, also, there’s plenty of space, so often we just hang out in the living room – well, one of them – they have two, in fact. I go there about 4 times a week, actually, and even more in the holidays. James’ mother cooks really well… in fact, so does his father. They seem to enjoy it, and prepare meals quickly, that are really tasty. Often, I will stay there the whole day and we play on the Playstation, read books, play football in the community gardens. Stuff like that. The house is decorated in a very curious way – the father has travelled all over the world and filled the house with interesting paintings, and decorations from mainly African countries, and some South American countries. So, yeah, it sticks in mind as I spend a lot of time there.

描述一个给旅者推荐你国家的地方

题目答案

Describe a place in your country that you would like to recommend to travelers.

You should say:

Where it is

What it is

What people can do there

And explain why you would like to recommend it to travelers

Part 3

1Is it important to take photos while traveling?

2.Can we trust other people's travel journals on the Internet?

3.What factors affect how people feel about their journey?

Describe a place in your country that you would like to recommend to travelers

You should say:

Where it is

What it is

What people can do there

And explain why you would like to recommend it to travelers

There’s a place in Fujian province called Xiamen – I’m sure you’ve heard of it. This is where I’d recommend to travelers to China. It’s a great place, by the coast, with a fantastic climate and lovely, warm, friendly people, great food, and interesting cultural things to do and see. And, if you’re into Chinese tea, there’s a lot of really good Chinese tea shops that are still family-run, friendly, and interesting. The tourist sights I would recommend are the Gulangyu island of pianos – this is really interesting – it’s an island, a small island, just a boat ride away, where there are literally pianos in every house, and a piano museum. It’s fantastic and quite unique. Also, the island trip makes a nice little day out, and there are friendly restaurants and eateries on the island too, and great views out to sea. Secondly, I’d go to the see Hakka people’s round houses just outside Xiamen in the countryside. They are called the Fujian Hakka Tulou, and they are quite large circular buildings, with a central courtyard and hundreds of living quarters inside. They date back centuries and were a traditional way to live in the days when you had to protect yourself from invaders – these roundhouses look fantastic and are incredibly interesting, and people still live in them today. It’s a fascinating and unique aspect of the culture in that area of China. So, yes, these are the main places around Xiamen that I’d recommend – and make sure you go when it’s a nice time of a year, not too hot – in summer it gets really hot and humid. I’d go around, or just before, spring to be honest.

描述你在网购或商店购物遇到的问题

题目答案

Describe a problem you had while shopping online or in a store.

You should say:

When it happened

What you bought

What problems you had while shopping online

And explain how you felt about it

Part 3

What kind of service do you think is good?

What would you do if you bought something disappointing from the internet?

Do you think online shopping will replace in-store shopping in the future?

Describe a problem you had while shopping online or in a store.

You should say:

When it happened

What you bought

What problems you had while shopping online

And explain how you felt about it

I’ve had many experiences with online shopping, but the one I recall the most clearly is the time that I bought an item and had such trouble getting a refund from the seller. I can’t remember the name of the store now, but anyway, I bought a thick coat for winter – it was quite expensive actually – and when it arrived, it had a rip in the back and the zip was faulty. I contacted the company through the online chat and they said they were happy to refund it, and I should just send it back. I arranged with a delivery service to send the package back and it went smoothly. They confirmed they had received it okay. Everything seemed to be fine. Then there was total silence for weeks…. Yes, weeks! I contacted the seller, nothing. I checked my bank account and shopping platform order and returns messages, nothing. I messaged them countless times, and they simply did not reply. I had no idea what they were playing at but I was pretty angry. I contacted the online platform and they said they would put in a case against the seller. I didn’t really want it to get to this stage because that kind of process takes a long time sometimes, and is quite annoying. Anyway, they put in a case against the seller, and after all sorts of calls, steps, hurdles and disputes, I eventually got my refund. To be perfectly honest it kind of put me off online buying, at least online clothes buying. I like to just go to shops, try an item on, buy it or not buy and that’s that. That, to be honest, is the simpler and more enjoyable way of shopping. I think this whole online shopping thing is massively overrated to be honest.

描述一段你决定等待某事的时刻

题目答案

Describe a time when you made a decision to wait for something.

You should say:

When it happened

What you waited for

Why you made the decision

And explain how you felt about the decision

Part 3

Why do some people prefer slow-paced life?

Is it necessary for people to learn to be patient?

Are people less patient now than in the past?

Describe a time when you made a decision to wait for something

You should say:

When it happened

What you waited for

Why you made the decision

And explain how you felt about the decision

There is one time that comes to mind very strongly, when I made a decision to wait for something. That was a time when I was absolutely desperate to go on holiday, and had it all planned with a friend of mine, and then she told me she had to delay it… I was actually really annoyed. I had a decision to make: do I go on holiday on my own? Do I invite another friend to join me? Or do I exercise a bit of personal patience and wait? Well, let me explain the situation in a bit more detail, first: We had planned and bought refundable tickets to go to an island in Thailand together in the Spring Festival holidays. I had never been to south east asia before and I was especially excited about going to this island with my friend – it was famous for white sandy beaches, and moon parties and all sorts of other exciting stuff in a wonderful exotic setting – and it was not even that expensive! Anyway, A couple of weeks before the holiday she announced that her grandmother had insisted that the family get together for Spring Festival and had convinced her not to miss it. She had basically been persuaded to cancel her trip with me, delay it till the Summer holidays, to go see her family for Spring festival. Whilst I can understand this, I was obviously upset – it was going to be a big adventure for us, and most certainly a lot of fun. Anyway… another friend of mine said she would come with me and was quite enthusiastic about it…. But.. in the end, as much as I wanted to go, I decided that I would delay the trip and wait until the summer to go with the friend who had cancelled. It was a difficult decision because I really wanted to go and I was really geared up for it, but I felt a sense of loyalty to my friend, even though I was a bit annoyed she had cancelled on me. And, I was happy that I decided to delay the trip in the end. Sometimes you have to make decisions that you don’t want to make, and sometimes they end up being good decisions, after all. We are now closer friends than before, and are actually planning to go on that trip in August, just a couple of months from now!

描述一次在生日收到钱的经历

题目答案

Describe a time when you received money on your birthday.

You should say:

When it happened

Who gave you the money

Why he/she gave you the money

And explain how you felt about it

Part 3

Why do people rarely use cash now?

Do you think it is useful to give money as gifts?

Describe a time when you received money on your birthday

You should say:

When it happened

Who gave you money

Why he/she gave you money

And explain how you felt about it

The time that stands out the most when I received money on my birthday was last year, in fact. You see last year was my first ever birthday away from home! Yes, honestly it was. You see I’m in my first year of university in Beijing, and all my other birthdays I was in my hometown with my family, with the exception of this last one in June. So, this last birthday I felt a little bit down to be honest. I have some good new university friends, admittedly, but I felt a little bit awkward celebrating my birthday with them. Anyway, I went out for a meal with them, and paid for a really nice Thai restaurant near to campus – I thought it would be a nice change to have a Thai meal, and recently I’ve been thinking a lot about tropical places and beaches and these kind of “holiday dreams”, so I decided to invite my new group of friends to a Thai meal. It was lovely, and they even had a small traditional band that played music on a little stage as we ate. Anyway, during the meal I received a flurry of text messages on WeChat, from my mother, my auntie, my uncle and some cousins in my hometown, and each one sent me a ‘red packet’ of money and a really nice greeting for my birthday. I was so pleased because the meal was really expensive, for me anyway, and also it meant I could be a bit more generous and order some more wine, some interesting desserts, and take my friends out for drinks in a cool bar after the meal – as well, of course, as investing in some clothes and other useful things for my university life. So, I felt very touched by the generosity of my family and it really did help me, and enabled me to offer my new friends a special night out. It’s nice to be in a position to be generous like that. I felt really good on several levels, although I did miss my family, and it was my first birthday without them.

描述一次你和某人的分歧经历

题目答案

Describe a disagreement you had with someone.

You should say:

Who you had the disagreement with

What the disagreement was

What happened

And explain how you felt about it

Part 3

1 What do you do if you disagree with someone?

2 How do we stop an argument from escalating into a fight?

3 What disagreements do parents and children usually have?

Describe a disagreement you had with someone.

You should say:

Who you had the disagreement with

What the disagreement was

What happened

And explain how you felt about it

The last time I had a disagreement that really bothered me was with my mother, and it was about a boy I was dating, in fact. Perhaps that’s a little personal, but I don’t mind talking about it. I became really good friends with this guy who is studying physics in my university. We got closer and closer and found that we shared the same interests. We loved chatting to each other, and we were attracted to each other. After a few months he invited me on a date, in a more formal way, I mean – you know, almost suggesting we might be boyfriend and girlfriend. I was quite happy about this, as I had been waiting for him to make that move, anyway, to be honest. Anyway, we went out and spent more time together, I’d say, as boyfriend and girlfriend, though we hadn’t really formalized it ‘officially’ by that point. During the winter holidays I talked to my mother about him, and actually she really disappointed me. She went on and on about how this would distract me from my studies, and that boys usually had bad intentions, and I should be careful not to be tricked into doing things I didn’t want to do… and predominantly, like I said, she seemed really worried that this would distract me from studies and that I’d get all emotional and wrapped up in my romantic feelings and not focus on the practical aspects of life. Anyway, we argued furiously about this… And in the end I spent a few days feeling really angry with her about it and wondering what I should do. You see, I always want to respect her feelings and views, but at the same time, I feel she doesn’t really even listen, let alone respect, mine. So, yeah, I felt bad about this. And to be honest, I still do. We have resolved things a little bit, but still she goes on about the topic too much and in a very dogmatic way. To be fair, actually, her attitude pushes me more towards him! So, it has the opposite effect. That can happen when parents push people too much – they go the opposite way.

