Talk about an interesting old person you met recently: IELTS Cue Card

Bhargavee Sisodia

06 Jul 2024

One of the most important tests for non-native English speakers hoping to move abroad or pursue further education is the IELTS exam. The Listening test, Reading test, Writing test, and Speaking test make up the four main components of the IELTS test. The three portions of the IELTS speaking test take an average applicant 11–14 minutes to complete.

The general introductory round of the IELTS speaking test is the first round when the examiner asks questions about your educational history, interests, and other preferences. This is a three to four-minute round that serves as the candidate's icebreaker or warm-up section.

The IELTS Speaking topics round, sometimes referred to as the Cue Card part, is the next round. In this round, you will be given a cue card with a randomly selected topic written on it, and the examiner will expect you to speak for two minutes on it as part of your speaking test evaluation. You will have one minute to formulate and mentally prepare your response before launching into your speech. 

The round of follow-up questions is the final and third round of the IELTS speaking exam. The examiner bases some questions in this round on the IELTS speaking topics covered in the speaking test or on your response to those topics. During your IELTS preparation phase, there are a few things to remember, which we have elaborated below.

It is necessary for you to rehearse the speech using typical IELTS speaking topics and timing your responses so they don't go over two minutes. In order to prepare, you should respond to the relevant IELTS speaking questions found in the materials for IELTS speaking topics follow-up sections. 

Don't forget to take at least one IELTS practice test on a regular basis. Make an effort to assess the errors from your IELTS practice test and determine how to fix them. Look through as many IELTS exam sample questions as you can. You will feel more confident after doing this exercise. Before speaking, make sure you have understood and analyzed the IELTS speaking questions to prevent miscommunications.

To help you better understand the approach and structure of the IELTS speaking questions, we have prepared some IELTS exam sample answers and follow-up questions with their responses on one of the IELTS speaking topics. 

IELTS speaking topics: Talk about an interesting old person you met recently

There is a regular method for tackling IELTS speaking topics like these in an IELTS exam speech, as this is a personal experience topic. You must understand the needs of the subject before you can start to write down the crucial points that must be covered within your allotted one-minute preparation time. For this process to go well, you must extensively prepare for the IELTS speaking test by reviewing IELTS speaking questions and IELTS exam sample topics. 

This kind of topic's most crucial factor is that your response needs to be interesting. If not, your response may come across as dull or boring to the IELTS Speaking test examiner. Let's now discuss the essential topics that should be covered in your answer: 

• Introduce this person. 
• Where did you meet him/her
• Describe your conversation with him/her
• Conclusion

IELTS exam sample 1 - Sample Answer

Introduce this person: 

A few weeks ago I met my friend’s grandfather, Mr. Ahuja and the conversation we had was one of the most insightful conversations I have ever had in my life. Although he is 87 years old, his perception of life is truly inspiring, which is why our conversation left a mark on my heart and mind. 

Where did you meet him/her? 

I met him when I went to meet my friend at her house. He was visiting them for a month during that time. He lives alone in his hometown Datiya, a small town in Madhya Pradesh. When I went to their house, he insisted that I sit with him and have a chat and I obliged. 

Describe your conversation with him/her

As we started talking, he asked me about my educational background and my interests. I was astonished to learn that he was one of the leading professors of English at Delhi University. We talked about our interests in literature, our favorite books, and even our favorite genre of series and movies. While speaking about our favorite pieces on Shakespeare, he started narrating some phrases from “Romeo and Juliet”, watching which mesmerized me. He gave me a few fascinating insights about “Othello”, my favorite Shakespearean piece of all time, and I listened to him with diligence. After that we chatted about our favorite series, I told him about my preferences for K-drama, to which he said he loved K-drama as well. After that we chatted for an hour only on K-dramas, our favorite actors and actresses, our favorite plots, and the series we were anticipating. 

Conclusion 

I was pleasantly surprised to see a person of his age interested in the new age literature and series with so much enthusiasm. It was extremely inspiring to see the flame of curiosity and love for literature burning bright in his heart and soul. That day I promised myself to be as amazing as Mr. Ahuja when I grow older.

IELTS exam sample 2 - Sample Answer

Introduce this person: 

I have recently moved to a new apartment with my parents and the most fun part of moving, for me, is the opportunity to know new people in a new neighborhood. Since the time we moved, I have come across a very interesting old lady who lives just below our floor. I find her interesting because although she is a bit aged, I have seen her walk up to the terrace with her yoga mat every single day, at 6 am, and perform her regular set of yoga. After she finishes her yoga, she starts her daily dose of nurturing her set of plants on the roof. 

