IELTS Writing Prep in 15 Days for Beginners

Days 1-3: Gather writing material & understand the writing band descriptors

Study the scoring criteria for IELTS Writing and learn the key points of each part. (The sentence patterns below are from Cambridge IELTS 17)

For example: Palm oil is an edible oil derived from (sourced from) the fruit of the African oil palm tree, and is currently the most consumed vegetable oil (the one eaten most) in the world.

* “the most consumed” comes up whenever you talk about how much of a food or item is consumed, so remember it!

IELTS Reading is academic writing, which is also the style examiners expect to see in IELTS Writing.

Practice the different sentence structures in IELTS Reading, such as conditional, comparative and cause-and-effect sentences

Day 1: Write summaries of reading passages and imitate good sentences to make your own.

Day 2: Pick an IELTS model essay and look at what each paragraph does (introduction, body, conclusion).

Day 3: Imitate and practice the transition words in model essays to make your sentences flow better.

You need enough input (internalizing, absorbing) before you get output (expression),

“precise topic vocabulary” and “correct collocations” are what you’re after at this stage,

Recommended books: topic vocabulary for writing and speaking, high-scoring sentence structures, topic argument banks

Days 4-5: Look at high-scoring Task 1 and Task 2 model essays and write an essay following their structure.

For example: study a Task 1 process diagram essay, learn how to write the overview, then follow its order and framework to write about another diagram you haven’t seen a model essay for (that way you’re working out the structure yourself instead of being led by someone else’s ideas)

Model essay websites: I read model essays and their structure on the first site, then use the same structure to write about a diagram from the second site

Imitate what the model essay focuses on, its order, what each paragraph covers, and its linking words

For example, when I saw the model essay IELTS Process Diagram: The manufacture of bricks (a process diagram of how bricks are made) on the site, I tried writing The manufacture of instant noodles with the same framework

Recommended books: materials that walk you through all the high-score requirements, the structure of every question type, and how to analyze model essays

Day 6: Use ChatGPT to fix the grammar and word choice mistakes in your practice, then write the sentence again correctly

(Model essays have some correct, good sentences for describing data and expressing your own ideas; practice them until they’re second nature)

Recommended materials: past IELTS questions and predicted questions; use ChatGPT to correct your essays and speaking

Days 7-9: Improve paraphrasing, rewriting and vocabulary use, and reinforce correct usage

Repeat the Day 4-6 practice and make sure you practice every question type! Learn how model essays use vocabulary and sentence patterns.

Recommended materials: topic vocabulary for writing and speaking, high-scoring sentence structures, topic argument banks

Or IELTS Academic Reading and Listening vocabulary books (for more practice with synonyms and rephrasing sentences)

If you keep getting a particular grammar point wrong, get a grammar book and sort out that concept!

Days 10-11: Write essays and check them yourself first to cut down on careless grammar mistakes

Days 12-15: From then on, finish at least one IELTS Writing practice test every two days and get someone to mark it and give feedback

Analyze the feedback, practice specifically on the weaknesses it points out, and make sure you understand the grammar mistakes you keep making

Also try to time yourself so you can finish both essays within one hour!

I recommend looking at “marked examples of common mistakes”

to avoid the grammar, structure and task response mistakes that can really hurt your score

For the list of IELTS books I used, my IELTS quick guide and a beginner’s guide, check out the site below:

https://lightenglish666.com/%e6%96%b0%e6%89%8b%e8%80%83%e9%9b%85%e6%80%9d/

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