描述你在新的地方做的户外活动

题目答案

Describe an outdoor activity you did in a new place recently

You should say:

What the activity is

Who invited you to participate it

Whether you asked for help in the activity

And explain what change you had in the activity

Part 3

1 What outdoor activities are popular in China?

2 What are the differences between after-class activities done by young and older children?

3 Should young people try as many new activities as possible?

Describe an outdoor activity you did in a new place recently

You should say:

What the activity is

Who invited you to participate in it

Whether you asked for help during the activity

And explain what change you had in the activity

An outdoor activity I did in a new place recently was on a company excursion in the countryside. It was really exciting – we learned a number of bush craft skills. I’m not sure if you know what those are! It’s like a sort of survival thing – I mean, it’s learning sets of skills that might be useful for survival in the wild – but it’s made into a fun activity that both adults and young people can do on company excursions or school trips and so on. Bush craft skills are things like learning to cook on an open wood fire you build yourself in the woods, making simple animal traps, learning how to climb trees, make dens and learning which types of plants or wild mushrooms you can eat, and which you cannot. It can be a lot of fun actually – and when we did this with our company, we had a morning learning basic skills from a qualified instructor, then we were divided into teams in the afternoon, and had a series of tasks to complete in a given time. We were then scored points by the instructor on how well we did the task. At the very end there was a fairly humourous quiz, then a sort of assault course in the woods. It was a mixture of serious bush craft learning, and basically some fun teambuilding games, rolled into one. I thought it was brilliant, and I had never been to this place in the countryside before (it was a hilly location just outside Chengdu, in a woodland). I asked for help, of course, we had to all ask for help because we worked in teams, and it was part of the team spirit to be open and honest and help each other, and ask for help if we needed to. So, yes, I asked for help. However, during the actual contests in the afternoon, we could not ask for help from the instructor – but we could ask for help from our team members. I learned a lot from it, and felt that it changed my attitude towards team work, and towards nature in general. It was fun and an educational experience.

描述一次你忘记约会的经历

题目答案

Describe a time when you forgot an appointment.

You should say:

What the appointment was for

Who you made it with

Why you forgot it

And explain how you felt about the experience

Part 3

How do people who are busy every day remember things they need to do?

Describe a time when you forgot/missed an appointment

You should say:

What the appointment was for

Who you made it with

Why you forgot it

And explain how you felt about the experience

There are a few times I can recall when I missed an important appointment, believe it or not! However, the time that really sticks in mind is when I was scheduled to go for an interview to get into University! Yes, that’s right – it was an interview to a really good university that I’d applied to study at. I actually completely missed the interview, and the reason was because I had written the day down wrongly in my online calendar on my phone. So, I got an ‘alert’ reminder about the interview 3 days after the interview itself – and, believe me, it gets worse than that! I actually had a train ticket booked to Beijing- I went to Beijing, checked into my hotel… yes…. And got changed, prepared, and went to the university, only to find that I was 3 days late. The interview day had passed. But, you know, I was incredibly lucky, because they did actually re-schedule and give me another chance. However, as you might imagine, I did not perform well in the interview and I didn’t get a place. I think they only agreed to interview me because the secretary of the department felt sorry for me when I arrived 3 days later and only then realized that I completely got the day wrong. Anyway, so, that’s it really. I felt completely stupid, angry with myself and really annoyed in general. I felt guilty as well, and I had to explain to my family, who, to be honest, were not very sympathetic. So, yeah, you can imagine, this isn’t one of my fondest of memories!

描述你和他人分享某件事的经历

题目答案

Describe a time when you shared something with others.

You should say:

What you shared

Who you shared it with

Why you shared it

And explain how you felt about sharing it

Part 3

What are the consequences if children don’t know how to share?

How do people feel about sharing accommodation with others on campus?

How can parents and teachers teach young children to share?

Describe a time when you shared something with others.

You should say:

What you shared

Who you shared it with

Why you shared it

And explain how you felt about sharing it

There are lots of times I’ve shared things with others; I regard myself as a fairly generous person and I also enjoy sharing things with others. The last time I shared something with someone else… let me think… well, actually, the last time I shared something quite important and significant was with my friend, who is also studying the same subject, business management. I had managed to get hold of a number of seminal textbooks, in digital format, for one of our courses, and he had also managed to find a few books too. So, we both met up with USB memory sticks and we shared the materials we had found for these courses. We also had dinner together and shared our ideas about the courses, how we may approach studying them and doing the assignments, and the best online sites where we could find more of the materials, ideally for free. So, I think this is something that many students do, actually, share materials, share ideas, share perspectives on studies. I always feel good about sharing things, whatever they are, because it encourages a social culture where being helpful and kind is something that increasingly more people value. I think in a busy society, a competitive environment, and a quite stressful modern world, it’s important that people do not forget the value of sharing and helping others. As a student you’re usually under quite a lot of pressure, perhaps financially too, and so it’s the kind of environment in which people really should share things with each other, help each other out and try to make life better for those around us. It’s not just physical things that people share, like my example above, it’s thoughts, ideas, opinions and values. It’s worth remembering that these are equally as valuable as tangible physical things!

描述一次你需要搜索信息的经历

题目答案

Describe a time when you needed to search for some information

You should say:

What information it was

When you searched for it

How you searched for it

And explain why you needed to search the information

Part 3

1 How can people search for information now?

2 With the development of the Internet, are libraries still important?

3 Does the development of the Internet have any influence on disadvantaged people?

Describe a time when you needed to search for some information

You should say:

What information it was

When you searched for it

How you searched for it

And explain why you needed to search for the information

I have to search for information a lot. I am currently working on my dissertation for my master’s degree so I seem to spend most of my life searching for information online, through university archives and academic journals and books! The most recent time was only yesterday. I needed to find a number of research papers to support a theory that I am writing about as part of my dissertation. Basically, I logged on to the university archives – they are all online now – and I spent several hours putting in different keywords and locating different research papers in peer-reviewed journals about the topic. I briefly skim-read them and selected the ones that were most relevant to what I want to write. It’s a fairly long and arduous process, but also quite interesting and inspiring. Actually, when you get used to it, it is enjoyable and quite easy, as you learn to “join the dots” between different scholar’s ideas and concepts and how they support their arguments. This is all part of the process of searching and analyzing information for master’s degree studies. I usually use the computer in the library or access the archives from my laptop at home. It’s something I enjoy doing and I’m happy I left plenty of time to do it, so I won’t have to panic, and I am sure I will finish my dissertation well before the deadline, then have time to polish and perfect it in a relaxed manner.

描述你看到很多塑料垃圾的时刻

题目答案

Describe a time when you saw a lot of plastic waste (e.g. in a park, on the beach etc.).

You should say:

Where you saw the plastic waste

When you saw the plastic waste

What you did

And explain how you felt about this experience

Part 3

Do you think we should use plastic products?

How can we reduce our use of plastic products?

Describe a time when you saw a lot of plastic waste (e.g. in a park, on the beach etc.)

You should say:

Where you saw the plastic waste

When you saw the plastic waste

What you did

And explain how you felt about this experience

A time when I saw a lot of plastic waste was… well, I wonder if this counts or not… I think it does… it was actually at a presentation I went to see in a large bookshop in my city. Let me explain. There’s a big international bookstore in my city, which also has a café, restaurant area, and an area where they host exhibitions and other events. There was a presentation – a sort of talk really – by an environmental organization, about recycling and the importance of individual contributions to the world recycling efforts. The focus of a big part of the presentation was on the use of plastics. They explained how so much plastic does not actually get recycled, but ends up filling the land and often also ends up in the oceans. What really stick in mind was this photograph of the “doldrums” – an area of the ocean where loads of plastic ends up coming together in one big island – yes, it’s almost like a huge island of plastic. I am not sure why it all gathers together in that one place, the size of a country, but it does – it’s something related to ocean currents and so on. Anyway, the series of images, the photos, in the presentation, of this huge amount of plastic just tangled up and floating like a giant island, really made me feel quite depressed. Especially when I learned, and saw pictures of the harm this does to sea animals and birds. So, yes, I felt depressed about this experience, but it did make me think more carefully about our daily plastic use and the environment.

描述一节令人印象深刻的英文课

题目答案

Describe a time when you enjoyed an impressive English lesson.

You should say:

When and where you had the lesson

Who gave the lesson

What the lesson was about

And explain why you enjoyed the lesson

Part 3

Is it interesting to be a foreign language teacher?

What makes a good foreign language teacher?

Do you think language learning is important?

Do you think grammar is important when learning foreign language?

Describe a time when you enjoyed an impressive English lesson.

You should say:

When and where you had the lesson

Who gave you the lesson

What the lesson was about

And explain why you enjoyed the lesson

A time I enjoyed an impressive English lesson was when I went to a summer school in a town just outside London when I was a teenager. The summer school was set in a wonderful countryside location in a really old “harry potter” style school, rented out for the summer by the organization that ran the international summer camp. There were students from all over the world there. Anyway, the lesson that I enjoyed the most was from a Scottish teacher called Charlotte. She was in her early 30s, and had a wonderful way of making learning fun. She was quite firm and strict, but at the same time, she encouraged everyone to fully engage in the lessons. She told interesting stories of her travels, explained words and vocabulary on the board at the same time, asked a lot of questions about our opinions and views, modelled answers, corrected our answers, came up with language games, detective-like puzzle games that got us talking and using the language… I don’t know how to describe it but she was the best teacher I’ve ever had. The lesson I liked the most was a detective game where we had to solve a mystery by reading the plot, the clues and then interviewing all the suspects – we had target language to incorporate into our interactions of course, and she corrected us sporadically throughout the game, but it was so much fun. It was designed really well… and was just as exciting as a really thrilling detective novel – except we were the characters in it! It was great and made me really enjoy learning. In fact, I think I remember more language from that lesson than any other in my life of lessons learning English!

描述一件你做成功的困难的事经历

题目答案

Describe a difficult thing you did and succeeded.

You should say:

What it was

How you overcame the difficulties

Whether you got help

And explain how you felt after you succeeded

Part 3

What kinds of things do children feel very hard to do?
How can parents encourage children to do something difficult?
What kinds of jobs can help people become confident?
What’s your definition of success?

Describe a difficult thing you did and succeeded.

You should say:

What it was

How you overcame the difficulties

Whether you got help

And explain how you felt after you succeeded

A really hard thing that I did that I really feel I succeeded in was passing my driving test. I know that sounds a bit silly, because most people pass their driving test, but I have a sort of problem… I’m not sure how to explain. It’s a sort of problem with perception and I always mix up my left and my right and things like this. So, driving or doing any kind of sport that involves hand-eye coordination, or playing an instrument, is more difficult for me than for most people, because of this problem I have. So… anyway, I was really worried about my driving test, as I was sure I would not pass it. In fact, I failed it several times already… so, you can see how hard I found it. I passed the theory test easily – that’s the one you do on the computer – but the practical driving test was the one I failed. So, I just kept on trying. I kept on practicing with my dad in his car, with a sort of computer simulator game on my tablet, and eventually, this summer, I actually passed! I am so happy that I had the determination and dedication to keep trying after having failed it three times. That really just goes to show how important it is to keep on trying and not give up, if it’s something that is important to you. The reason it was important to me to pass my driving test is that I am really into exploring and photography – it’s my main hobby – so I need to be able to get out to remote natural places and take photos of landscapes, birds and other places of interest. So, you can’t really do that well if you can’t drive yourself. So, anyway, yes, that’s something I’m really pleased about, relieved about and frankly feel totally liberated from now! I won’t have to do it again for another ten years I hope!