Where did you talk to him/her? 

One day while I was doing my workout on the terrace, I decided to talk to her after she finished her yoga. After she got up from her yoga, I went up to her to help her with the yoga mat. After that, I started a conversation about how I have seen her perform yoga every single day with so much rigor and she smiled and appreciated my complement. 

Describe your conversation with him/her

As she went towards her plants for her daily routine of gardening, she asked me to accompany her if I wanted. I didn’t waste a single moment and grabbed on to the opportunity. She showed me how to water the plants and which plants needed more water and which ones didn’t. I carefully listened to her and tried to jot down all the details in my head. As we watered her plants, she told me her story about getting into yoga when she was about my age. Apparently, her uncle was a yoga instructor and she loved to do yoga with him during the morning. After a few years, it became a habit and a very integral part of her routine, which has stuck with her ever since. 

Describe the interesting part of your conversation

As we chatted for almost an hour, her knowledge of yoga and its techniques astonished me. She gave me some important insights on different poses of yoga and told me each of their origin, significances, and utilities. She also imparted her wisdom in gardening to me. She gave me an idea about which plants are for which seasons and which plants need more care. I was surprised to know that not all plants need water or fertilizers in the same amount. For them to thrive, a gardener must know the exact requirements of the plants and feed them according to that.  

Conclusion 

All in all, my conversation with my neighbor was truly inspiring and insightful. I was glad to have gotten the opportunity to learn so much about yoga and gardening from her and she elevated my interest in both sectors. Ever since that day, whenever I meet her on the roof, we exchange pleasantries and I help her with her gardening.  

IELTS speaking - Follow-up question

The IELTS speaking cue card segment is followed by the follow-up questions section, which is the last and final round. Based on your responses to the IELTS speaking topics, the examiner will pose some questions to you in this portion of the speaking test. 

You must present your thoughts and beliefs in a determined and conviction-filled way. This round is intended to evaluate a candidate's ability to converse as well as their fluency and articulation. The following is a discussion of the follow-up questions that are likely to be asked on the IELTS exam based on the IELTS exam sample topic mentioned above. 

To prepare for it well, make sure to go through all the available IELTS speaking questions from this segment and take the IELTS practice test and IELTS sample test regularly. 

Some follow-up questions from the above IELTS speaking topics

Do you believe that older people are wiser?  

Answer: Yes. I agree with the statement that older people are wiser. It is because I have witnessed several incidents in my life where my elders’ advice has worked wonders for me. I think it is because of the wide array of experiences they have had through the tedious journey of life which has given them the intellect that they omit through their insightful approaches towards life. Be it in work or life, experience is the best teacher. Thus older people tend to be more objective towards problems and more lucrative towards their solutions. We should always respect their long journey of life and rich experiences that can guide us through every difficulty in our day-to-day lives. 

Is a younger person capable of teaching something to an older person? 

Answer: Yes, absolutely. I don’t think knowledge can be confined to any age group or generation. Many young people are capable of having more knowledge than older people. Also, with the passing of time, young people are prone to have a more refreshing approach towards life, culture, and society which they can teach to the older generation. Apart from that, my practical experience says, that younger people can teach the features of advanced technology to older people with a lot of patience. I am sure you have come across at least one incident in life where you have seen someone young trying to teach a feature of the smartphone to someone older. 

What are the main things newer generations should learn and preserve from the older generations? 

Answer: There are a few aspects of our older generation that need to be preserved for future generations like, their wisdom, their cultural perceptions, and their traditions. Our grandfathers and great-grandfathers had worked hard to give us the life we are leading currently, and their struggles should be respected. Older people tend to have traditional solutions to our modern problems, which might be less advanced, but very effective. The cultural richness and traditional views that they are able to provide should be preserved for the next generation. If we fail to do so, our country, which is known for its culture, will become meaningless in the future. 

Conclusion

As part of our expert IELTS exam preparation program at D-VIVID, we offer one-on-one mentoring and comprehensive coaching for your IELTS speaking test. You can get a good idea of the kinds of IELTS speaking questions you anticipate on the speaking test by using our IELTS sample test and resources. Our staff of highly skilled and trained educators will provide you with all the advice you need to ace the IELTS exam. We can assist you with honing all the abilities necessary to pass the IELTS exam, from particular IELTS speaking questions to typical IELTS speaking subjects. With D-VIVID, you can unwind and concentrate on your IELTS preparation because we'll handle all the details for you. Thus, respond swiftly and contact us today.