IELTS Speaking Part 2 & 3 Sample Band 9 – Describe a thing you like to do with an elderly person in your family

Describe a thing you like to do with an elderly person in your family

You should say:

• What it is
• how often you do It
• and explain why you like it.

Well, the first person that came to mind when looking at this topic is actually one of my neighbours, who must be approaching her 80s now, and so I’d like to tell you a little bit about her and why I enjoy talking with her.

As for how I got to know her in the first place, well if I’m not mistaken, I met her when I was walking my two dogs in the garden of the apartment complex where I live, and one of my dogs just ran straight up to her, and literally jumped up and gave her a hug. I remember at the time, I was slightly worried because I wasn’t sure if she liked dogs or not, but thankfully, it turned out that she was a big animal lover, so she had no problem with my dogs, and she now even looks forward to seeing them every time she comes out for a walk.

Anyway, with regard to what we talk about when we see each other, well, it’s kind of hard to say, because there’s not really anything in particular that we always talk about, you know, it could be the weather, my studies, something in the news, but generally what normally happens is that she asks me how things are going, and after listening to me she will then offer some of her thoughts and advice, which I really appreciate, because she’s obviously experienced a lot more than I have in life.

And just to give you a little example of some of the stuff we talk about, when I bumped into her a few days ago, I mentioned to her a problem I was having with an essay I had to write, because it was a two and a half thousand-word essay about something extremely dull, and, for the life of me, I couldn’t think of anything to write. But she just said to me, “forget about how much you need to write, just imagine you can write it as long or as short as you want.” And it was amazing, because when I changed my mindset to how she suggested, it suddenly became much easier to write the essay, and I even ended up writing over three thousand words.

So this is just one example, and I guess it partly explains why I like talking with her a lot, because she’s always able to give me good advice, whether it is about my studies or any other aspect of my life, and I’m super grateful to her for this.

QUESTIONS FOR PART 3

How do grandparents educate their grandchildren in your country?

I would say there is a variety of ways grandparents can raise their grandson or granddaughter in my country. The first common one is that they will narrate their past stories and the moral lessons. It can be drawn from those experiences. This can be pretty useful as those are what they have gone through in the age and might perfectly apply to their case of their grandchildren, for example, how to behave when you meet a stranger or how to keep your manners at a wedding. Another approach is that they will try to stay closer to the small children and listen to their ups and downs in life. I personally find that older people are extremely outgoing and are a very good listener.

Why do people nowadays spend less time with family?

Generally speaking, several factors re to blame when it comes to why some responsible people allocate their time to their family. The first cause usually lies in the person himself. They tend to distance themselves from others and don’t have frequent talks and time to spend together due to the generation gap. As a consequence, less mutual understanding is established and the relationship becomes weaker and weaker. Another culprit might be the fast-paced lifestyle people suffer from nowadays. After a stressful day at the workplace, it is not uncommon to see many lose their temper or just want to stay home to let their hair down. This makes people spend time on their own, which means less time is spent on others.