旧题汇总

People/Animal

描述一个有趣的邻居

题目答案

Describe an interesting neighbor.

You should say:

Who this person is

How you know this person

What he or she does

And explain why you think this person is interesting

Part 3

1 Do you have a good relationship with your neighbours?

2 How can we improve our relationships with neighbours?

3 Do you think neighbours are important?

4 Do you think people's relationships with their neighbours today is the same as it was in the past?

Describe an interesting neighbor.

You should say:

Who this person is

How you know this person

What he or she does

And explain why you think this person is interesting

The neighbour I find the most interesting is an old man called Mr. Liu. He has lived next door to my grandparents for as long as I can remember. He’s a wise, talkative and friendly old man with a lot of interesting stories and insightful pieces of advice. He has a big mop of white hair. He’s fairly tall, and always walks with a decorative wooden walking stick with a carved bone handle. Because the weather is really warm most of the year where I come from, I often see him sitting on the wall outside his home reading novels. I sometimes stop and chat to him and he discusses news, history, the stories he has been reading, or talks about his garden. He enjoys gardening and has a small garden at the back of his house. He is almost always seen with a wooden cage with two birds in it. He’s one of those older men you sometimes see in my city who take their birds in cages out ‘for a walk’ and talks to them and feeds them in the sunshine. I think he’s a fascinating man and I’ve got a lot of time for him. I think most people in our street feel the same about him. He’s also very helpful to the other neighbours and there was a time I remember quite clearly when an old lady up the road got sick – he made her soup and bread every day and took it round to her. So, he’s popular too and nobody has a bad word to say about Mr. Liu.

未来你想一起工作的家庭成员

题目答案

Describe a family member you want to work with in the future.

You should say:

Who he/she is

What he/she does

What kind of work you would like to do with him/her

And explain how you feel about him/her

Part 3

1 What kinds of family businesses are common in China?

2 Why do people want to do family business?

3 What are the benefits of working with family members?

4 Is it easier to get promotion in big companies?

Describe a family member you want to work with in the future.

You should say:

Who he/she is

What he/she does

What kind of work you would like to do with him/her

And explain how you feel about him/her

A family member I would love to work with in future is my uncle. He is fairly young and full of energy and determination. He founded a small furniture business in Chengde, mainly specializing in old and tasteful home furnishings – handmade and certainly more interesting and elegant than most you’ll see in the high street. He is a very good businessman with a keen eye for art and culture, so he has combined two skills and interests into a fairly successful business. He also does a certain amount of interior design, and has a small design team consisting of a couple of my cousins and some other employees who studied design in university. So, he is expanding his furniture business to embrace a wider field of interior design and is hoping to get some clients in the hotel industry. I think with my international experience and ability to connect with people from other cultures, and I speak English fairly fluently, I could play a PR or marketing role in my uncle’s company, or work with client engagement and sales. I’d love to do this, as I am also quite into artistic pursuits and I believe I have a good eye for design, and would like to learn more about the world of business. Furthermore, I’m a people-person and I enjoy interacting with people and I believe I have a good aptitude for nurturing relationships. I feel that my uncle would be a marvelous person to work with, and I would be very happy to work with him – he’s patient and tolerant, but also very focused, ambitious and determined. I think these are great qualities to have if you’re going to run your own business successfully.

描述一个在你国家很受欢迎的人

题目答案

Describe a popular/well-known person in your country.

You should say:

Who he/she is

What he/she has done

Why he/she is popular

And explain how you feel about him/her

Part 3

1 What kinds of people are popular at work?

2 Are bosses more popular than employees at work?

3 Which one is important, keeping a good relationship with colleagues or doing well at work?

4 What benefits can children get if they become popular at school?

Describe a popular/well-known person in your country.

You should say:

Who he/she is

What he/she has done

Why he/she is popular

And explain how you feel about him/her

I would like to talk about Ieoh Ming Pei. I am not sure if he is so well known to most Chinese people of the younger generation, but for students of architecture, like myself, he’s really famous. He’s actually a Chinese-American, but he was born and raised in Shanghai. He was hugely inspired by the traditional Chinese gardens of Suzhou, a city not far from Shanghai, famous for its ornamental gardens and canals. He moved to the United States as a boy and studied in Pennsylvania, but he always referred back to his Chinese heritage in his art and philosophy.

He is really popular amongst those who study architecture or have an interest in the evolution of design and urban planning. China has gone through some interesting periods of urban development over the past thirty or forty years, so it’s an interesting field to learn a bit about.

One of I.M Pei’s most famous, and globally recognized examples of architecture is the glass pyramid of the Louvre museum in Paris – not many people know that was designed by a Chinese-born architect, actually. He also designed the iconic Kennedy Library, dedicated to president John F. Kennedy, the famous Hancock Tower in Boston, and the Fragrant Hills Hotel just outside Beijing, in China, and don’t forget, the Bank of China building in Hong Kong!

So, yes, he’s popular in the field for his wide range of style and diversity – he’s designed so many different types of buildings in different places, inspired by all sorts of different architectural styles and movements, that he’s quite admired the world-over.

Although there are now lots of contemporary famous architects both in the world and in China, I still feel quite inspired by the life and works of I.M.Pei and I think that it’s interesting to review the different things he’s worked on over a period of more than a whole generation. I find it interesting to read and learn from these iconic characters.

描述一个你喜欢与之交谈的人

题目答案

Describe a person you enjoyed talking with.

You should say:

Who he/she is

When you talked

What you talked about

And explain why you enjoyed talking with this person

Part 3

1 What do young people talk about when they meet up?

2 Do you think it is necessary to be honest when talking with friends?

3 On what occasions do we need to talk with strangers?

Describe a person you enjoyed talking with.

You should say:

Who he/she is

When you talked

What you talked about

And explain why you enjoyed talking with this person

I am a fairly chatty person, so I think I attract people who are talkative and who like sharing their feelings and personal anecdotes about life, so I am often bumping into people who are pretty interesting that I enjoy talking to. I am also pretty extrovert and I go out a lot – I love going to gallery openings, bars, restaurants, events, all sorts – I have friends who work in the media too and I’m training to be a journalist, so you could say that it’s part of my job, my career, to be open and talk to people. The one person that really stands out in my mind that I have really enjoyed talking to was a Dutch artist I met in 798 Art District in Beijing. He was a fascinating individual, and he was there for the opening of his art exhibition entitled “Erotic Art of 21^st Century Asia”…. Yes, a fairly daring title… And his paintings and sculptures were even more daring, I can tell you!

When I first arrived at the event, I mingled with the other attendees for a while, grabbed a couple of wines, walked and talked with random people and looked at some of his sculptures and paintings. Everyone had a lot to say about them as they were quite risqué and bold – and, as you might know, Asian people tend to pretend to be reserved and shy about this kind of thing on the surface. As I drank more wine and became more confident I realized that I should try to talk to the artist himself, to get some material for an article for the magazine I was working with. Eventually I managed to corner him by a huge bronze and clay statue of a cubist naked ballet dancer in the far corner. He was an exuberant and flamboyant man, who just didn’t stop talking as soon as I introduced myself and said I was working for the college art magazine. He told me all about his life, his travels, and the personal and spiritual motivations behind his art work. He was probably the most fascinating individual I’ve ever spoken to. We exchanged phone numbers and agreed to meet the following day to talk about his pursuits in more depth. And, well… that’s another story!

描述一个在社交媒体上关注的人

题目答案

Describe a person you follow on social media.

You should say:

Who he/she is

How you knew him/her

What he/she posts on social media

And explain why you follow him/her on social media

Part 3

1 Do you think old people and young people use the same kind of social media app?

2 Do old people spend much time on social media?

3 What can people do on social media?

4 Are television and newspaper still useful?

Describe a person you follow on social media.

You should say:

Who he/she is

How you knew him/her

What he/she posts on social media

And explain why you follow him/her on social media

Someone I follow a lot on social media is a blogger who does articles and videos on tick-tock. She does reviews of restaurants and cafes in the city. It’s a really interesting blog and she has become incredibly popular in recent years, and I think gets sponsorships and funding from various food and beverage sources in the city. She tends to review about 4 or 5 different places every week, so I imagine it has become her full-time job, really. I found out about her through a friend when we were looking for a place to host a birthday party. After that I started looking at her posts almost every day, and found them really useful. She reviews pretty much anything, from new milk tea shops, ice cream stores, big franchise coffee houses, small cafes and boutique eateries – everything really. So, whenever my friends and I feel like going out on weekends to eat, drink or snack or even have a really nice fancy meal, we look at her latest posts and see what she recommends. She can also be quite critical, too, but I think she is fair and impartial and does not work for or support any particular enterprise, or get any money from the individual places she reviews. So, she has built up a reputation of great trust in the community and many people rely on her opinions to make decisions about where to eat and drink and have fun on weekends.

描述一个对社会有贡献的人

题目答案

Describe a person who makes contribution to the society.

You should say:

Who this person is

How you knew him/her

What type of work he/she does

And explain why you think he/she contributes to the society

Part 3

1 What kinds of jobs are well-paid?

2 What are the changes in working conditions?

3 Do you think younger people should be less paid than older people?

Describe a person who makes contribution to the society.

You should say:

Who this person is

How you knew him/her

What type of work he/she does

And explain why you think he/she contributes to the society

A person I know about who makes a great contribution to society is someone I’ve seen on TV. He’s a famous singer from Thailand. I forget his name now… well…. to be honest, I just don’t know how to pronounce it! Anyway, he’s a famous Thai singer… at least he is well-known there. I know about him because one of my friends works in Thailand, and I go almost every year and stay with him each summer holiday. He has introduced me to all sorts of aspects of Thai culture. And this one famous guy sticks in mind very strongly. He is basically a pop singer who shot to fame in the late 1990s, and after becoming incredibly rich and popular, he decided to spend a lot of his free time working with disadvantaged children and poor people, and getting involved in funding all sorts of ecological projects in Asia. He does charity concerts, is on the board of directors of multiple charitable enterprises, and gets involved in a lot of related stuff. He’s often on television in Thailand promoting all sorts of good causes. I think he is just motivated to do this kind of thing because he’s a kind and empathetic person who genuinely cares for others. Thailand is also quite a poor country in many ways, so I think he feels obliged to help less fortunate people, having had the fortune of becoming very famous and wealthy himself. So, I think that he’s just a kind-hearted person with a generous spirit. Some famous people are like this – it’s a very encouraging thing and sets a good example for their followers and admirers.

Object

描述为保持身材和健康做的事情

题目答案

Describe something you do to keep fit and healthy.

You should say:

What it is

When you do it

Who you do it with

And explain why you think this method is important

Part 3

1 How do old people keep fit?

2 How can parents help their children to keep fit?

3 Do you think it is useful for governments to use celebrities to help people raise health awareness?

Describe something you do to keep fit and healthy.

You should say:

What it is

When you do it

Who you do it with

And explain why you think this method is important

I run every day. I don’t go to the gym – I dislike gyms – I run. I run for about 40 minutes every morning, and I choose a different route each morning. Well, I have about 4 or 5 routes programmed into a special app on my phone and I choose one of those each morning. I love this way of taking exercise, and it’s not only good for keeping physically fit, but it keeps the mind healthy and alert too. The morning is the best time of day for me to do this, because I always get up early anyway, so I can take a run for about an hour and a half, then come back home, shower, get changed, and go into work. This is my usual routine. It’s great, and by the time I arrive at the office I feel energized and refreshed and ready to start the day productively and positively.

My routine, my method of keeping fit, is effective, because it’s ideal for my lifestyle and my personality. I like a certain amount of freedom and I’m a fan of nature. Where I live is pretty close to two parks and a very scenic area of the city, so when I run I usually take routes through the parks and areas where there are lots of trees and flowers and plants. This, to me, is much better than going to a gym and being surrounded by machines ad technology and depressing walls. So, in my mind combining a love for nature and a morning run, is the best way to get fit physically and mentally, and is a fantastic start to a day. I usually run alone, almost all of the time, actually. But occasionally, a friend joins me. He’s also passionate about running, but usually can’t coincide with my routine because of his job. He joins me in the holidays and sometimes on weekends. But, frankly, it’s fine for me to train alone. I like my own company, especially when running.

描述一件让你惊喜且开心的事

题目答案

Describe something that surprised you and made you happy.

You should say:

What it is

How you found out about it

What you did

And explain whether it made you happy

Part 3

1 Is it good for people to be happy?

2 How do people express happiness in your culture?

3 Do you think happiness has any effect on people?

Describe something that surprised you and made you happy.

You should say:

What it is

How you found out about it

What you did

And explain whether it made you happy

There is one thing that really surprised me that I would like to talk about. That’s the time when I won a singing competition in university. I love singing, and I am a pretty good singer – in fact, I think I am a really good singer and it’s been my main hobby for years. I’m not a sporty person and I’m not that social either but I love singing. So, I spend a lot of time listening to, and singing along with, and practicing my favourite songs. I go to KTV at every opportunity I have with friends, and I often go to a little bar near to campus where they have a KTV set-up. So, I’d say I get quite a bit of practice in.

Anyway, the second-year students on campus arranged a singing competition just before the summer holidays. I, of course, put my name down as one of the contestants, and I have to say, I was really quite confident about winning. However, after registering, I discovered that loads of really talented students had also registered. I saw them at some of the meetings and saw the rehearsals in the sports hall… I couldn’t believe how good they were – they were amazing. I then started to really worry – I mean – I am quite a competitive person to be honest, and this is my only real talent, so I for some reason I cannot explain fully, I was really thinking I could win easily. After seeing some of these other guys practicing, I felt really demoralized – they were brilliant.

So, I put in a special effort to practice and drove my dorm-mates crazy in the process. I practiced as much as I possibly good. The same song, an Adele song, over and over again. Although my dorm-mates were sick of it, they were also very supportive of my efforts and really were gunning for me to win.

Anyway, on the day of the contest, everyone performed really really well. I honestly thought that if I was lucky I might get third place. You see, I still felt I couldn’t properly hit the vocal range of Adele and get to and sustain those high notes while singing.

Well, the surprise was – when the votes came in from the judges, I won! I came first! I couldn’t believe it! Everyone, including the other contestants, were actually really praising of me and thought that I deserved to come first. Of course, I was super-happy and also I felt that my hard work, efforts and determination had paid off in the end!

描述你童年时得到的一个玩具

题目答案

Describe a toy you got in your childhood.

You should say:

What it was

When you got it

How you got it

And explain how you felt about it

Part 3

1 Do boys and girls like the same kind of toys?

2 Why do you think some parents buy lots of toys for their kids instead of spending more time with them?

3 What are some of the differences between the toys kids play with nowadays and those they used to play with in the past?

4 Are there any kinds of electronic games or computer games that can have educational benefits for young children?

5 What do parents usually buy for their children to make them happy?

Describe a toy you got in your childhood.

You should say:

What it was

When you got it

How you got it

And explain how you felt about it

One of my favourite toys was a train set. Actually I still have it today. Well… I mean, it is still at my parents’ house in my hometown. It’s a brand of train set that is called Hornby, which is quite famous. It’s not only a toy, actually, some adults also have Hornby train sets and if they have the space in their homes they build an entire landscape of mountains, trees, sometimes small towns and stations, that the train track goes around. It’s an electric train set you see, with different engines and carriages. I’m still very fond of it today, although it is in its box in pieces and it isn’t set up anywhere.

I got given the train set for my 11^th birthday by my mum and dad. I remember feeling really excited when I received it and my dad and I spent hours setting it up in the attic room above the house. I loved playing with it and I still have really happy memories of it to this day.

In fact, I was thinking about it recently, and I decided that if I have a child one day, especially a boy, I might give him the train set to pass this gift down through the generations.

描述你国家的一件传统产品

题目答案

Describe a traditional product in your country.

You should say:

What it is

When you tried this product for the first time

What it is made of

And explain how important this product is

Part 3

1 Do young people admire traditional products?

2 Why is it important for children to learn about traditional products?

3 Does the government have responsibility to protect traditional products?

4 Do you think traditional products have better quality that modern products?

Describe a traditional product in your country.

You should say:

What it is

When you tried this product for the first time

What it is made of

And explain how important this product is

A traditional product that I really like, which is very typical in China, is tea. I love Chinese tea and have quite a large collection of it. I also have a couple of tea sets, too. I like tea because it is not only good for the health, the mind and the body, but it is part of an ancient tradition and has its roots way back in our country’s history. It reminds me of the more civilized, meditative and sophisticated times in China’s history, before the crassness of communism or the current obsession with over-capitalist materialism and greed. It takes me back to a time when we sat and enjoyed calm philosophical and cultural conversations and enjoyed art and literature and discussion and debate. Tea, and the whole process of making tea and sharing tea, is a very peaceful, almost spiritual product. I know quite a bit about the different varieties of tea as well, and the slightly different ways of brewing them. I am also really into the different equipment and jugs and cups and ceramic tea pets and all the things associated with Chinese tea.

I first tried this product at a fairly young age because my father’s brother, my uncle, had a small tea shop in Xiamen. I live in Beijing, so Xiamen is quite far away, but we used to go during the summer holidays. It’s really hot there, so we spent a lot of time sitting in the cool tea shop, around the big wooden polished table, sipping tea and chatting with the locals who came in. It was a wonderful atmosphere in there and I’ve always held this memory quite close to my heart and tried to recreate it in my own little way at home in Beijing.

描述一项改变世界的发明

题目答案

Describe an invention that changed the world.

You should say:

What the invention was

What it can do

How popular it is

Why it is an important invention

Part 3

1 What kinds of equipment are important in schools?

2 Which invention do you think is the most useful at home?

3 Do you think there will be no teachers in school in the future?

Describe an invention that changed the world.

You should say:

What the invention was

What it can do

How popular it is

Why it is an important invention

I’d say an invention that really changed the world, is the car. Since the car was invented, people have been able to get from A to B faster and easier than ever before. Distances between towns and villages became much shorter, and trade improved. In many ways the car, or the motor vehicle, I should say, because this includes lorries and trucks and haulage in general, have transformed the world of business and transportation. Of course, today, the car is a normal and natural part of life for most people, and many of us could not survive without a car. So, it’s very popular today, and I would argue that perhaps it is too popular – if you look at the traffic jams in cities and the terrible air pollution… So, this is another dimension to the invention. After all, everything has its downsides too.

So, yes, all in all, the motor vehicle has been a very important invention and has enabled people to do more trade and also travel around independently much more than ever before. It’s changed the way we live, the kind of places we choose to travel to and how quickly and how often we travel there. So, for individuals the car has contributed a lot, to what we can do, in terms of shopping, going on holiday, dropping the kids off at school, and all of these things. It has had a big impact on more aspects of our lives than we perhaps realise. Perhaps we even take it for granted these days, like a lot of things.

描述你免费得到的东西

题目答案

Describe something you received for free.

You should say:

What it was

Who you received it from

Why you received it for free

And explain how you felt about it

Part 3

1 Do you think people should pay for higher education by themselves?

2 What free gifts do companies usually give to their customers?

3 Why do customers like to receive free gifts from companies?

Describe something you received for free.

You should say:

What it was

Who you received it from

Why you received it for free

And explain how you felt about it

I have received a few things for free over the years. But the one thing that really sticks in my mind that I think was especially fantastic was a 2-night stay in Gubei Water Town. I got the free tickets when I entered a competition in a local online magazine. I won second prize – and that prize was two free tickets to the 5 star hotel in Gubei. I was really pleased with that! All I did was answer a few questions in a survey and then invent an amusing caption for a photograph – it was this kind of competition. I received the tickets from the Beijing Tourist Authority, who had sponsored the competition in the magazine.

Not only is Gubei water town a great location, but it’s only a few hours by car from Beijing, my hometown. So, it was a brilliant complimentary gift. I felt really good about this, because I went to Gubei water town once with my family, and loved it. And I wanted to go there with my boyfriend and have a sort of romantic stay over there. It was also spring time which is the perfect time to go, and you get fantastic views of the mountains and the great wall from the hotel windows. So, yes, this was something I got for free that I was especially delighted about. And, of course, we both had an amazing weekend there – we ate in lovely restaurants, enjoyed performances and loved the sheer comfort and luxury of the hotel.

描述某人给你的一件衣服

题目答案

Describe a piece of clothing that someone gave to you.

You should say:

What it isWho gave it to you

When you got it

And explain why this person gave you this piece of clothing

Part 3

1 Why do people dress casually in daily life and dress formally at work?

2 What are the advantages and disadvantages of wearing uniform at work and school?

3 Why do people from different countries wear different clothes?

Describe a piece of clothing that someone gave to you.

You should say:

What it is

Who gave it to you

When you got it

And explain why this person gave you this piece of clothing

A piece of clothing that someone gave me that I still have today, which I really love, is a long black coat that my parents gave me for my birthday a few years ago. It’s a very elegant coat made from Cashmere. It’s a simple coat, of very simple design, but it’s a very timeless kind of style. I absolutely love this kind of coat as it looks both elegant and sexy at the same time. It’s perfect for wearing with long dresses to events and special occasions, because the coat goes almost down to the ankles. It has buttons on both sides and a fairly wide collar. Cashmere is a lot softer than wool, so it is amazing to the touch, although it is not floppy or easily creased. I think it must have been around my 21^st or 22^nd birthday when I was given the coat. You see, my birthday falls at the beginning of autumn, just when it starts to get cold in Dongbei, where I am from. So, it was a perfectly timed gift, just before the temperate went down. Also, at this time, I was going to quite a few classical music concerts and elegant venues, so the coat was ideal for wearing with fairly formal clothes to such events. I think that is why my parents gave me the coat – I had just graduated from music college and was attending a lot of music events with my teachers and colleagues, and they felt that I deserved a more mature item of clothing to match the occasions.

描述一件你想给朋友买的礼物

题目答案

Describe a gift you would like to buy for your friend.

You should say:

What gift you would like to buy

Who you would like to give it to

Why you want to buy this gift for him/her

And explain why you would like to choose that gift

Part 3

1 When do people send gifts to others?

2 Do people give gifts or red packets on traditional festivals?

3 Is it hard to choose a gift?

4 Will people feel happy when receiving an expensive gift?

Describe a gift you would like to buy for your friend.

You should say:

What gift you would like to buy

Who you would like to give it to

Why you want to buy this gift for him/her

And explain why you would like to choose that gift

The friend I would like to buy a gift for is my best friend, Jean. She was my dormitory mate in university and since then we have been very close friends. We’ve shared a lot of things in life together, from relationship troubles, struggles with our studies and issues with our parents. So, I always give her a well-considered gift on her birthday. I would like to buy my friend a voucher for a new restaurant in the city centre. I like this kind of gift. The restaurant I have in mind is a kind of modern Chinese-Western fusion restaurant, run by a famous chef from Guangdong. They issue really beautifully designed gift vouchers and coupons for special meals. I will buy her a voucher for a meal for four, as she can then take her sister and parents. The reason I would choose this as a gift is because she is a huge lover of food. She adores trying out different restaurants in the city, and she has a personal blog about them. She’s kind of become a local food expert in a way and a lot of people follow her blog. She goes to all sorts of restaurants, local eateries to international fine dining establishments. The restaurant I would buy a voucher for is a new restaurant that I know she has not been to yet. So, it’s perfect.

描述帮助你专注学习/工作的东西

题目答案

Describe something that helps you to focus on study/work.

You should say:

What it is

How often you do it

When you start doing it

And explain how it helps you concentrate

Part 3

1 Why do children nowadays find it hard to concentrate on study?

2 What kinds of distractions are common in your life?

3 Why do children need to learn to focus?

4 What kinds of jobs require higher concentration?

Describe something that helps you to focus on study/work.

You should say:

What it is

How often you do it

When you start doing it

And explain how it helps you concentrate

What really helps me focus on my studies is classical music – light classical music. I always put violin or cello music on when I am studying, or clarinet music. I don’t put it on loudly. I just put it on in the background, and I choose really calm concertos and pieces of music that are not too fast or too erratic. This helps my mind detach from the stresses and strains of daily life, and helps to make my thoughts calm and focused. It’s a habit I’ve had for many years, which started, I think, when I was in high school, and a teacher recommended it. I began doing it in my dorm at university almost every time I had to study and I found it worked wonderfully. In those days I used to listen to music on headphones, because I shared the dorm with others, but now I have my own room. I play it on speakers from my computer. I am a person who needs to be in a quiet place when I am studying – a place where I cannot hear the sound of traffic on the roads or anything like this – so putting on calming, relaxing classical music can also help to drown out any of the sound of the city that might come in through the window. So, yeah, this is my main method of concentrating and relaxing when I really need to focus on studies and shut out the outside world.

描述你喜欢的歌曲或一段音乐

题目答案

Describe a song or piece of music you like.

You should say:

What the song or music is

What kind of song or music it is

Where you first heard it

And explain why you like it

Part 3

1 Do you think young people and old people enjoy the same kind of music?

2 Why are many music competitions popular in China?

3 What are the differences between live concerts and online concerts?

Describe a song or piece of music you like.

You should say:

What the song or music is

What kind of song or music it is

Where you first heard it

And explain why you like it

A song that I particularly like is “Thank U, Next” by Ariana Grande. I think it’s by far her best song. She released it just after a huge relationship drama she had with her boyfriend. As well as being a really powerful song, it’s also quite philosophical and reflective. It’s almost like a ballad really – it has a grace and resonance to it which certainly touches your heart. There’s no doubt about that! I first heard the song when I was at a party with some ex-classmates. It was a kind of reunion party. Normally I don’t like those kind of parties, because everyone sits around and shows off about their great achievements in life, but this was different somehow. People spoke their hearts more, talked about their real feelings, and shared their opinions about life and their relationships. It was a meaningful occasion, and at a certain point in the evening when we had finished dinner and moved on to a KTV, the song came on, and a classmate sung along to it brilliantly. I felt instantly moved with both the melody and the lyrics. So, I like it because I think it’s a fantastic song and has a lot of meaning and sentiment, but also for nostalgic reasons: it reminds me of this occasion at my classmates reunion and the great night we all had together.

描述某人给你讲的一个故事

题目答案

Describe a story someone told you and you remember.

You should say:

What the story was about

Who told you this story

Why you remember it

And explain how you feel about it

Part 3

1 Do young children like the same stories as older children?

2 How has technology changed the way of storytelling?

3 Why do children like stories?

Describe a story someone told you and you remember.

You should say:

What the story was about

Who told you this story

Why you remember it

And explain how you feel about it

A story I remember is one that my uncle told me when I was a child. It was a magical story about a secret door to another world that was located in the back of an old wardrobe in a huge, old manor house in England. I think it was called The Chronicles of Narnia… and was originally written by C.S. Lewis. My uncle did not have the book, but he remembered most of the story and so he would tell it to me at bedtime every time we stayed in his house.

The story starts with a group of children that move to live with their great uncle in a large country home. They are very much left to their own devices to entertain themselves in this huge, rambling mansion. They spend the days exploring all the different rooms, playing in the gardens and enjoying the novelty and freedom of being away from the confines of city life. It really is an exciting experience for all of them… One day they are playing hide and seek in the massive house, when one of the girls decides to hide in a big wooden wardrobe in the corner of one of the darkest, dustiest rooms. As she pushes her way through the coats hanging in the wardrobe she realizes that she seems to be going on and on and on, and there is no back to the wardrobe. Suddenly she ends up in a snowy woodland of pine trees… And it is there that the adventure begins. She meets a fawn, a kind of mythical half-man-half-goat, called Mister Tumnus, and she gets involved in an adventure with talking animals, and a snow queen who casts evil magic!

Anyway, my uncle told me this story many times as a child, and then I realized much later in life that they had even made a TV series from the original novel. It’s a great story and has always remained fondly in my memory.

描述你曾做过的一个艰难的决定

题目答案

Describe a difficult decision you once made.

You should say:

What the decision was

When you made this decision

How long it took to make the decision

And explain why it was difficult to make the decision

Part 3

1 What decisions do people make every day?

2 Which one is easier, making a decision by yourself or making a decision after a group discussion?

3 Why are many young people unwilling to follow their parents’ advice?

4 Why would middle-aged people tend to give their decisions a second thought?

Describe a difficult decision you once made.

You should say:

What the decision was

When you made this decision

How long it took to make the decision

And explain why it was difficult to make the decision

I'd say the most difficult decision I made was when I decided which university overseas I wanted to study at. I actually got really good grades, so I was lucky enough to have a choice. I was also fortunate that my parents could afford to send me overseas to study, so I do feel that my decision was perhaps a luxury in many ways. But still, it was a difficult decision. I did not know whether I should go to Australia or go to the UK, to Scotland to study. I looked in detail at the two universities in question, and they both offered pretty much the same course that I wanted to study, and they both seemed like fairly good universities. I just couldn't decide which place would be better for me, or more interesting for me. I spent quite a bit of time weighing up the pros and cons of both places, and I couldn't reach a conclusion at all. Some people advised me to read about the social life, the academic life, the environment, and others advised me to go with my gut feeling and choose the place that resonated more with my personality and how I felt. However, I'm quite an indecisive person, and I question myself a lot, so that meant that every day I changed my mind. Each place seemed equally as good, equally as exciting and equally as interesting and geared towards my future career ambitions. There didn't seem to be any one factor that made me choose one place over the other. In the end, I am not sure why, I just decided to go to Edinburgh, because I was sitting at home watching a nature programme with my grandfather and they mentioned the place. I then decided there and then – okay, I'll choose there. And I did. And that was that. I guess sometimes it's best to go with your gut feeling when you've a hard decision to make, or wait for some sign from the universe!

Place

描述一个你推荐的适合居住的城市

题目答案

Describe a city you would recommend as a nice place to live in (not your hometown).

You should say:

What it is

Where it is

What you know about this place

And explain why you recommend it as a nice place to live

Part 3

1 Which part of your country is the most populous?

2 What are the advantages of living close to the workplace?

3 What kinds of places do old people prefer to live in?

Describe a city you would recommend as a nice place to live in (not your hometown).

You should say:

What it is

Where it is

What you know about this place

And explain why you recommend it as a nice place to live

A city I would strongly recommend as a lovely place to live is Dali, in Yunnan Province. Dali is, in fact, more like a town, really, as it is not as big as most cities. But, I think of it as a city, anyway. A small one! Dali is really beautiful and has developed and grown in the past ten years into a cultural and touristic centre as well as a thriving agricultural community. It is set in the mountains and surrounded by the most picturesque scenery you can imagine. The people are warm and friendly and have a laid back attitude to life, despite being quite hardworking. The lifestyle there is very different to most cities in China, and there is a relaxed vibe in the air, and a genuine feeling of history. I am familiar with the place because a friend of mine, an artist, by the name of Liu Yang, lives there. I met him in university and one holiday he took me back to stay with his family there. I loved it. We rode horses in the hill, went looking for butterflies with his uncle, and I tagged along as he took photos for his latest art exhibition. You see, he is mainly a photographer and regularly holds exhibitions in Beijing, so every time he goes back he goes out taking photos, sometimes of the people of the town, and on other occasions purely of the natural views. There are wonderful little family-run guest houses in the town and quaint restaurants, traditional Chinese medicine shops and regular performances of music and dance. It really is a place to soak up a bit of artistic atmosphere, and you feel you’re being transported to another world. A world free from the commotion of the capital cities. I love it there, and think it’s a great place for a holiday, for anyone who loves nature, culture and the arts and traditional customs of Yunnan, China.

描述你国家一条重要的河流

题目答案

Describe an important river/lake in your country.

You should say:

Where it is

How big/long it is

What it looks like

And explain why it is important

Part 3

1 How can rivers/lakes benefit local people?

2 How do rivers/lakes affect local tourism?

3 Are rivers/lakes useful for transport?

Describe an important river/lake in your country.

You should say:

Where it is

How big/long it is

What it looks like

And explain why it is important

An important lake in my country is Qinghai Lake. Its’ actually the largest lake in China and it is located in Xining, well… outside Xining actually, in the hollow of the Tibetan plateau. It’s a very famous lake in my country. I know the lake fairly well because I am from that province, from a town not too far from the lake. I am not sure exactly how big the lake is, but I’d say it was about 3,000 or 4000km square. It’s massive! It’s really massive and pretty deep too. It looks pretty impressive to be honest. It’s an iconic symbol of the area, and it’s located in an area of stunning natural beauty. The lake is important for the area as it used to be the one and only real source of fresh water, a key fishing area, and a natural attraction. People in the villages nearby also believe the lake has a strong power… I guess you’d call it a lucky power. There are a lot of older, superstitious people in my town and they all seem to believe that the lake houses some powerful spirits or something like that. I’m not sure I believe that, but I can imagine that in the past many people told mysterious and magical stories about the place. For me, however, the lake is important for different reasons – it’s the first place I ever went fishing with my father, and also it’s the very first place I learned to swim!! With my uncle!! So, as well as being an incredibly important feature for the province and the surrounding towns and villages, it’s also got a special significance for me. Maybe the lake is enchanted, after all!

描述一个你喜欢消磨时间的安静地点

题目答案

Describe a quiet place where you like to spend your time.

You should say:

Where it is

How often you go there

What you do there

And explain how you feel about this place

Part 3

1 Is it hard to find quiet places in cities?

2 Why is it quieter in the countryside?

3 Compared with young people, do old people prefer to live in quiet places?

Describe a quiet place where you like to spend your time.

You should say:

Where it is

How often you go there

What you do there

And explain how you feel about this place

A quiet place where I like to spend time sometimes is a specific corner of my community garden. It's an area in the far north corner of the community, almost hidden behind a number of trees and bushes, and with a small paved patio area with wooden benches around it, and a trellis with climbing plants. I really like this area, and I go there when I want to read in spring or summer, or when I want some peace and quiet and to get away from my family members or the children that are often playing in the gardens. It doesn't seem that many people go there because every time I go there, it's empty, there's nobody else there. I love being around nature, and it's hard to find quiet places in my city where there aren't any people, or traffic noise or hustle and bustle, so I have become quite attached to this quiet area in the gardens. I sometimes just go there and sit and think or play with my phone, chat to friends on Wechat, play games, things like this. At other times I take a physical book, like a novel, and sit and read. It's an ideal place to wind down and it's very secluded. I must say they tend to the gardens in my community really well, and that's the positive side of the area where I live - despite being very central and very convenient, it's actually an area with a lot of trees and the local community make a lot of effort to keep the gardens looking nice, plant new flowers at certain times of year and look after the borders and the pond in the middle. It's important for some people, like me, to get to find a particular place that feels like your own, where you can escape from everything, so I feel very lucky that I discovered this small area tucked away in the back end of the community gardens, an area which seems to be very unpopular with other people - I don't know why - but I hope it remains like this because it has turned into my personal little safe haven.

Event

描述用手机做重要事情的经历

题目答案

Describe a time when you used your cellphone to do something important.

You should say:

When it happened

What happened

How important the cellphone was

And explain how you felt about it

Part 3

1 What do you usually do with a cellphone?

2 What are the differences between young people and old people when they use cellphones?

3 Do you think there should be a law to stop people from making phone calls in public places?

Describe a time when you used your cellphone to do something important.

You should say:

When it happened

What happened

How important the cellphone was

And explain how you felt about it

The time I recall using my cellphone for something pretty important was when I went on a short trip with a few friends to Pingyao, in Shanxi Province, just outside Taiyuan. It was the national holiday and we had about a week off. I was responsible for booking the hotel, and my other friend was in charge of organizing the transportation – basically the train and the bus.

Anyway…In the days before the trip, I got into a really stressful situation at home. I don’t really want to go into all the details now, but lots of things happened at once – there was a sort of tragedy of sorts in the family in Changchun, and I had relatives, including my mother calling me a lot, I had a falling out with my landlord, because he wanted the rent in advance and there had been a problem with the bank transfer, and I fell out with my boyfriend over something really stupid, in retrospect. So, because of all this, I completely forgot to book the accommodation for me and my friends in Pingyao, for the trip. I just totally forgot.

So, on the morning of the trip we met at the designated meeting place, by Beijing railway station, and as soon as I arrived and heard them all talking about it, I realized “Oh no! I’ve not booked the accommodation”… In fact, we had some time to wait for our train and we were sitting in a fast food outlet having breakfast and I quietly on my cellphone looked up a few places and found, luckily, there was availability for the six of us at this really nice courtyard hotel near the centre of Pingyao old town. I quickly booked it, there and then using my phone, and then when everyone asked, I said “yeah, no worries, I booked it days ago”… and nobody knew any differently.

Now, in the days before online payment systems and bookings, this would have been impossible! So, I feel really happy about this kind of method of booking! Also, I must say I was quite lucky, because during national holidays in China everywhere is usually really full booked, so you can’t often find places you want at the last minute. So, I admit, I also got quite lucky this time. I felt great about this, of course, and it improved my mood a lot as well.

描述一次别人问你意见的经历

题目答案

Describe a time when someone asked for your opinion.

You should say:

Who asked for your opinion

Why he/she wanted to know your opinion

What opinion you gave to him/her

And explain how you felt when he/she asked for your opinion

Part 3

1 Why do some people dislike giving their opinions?

2 Are there any apps designed for collecting opinions about products and services?

3 Why do people like to express their opinions on the Internet nowadays?

4 What are the disadvantages of giving opinions online?

Describe a time when someone asked for your opinion.

You should say:

Who asked for your opinion

Why he/she wanted to know your opinion

What opinion you gave to him/her

And explain how you felt when he/she asked for your opinion

There are a few times when people have asked my opinion. I think it’s because I have ended up, on several occasions in my life, being a sort of advisor, a listening ear, a mentor, if you like, for some of my younger friends. The time that really comes to mind right now, is last year when my work colleague was having a real dilemma about whether she should leave the company and go work at a smaller company, for less money, but a more exciting job and possibly better future prospects, or stay with our company and have a more stable, secure job, but without many prospects of future development or task variation in the role. I sat and listened to her for some time and tried to understand what really mattered to her. You see, our choices in life often depend on both practical issues like pay or living conditions, and also on what really makes us feel whole, motivated, happy and encouraged in life to self-develop. I realized that she was the type of person who needed more than just stability and a salary and a boring job – it really mattered to her to have some sense of strong self-development in her working life. She was not super-ambitious, but she needed something more than just the basics. Because of this, I advised her that she should move to the smaller company, as long as she was willing to put in the extra hours, and be prepared to work harder. And that if you’re going to search for task variety, interesting promotional opportunities and personal development in work, you also have to put a lot of effort in. It’s not always the easiest path, but it can be more exciting, if you’re the type of person who needs ambition. I felt quite good, and mature, in giving my views to her, and I liked listening to her and trying to work out what really mattered to her, and why. I think that one of the most important things in giving advice to people is actually carefully listening to the feelings of others first. So, yes, I felt good and I think I am good at advising people, in general, mainly because I am an active listener.

描述某人给你工作提积极建议经历

题目答案

Describe a time when someone gave you positive advice on your work.

You should say:

When it happened

Who the person is

How the advice affected you

And explain how you felt about it

Part 3

1 Is it important to give children positive feedback?

2 What would happen if parents overly encourage their children?

3 Do you think negative feedback is more important that positive feedback?

Describe a time when someone gave you positive advice on your work.

You should say:

When it happened

Who the person is

How the advice affected you

And explain how you felt about it

There is one time that sticks in mind when someone gave me positive advice about my work. I’ll try to tell the story. You see, I worked as an intern in a technology education company in Zhongguancun, in Beijing. It was a young company, and I spent a summer working in the sound recording studio. You see, the company hired all sorts of voice actors to record online spoken materials, in a number of languages but mainly Chinese and English. I studied media studies in university and I have been moving in the direction of working with sound recording and editing since I got back to China a year ago. Anyway, I got this job as an intern, well, in some ways more than an intern because I was responsible for the whole studio for that summer – from the setting up of the equipment and the organizing of the schedules, and the recording and editing itself. I didn’t have to hire the voice actors, but I had to guide them through the process, on arrival, and coordinate all the recording sessions and so forth. The best advice I received on this job was to really maintain a great relationship with the people we hire to come and act for us. This sounds silly maybe…. but it is in this job that I realized the real importance of treating people not only with respect, but going that extra mile to make them feel really welcome. Especially as it was a small company and we couldn’t afford to pay them that well, it was even more important to keep them happy. You see, because I’m used to working in front of a computer all the time, and in sound studios, I don’t often mix with people that much and I can be unintentionally quite standoffish and quiet and not especially engaging with outsiders. When my boss gave me the advice to be extra nice and polite, and make a real effort to be positive and display a more “American style optimism” I thought that this was a bit pointless… but then after a month or so I realized that it really did make my job easier, because the same people would come back every time we needed them, and it made scheduling really easy and saved me a lot of time on the job, too, because I didn’t need to explain our system and processes each time – they just came in, sat down. I handed them the scripts and they did their job. It really speeded things up and helped to build positive relationships, and have the same voices for a range of our products. So, all in all, that simple piece of advice about nurturing positive relationships with a more engaging and extrovert attitude, really really helped me. It’s often these little things that can make a big difference in life, and we all should remember this more often.

描述在公共场合丢东西的经历

题目答案

Describe an occasion when you lost something in a public place.

You should say:

What you lost

When and where you lost it

What you did to find it

And explain how you feel about this experience

Part 3

1 What kinds of things do people usually lose?

2 What do people often do when they lose personal belongings?

3 What kinds of people often lose things?

Describe an occasion when you lost something in a public place.

You should say:

What you lost

When and where you lost it

What you did to find it

And explain how you feel about this experience

The time I lost something in a public place that really sticks in my mind is when I lost my glasses. It was awful. I was in a crowded place, an outdoor music event in the park, and there were lots of people all crammed together in a thick crowd near to the stage. I was excited to see the band close-up and so I pushed to the front with my friends. When we were there the band became really animated and played their most popular songs – and at that moment the crowds just went wild – people were dancing, flailing their arms around, basically being crazy and not paying any attention to those around them. I was also getting excited and carried away myself.

Then suddenly as I swung my head strongly to the music my glasses flew off my face and over the people and somewhere into the crowd! I couldn’t believe it! I panicked!!

I suddenly stopped dancing and tried to push my way through the crowds of dancers to where I thought my glasses might have landed. I was pushing but at the same time to trying to apologise and appeal to the people to move out of my way, that this was an emergency because I’d lost my glasses. But, of course, nobody seemed to notice or care – the music was so loud and the crowd was so wild that nobody seemed to notice my desperation. I felt terrible.

Now, fortunately for me, and by way of some miracle, maybe, a man suddenly turned around, and was holding my glasses in his hand, above the crowds… I went towards him as fast as I could through the thick masses of dancing people, and I could then hear him saying “whose are these, whose are these? I nearly trampled on them!”….. I greeted him and we shouted over the music words of appreciation and thanks. I then invited him for a drink and we both made our way through the crowds and shared a beer together at the food and drink tent in the park. I felt great, and very grateful and lucky that day!

描述你庆祝过的一个重要事件

题目答案

Describe an important event you celebrated.

You should say:

What the event was

When it happened

Who attended the event

And explain how you feel about the event

Part 3

1 What kinds of events do people usually celebrate?

2 Do people often celebrate events with a large group of people or just few people?

3 Do people often celebrate festivals with families?

Describe an important event you celebrated.

You should say:

What the event was

When it happened

Who attended the event

And explain how you feel about the event

An event that I celebrated that I really enjoyed was the birthday of my friend, Lala. She is a really fun and inspiring girl, who always chooses to do things a bit differently to other people I know. She held a special birthday party, which she arranged totally by herself – and invited a few of us. It started in the afternoon at the opening of an art gallery which belonged to one of her friends – there were snacks, wine, some talks about art, and some really fascinating and interesting people there. Then five of us moved on to a restaurant nearby, a Yunnan restaurant, and had a fantastic meal. She loves the more tropical-themed places of south China so she almost always chooses restaurants like this. After eating and presenting her with her cake and gifts, we went to a jazz club where we had cocktails and sat and watched some live jazz music. The singer was incredible. We stayed there until the very end, then moved on to a nightclub which was more loud and raucous and much less sophisticated – but by this point we were pretty drunk and wanted to let our hair down and have fun and dance. So we danced for hours, almost until dawn, actually. It was a fantastic occasion, and I enjoyed how varied the day was, and how I met and chatted with so many interesting and random, cool people. Lala is a great friend and I’m really looking forward to her next birthday, actually! I felt great about the whole day and it gave me a renewed inspiration for life in my city – especially as I had been feeling quite down about things at the time.

描述一个你想参加的比赛

题目答案

Describe a contest/competition you would like to participate in.

You should say:

What the contest is about

Where the contest will take place

When it will be held

And explain why you would like to participate in it

Part 3

1 What are the contests commonly seen on TV?

2 Why are competition shows popular?

3 Do you think it is necessary to encourage people to compete with others in companies?

Describe a contest/competition you would like to participate in.

You should say:

What the contest is about

Where the contest will take place

When it will be held

And explain why you would like to participate in it

I would like to participate in a fashion design contest. In fact, I’ve taken part in a few before… I love such design events, functions and parties. I’ll tell you why – I am studying fashion design in university. I studied one year in Milan, and I am now in my final year in Shanghai. When you study design you spend a lot of time reading news and watching fashion events. And, to some extent, taking part in smaller fashion events hosted by the department at university. But, there is a particular fashion design contest hosted in Shanghai every year, in one of the top hotels in the city. It’s a huge event and all of China’s best designers take part in it – and get to watch the best models in the industry walking on the runway, wearing their designs.

So, basically, one day, I’d like to have one of my clothing designs taking part in this particular fashion competition. It’s a big ambition, and I’m a long way off yet, but it’s good to have ambitious goals for the future and I think it’s not unobtainable. I’ve had some small successes already in the field, won some minor contests and got myself into a couple of fashion magazines. So, if I continue to come up with innovative and interesting designs, look for greater inspiration and practice my skills at design, I think that I stand a good chance of taking part. For this particular competition, I don’t even care about winning - just being able to take part would be prestigious enough. If you can get one of your designs on the catwalk at this contest, you’re pretty much guaranteed to succeed in the industry. So, yeah, I’d love to participate in this contest for that reason – I want to become a well-known female clothing designer!

描述在工作中做出的积极改变

题目答案

Describe a positive change you made in your life.

You should say:

What the change was

When it happened

How it happened

And explain why it was a positive change

Part 3

1 Is it easier for young people to change?

2 What are the disadvantages when people keep making changes in life?

3 What are some of the major changes that occur to people throughout their lives?

Describe a positive change you made in your life.

You should say:

What the change was

When it happened

How it happened

And explain why it was a positive change

A positive change I made in my life was to decide to take up mixed martial arts, MMA, as a hobby. I was never especially good at sport, or that bad at sport really – but I was not really that interested or enthusiastic about sports, so I never got involved in much. And that also meant that I didn’t really get much exercise. I enjoyed walking a lot, but living in the centre of a huge city, well… it’s not an ideal place to go for pleasant walks. Anyway, one day I was eating in a restaurant and a guy was going round handing out leaflets. I took the leaflet and looked at it, and it was advertising a martial arts centre really near to my home. I stopped the guy and asked him a few questions – the type of martial arts looked different to traditional Chinese ones like wushu, and it attracted my attention, it piqued my interest. We got chatting and he said that I could go for two free sessions before committing to a membership – that way I could decide whether I liked the classes or not.

So, I decided to go for the trial lesson the following day, and I loved it. I went to the second free session, and I loved it too. I’d never felt inspired by a physical activity or sport like this before, so it was quite a novelty for me. I signed up and started on the course, and months have gone by and I’m still going twice a week and sometimes also on weekends to. I am aiming to enter a competition this summer – I’ve made loads of new, motivated and interesting friends, and I’ve got myself much fitter and stronger.

So, all in all, this was a really positive change I made in my life that I’m still really happy with.

描述没有很多花费的外出的一天

题目答案

Describe a special day out that didn’t cost you much.

You should say:

When the day was

Where you went

How much you spent

And explain how you feel about that day

Part 3

1 How do people spend their leisure time in China?

2 How does technology affect the way people spend their leisure time?

3 Do you think only old people have time for leisure?

Describe a special day out that didn’t cost you much.

You should say:

When the day was

Where you went

How much you spent

And explain how you feel about that day

A special day that I will always remember is one I had with a bunch of friends last summer. In fact, it may not sound that special really – but to me, to us, it was really marvelous. It was during the summer holidays, and many places were closed, and we didn’t have enough money to leave the city or go on an excursion anywhere, so a friend of mine suggested that we buy some food, some drinks and take some chairs and cushions and arrange a big picnic in Chaoyang park with as many classmates and friends that we could get together. It ended up being amazing – we invited literally everyone we knew, and they invited everyone they knew, and so on. In the end there were more than 50 of us in a huge and fairly secluded area of the park, eating and drinking and chatting and playing games and music together in the park. I think in total I spent about 40 yuan on some drinks and some snacks – and because we all pooled our resources and shared, and all spent more or less the same amount, we had loads of food and drink for everyone to enjoy. I made a lot of new friends, had some great conversations. We played some fun games and all in all it was a fantastic time. The weather was magnificent and really warm and sunny. We had a shady spot by some trees and I spend the hours as the sun set just lounging around and chatting. It was a fantastic and very memorable day.

描述你帮助一个小孩的经历

题目答案

Describe a time when you helped a child.

You should say:

When it happened

Who you helped

How you helped him/her

And explain how you felt about it

Part 3

1 Do you often help kids? How?

2 Why is it necessary to do volunteer services?

3 Who benefit more from the volunteer services, the volunteers or the people they help?

Describe a time when you helped a child.

You should say:

When it happened

Who you helped

How you helped him/her

And explain how you felt about it

There is a time that really sticks in mind when I helped a child. In fact, it’s a rather interesting memory and quite amusing in some ways. I was at my grandmother’s village in the countryside one holiday, and I was taking walk just outside the village. I saw a young boy, maybe he was about 7 or 8 years old, crying and pointing up at the sky. I stopped and asked him what the problem was… he had lost his kite. I looked up to where he was pointing, more closely. It was not actually the sky at all, it was the top of a large chestnut tree. I squinted and looked more closely and saw that his kite was stuck right up the tree… right at the top of the tree.

I was quite hesitant at first. I mean… I thought about climbing up the tree, but frankly I was scared, not very good at climbing trees, and feeling a bit lazy about it. However, when I looked at the boy again, and saw how sad and desperate he looked, I gathered my energy and thought that I’d give it a go. I climbed up the main trunk and then pulled myself up onto the branches. It wasn’t actually so hard, and the branches were quite sturdy. However, it was a really tall tree and it was a little frightening to have to go so high up. I tried not to look down, as that made me feel a touch of panic, and eventually I reached up to where the kite was. I had to walk along a branch, that was the scary bit, then reach over the grab the kite. I then climbed down.

When I got to the bottom and handed it to the kid, he was absolutely delighted. He was staying at his grandfather’s house about 20 minutes walk away, and we walked back together and sat and ate lunch with his granddad, who seemed very happy and amused with the whole story, and pleased that the kid had got his kite back! I felt good about the whole experience and happy that I had made the decision to help him rather than not tried. It also meant that I had gotten to know two more people in the village that I hadn’t got to know before – the child and his grandfather. So, all in all I have fond memories of this occasion.

描述一次交通堵塞的经历

题目答案

Describe a time when you were caught in a traffic jam.

You should say:

When it happened

Where it happened

How you passed the time while waiting

And explain how you felt when you were in that traffic jam

Part 3

1 When do traffic jams usually happen?

2 What are the causes of traffic jams?

3 Do you think the problem of traffic congestion will be eased in the future or will it become worse?

4 What would you suggest as possible solutions to the problem of congested traffic?

Describe a time when you were caught in a traffic jam.

You should say:

When it happened

Where it happened

How you passed the time while waiting

And explain how you felt when you were in that traffic jamI’ve been caught in traffic jams countless times. Really. So many times I can’t begin to count them! You see, I live in Beijing, and we have some of the worst traffic jams in the world – with the possible exception of India. It’s insane. Sometimes you can spend hours trying to get to a place which should ideally take about 20 minutes, just because of the sheer volume of traffic on the roads. However, the time which infuriated me the most was when I had set off two hours early to go for a really important job interview in Haidian – that’s a district a little far from where I live, but, again, on a good day it should only be 30 minutes in a cab, at most. So, I hailed a taxi. The traffic looked bearable – and we set off. As soon as we hit the third ring road there was an incredible traffic jam – it was not even moving. Thick thick traffic as far as the eye could see, and not even moving an inch. The driver told me that he had heard on the radio, or seen on his app, that there had been a car accident up ahead which had caused the traffic to come to a standstill. I sat there, quite patiently at first, but then I started to lose patience. An hour went by, and we had progressed about 200 meters up the road, and were literally crawling along. Then a thunderstorm hit, and this slowed the traffic down even more. In the end I arrived at the interview over 40 minutes too late, I was soaking wet getting from the taxi to the building, because the driver simply couldn’t find a place to park, and I was really in bad spirits. The funny thing is – they actually ended up giving me the job!!! I couldn’t believe it! So, all in all that was a really memorable traffic jam!

描述一个你很忙的时候

题目答案

Describe a time when you were very busy.

You should say:

When it happened

Where you were

What you did

And explain why you were very busy

Part 3

1 What are the advantages and disadvantages when people keep

busy?

2 What kind of stressful things do people experience at work?

3 Who do you think undertake more pressure? Adults or children?

Describe a time when you were very busy.

You should say:

When it happened

Where you were

What you did

And explain why you were very busy

There have been many times when I’ve been really busy, but a time that immediately comes to mind is when I was preparing for an art exhibition with a friend in university. I’ll try to explain what went on. Basically, I was in charge of an art exhibition of paintings from a South American painter for the university Spanish department. You see, I was one of the main students, let’s say, in the third year, and so I got involved in all sorts of exchange programmes and things like that. Anyway, there was this South American art exhibition which was to be hosted for two weeks in one of the gallery spaces in the next campus. I was in charge of making sure all the paintings were unpacked and put up in the gallery after the shipment arrived at the department, and advertising the exhibition, and organizing the opening event. You see, there’s always an opening event at art exhibitions, where you provide wine and snacks and there’s a little talk and an introduction to the artist and some of their paintings, and all of that. You see, the artist herself could not attend, so I was kind of representing her.

The reason I was really busy was because I had to juggle different things all at the same time, or at least it seemed like it. I had to not only ensure that all the paintings were unpacked very carefully, then put up on the exhibition walls in the exact way that the artist had explained (she provided a diagram and explanation of how to lay them out), then stick labels under each painting, that corresponded to the labels on the back, and then work with some computer designers to make fliers, and advertisements for the event, make an invitation list…. then organize the catering, the snacks and wine…. you can imagine! All of that to host a gallery exhibition opening. And I was determined to do a good job, because, on top of all that I had to manage a photographer and videographer to take photos and film the event, to put on the artist’s website.

So, basically for several weeks before the exhibition, and especially in the days preceding the exhibition, I was incredibly busy, and quite stressed out, and trying to keep everything and everybody who was involved in the project, in order and properly organized so the event was a success.

描述帮你节省大量时间的改变

题目答案

Describe a recent change in life that helps you save a lot of time.

You should say:

What it is

What you have done

How it helps you save time

And explain how you feel about this change

Part 3

1 Do you think technology helps people to save time?

2 Do you think parents and schools should be responsible for teaching children to save time?

3 Do you think it will be easier for people who can manage time well to become successful?

Describe a recent change in life that helps you save a lot of time.

You should say:

What it is

What you have done

How it helps you save time

And explain how you feel about this change

A recent change in my life that really saved me a lot of time was when I moved house to live near to my workplace. You see, I work in a small company in the West of Beijing, set in one of the hutongs. It’s a boutique interior design studio. I used to have to commute for an hour or more to get from my home, where I lived with my parents, in the south of the city, to my workplace, and it was not pleasant. I had to change subway lines twice and travel in the thick crowds of rush-hour. I hated it. So, when I got a bit of a promotion, I decided to rent an apartment near to my workplace. I found a really nice loft apartment literally 2 minutes walk from our interior design studio.

As you can imagine, living right next to my place of work was so much more convenient than living over an hour away. Not only did I save time getting to work, of course, but I completed cut out the painful and horrid subway journey. I now only have to walk down a pleasant little narrow street, listening to the sound of the birds, before turning left at the corner, and arriving at work. It’s fantastic. So, not only did this change save me a lot of time, but also saved me my sanity too!!! I am a sensitive person, and these things can really make a huge difference to my mood in general, and as a result, my work performance too.

描述一个你吃特殊蛋糕的场合

题目答案

Describe an occasion when you had a special cake.

You should say:

When this happened

Where this happened

Who gave you the cake

And explain why it was a special cake

Part 3

1 What’s the difference between special food in China and foreign countries?

2 Do Chinese people usually cook special food in traditional festivals?

3 Do Chinese families like to eat together during traditional holidays?

4 Why do people spend more on special food on special occasions?

Describe an occasion when you had a special cake.

You should say:

When this happened

Where this happened

Who gave you the cake

And explain why it was a special cake

Well, there’s a few occasions I’ve had a special cake – almost every birthday over the past ten or fifteen years. You see, we have a strong tradition of giving people cakes on their birthdays, and in more recent years there’s a lot of fantastic and quite amazing cake companies in China. The last time I had a fantastic cake was my last birthday. I had a dinner with my girl friends in a Japanese restaurant, and after the dinner they presented a huge box with ribbons tied around it. I opened it and inside was this amazing, tall, peach-coloured cake. The cake was decorated with the most incredible flowers and designs all made from different coloured icing and cream. It was probably the most fancy cake I’ve ever seen, actually. It’s hard to explain or describe, but it must have been done by a real expert in cake design, as it was almost a work of art! The cake came with candles, which we put in it, and I lit them, made a wish – of course, they turned the lights off for my wish – and the whole restaurant joined in as we sang happy birthday. I enjoy this birthday tradition, and I like the fact that everyone seems to follow it each year. Though it becomes a little difficult because when it’s your friend’s birthday you have to try to find an equally nice cake, or even better cake to surprise them with! So, it can get quite hard to keep up!

描述一段参观新地方的经历

题目答案

Describe a time you visited a new place.

You should say:

Where it is

When you went there

Why you went there

And explain how you feel about the place

Part 3

1 Which one do you prefer, living in a city or only visiting it as a tourist?

2 How do children react when they go to a new school for the first time?

3 How do young and old people react differently to new things?

4 Why do some people want to go to college that are far away from home?

Describe a time you visited a new place.

You should say:

Where it is

When you went there

Why you went there

And explain how you feel about the place

A lesson that I remember well that impressed me a lot was when a visiting art teacher came into school to teach us about silk screen printing. I found this really fascinating. It’s quite a traditional style of textile printing that consists of transferring your pattern on screens of fine silk mesh, one screen for each separate colour, and then placing the screens down one by one onto paper and rubbing paint across the silk screen. The paint goes onto the paper in the shape of the design you’ve put into it, and it produces quite a unique result. It’s quite hard to explain actually… Anyway, the teacher was an eccentric woman in her fifties with a very engaging and inspiring manner. She was very good at taking us through the initial steps of setting up our screens and preparing for printing. She made even the fiddliest and potentially boring aspects of the process seem really interesting. She began by showing us a PowerPoint featuring some famous paintings and works of art that have been made with the screen-printing method. And she showed us some examples of her own work – pictures of landscapes, buildings and abstract designs. Then she took us through all the steps, in pairs, of how to prepare our own screens, designs, and start printing. The lesson was a long one…. basically, almost a whole day, and was several hours broken down over several classes really. By the end of the day we had all learned a lot, and most of us had produced some really impressive pieces of artwork that we would never have imagined we were capable of. I felt really good about this lesson… this workshop… and was proud to be in a school where they arranged such lessons by visiting artists.

描述一段你曾走过很长的路

题目答案

Describe a long walk you have been on.

You should say:

When this happened

Where you walked

Who you were with

And explain how you felt about this long walk

Part 3

1 Do women have more leisure time than men do?

2 Is leisure time important to everyone?

3 What are the differences between the outdoor activities children did in the past and now?

Describe a long walk you have been on.

You should say:

When this happened

Where you walked

Who you were with

And explain how you felt about this long walk

A long walk that I once went on was with a friend of mine and his uncle and auntie, outside Dali, in Yunnan province. It was a fantastic walk, and took us through country villages, fields, plantations, hills, and over rivers and through woodlands. It was a truly amazing walk. We followed a map that was in a guidebook that I borrowed from the guest house we were staying at in town. We went on this trip because my friend’s uncle and auntie are huge photography fans, and they often go on holiday to picturesque places of natural and historic interest in China, and spend their time taking photographs. They’re members of a photography club in Shanghai – they’re a very arty, creative family with lots of cultural interests. Anyway, my friend had invited me along on this trip with them, and from beginning to end it was absolutely fascinating. And the long walk we went on was probably the most interesting part, to me. It was the best part because I felt that I saw so many different things, and in the villages we passed by we met quite a few locals who were incredibly welcoming, introduced us to their homes and families, offered us food and snacks, and gave us directions. The warmth of the country folk in Yunnan is really amazing and rather touching. So, all in all, this is the one long walk that really stands out in my memory very strongly.