IELTS Life Skills B1 practice test 2
Talk about where you live and a job you would like, listen to two messages about events, and plan how a friend can meet people.
How to use this test. The real test is taken with an examiner and one other candidate, and it lasts up to 22 minutes. Practise with a friend if you can: one of you is the partner. If you are alone, speak your answers out loud and use the buttons to hear the examiner and your partner. The listening task is marked for you. The speaking tasks are not marked, so compare yourself with the example answers.
Questions with your partner
3 minutesThe examiner first asks each of you your name, where you come from and how long you have lived here. Then you and your partner ask each other questions for two minutes.
The examiner says
Find out from each other about the area where you live and what you like about it.
If you stop talking, the examiner may ask
- How long have you lived there?
- What can people do there in their free time?
- Is there anything you would like to change about it?
- Would you prefer to live in a city or in a village? Why?
See an example conversation
- YouCan you tell me about the area where you live?
- PartnerI live near the station. It is noisy, but it is very convenient because I can get to work in fifteen minutes. And you?
- YouI live in a quiet street on the edge of town. I like it because there is a park for my children, but the shops are far away.
- PartnerDo you know your neighbours well?
- YouYes, quite well. We help each other, for example when someone is on holiday.
Talk for one and a half minutes
7 minutesYou get a topic and one minute to prepare. You then talk for about a minute and a half while your partner listens, and your partner asks you three questions. After that you swap: you listen to your partner and ask three questions.
Your topic
Tell your partner about a job you would like to do and why.
You could talk about: what the job is, what skills it needs, why it interests you, what you would have to do to get it.
Then your partner asks you three questions
A real partner asks about what you said. These are the kind of questions to expect. Answer each one out loud.
- Which part of the job do you think would be the most difficult?
- Has anyone in your family worked in a hospital?
- When do you plan to start the course?
See an example answer for your topic
I'm going to tell you about a job I would like to do in the future, which is working as a nurse. At the moment I work in a supermarket, and I like talking to customers, but I want a job where I can really help people. When my father was in hospital two years ago, the nurses were very kind and patient, and I thought that I would like to be like them. I know it is not an easy job. You need to be calm, you need to work at night sometimes, and you have to study for three years. My English also needs to be better, especially my writing. So first I am going to finish my English course, and then I want to apply to a college. It will take a long time, but I think it is worth it.
Now you listen and ask three questions
Your partner tells you about something they do to relax after work. Listen without reading, then ask three questions about what you heard.
See what your partner said and three example questions
I want to tell you what I do to relax after work. I work in an office, so I sit down all day. When I get home, I like to go running for about half an hour. I started two years ago because my doctor told me to do more exercise. At first it was very hard and I could only run for five minutes. Now I run three times a week, usually by the river. Afterwards I feel tired but happy, and I sleep much better. In winter it is dark and cold, so sometimes I go to the gym instead.
- Do you run alone or with someone else?
- What did you do to relax before you started running?
- Would you like to run in a race one day?
Listen to two messages
5 minutesYou hear two short recordings. First you say what each one is about, choosing from three options. Then you hear both again and answer two questions about one of them. Here you answer the questions on both.
You hear two messages about events.
Listen to both recordings. Where is each event? In a library, a community centre or a sports centre?
Plan together, then discuss
7 minutesFirst you and your partner plan something together for two minutes. Then you talk together about a related topic for about four minutes. The examiner only joins in if the conversation stops.
The planning task
A friend has just moved to your town. She does not know anybody and would like to meet new people.
What should she do?
- join a sports club
- take an evening class
- do some volunteer work
Plan and decide
- how she can find out about it
- when she could do it
- how you could help her
See an example conversation
- YouWhat do you think she should do? In my opinion an evening class is a good idea, because she will see the same people every week.
- PartnerI agree, but volunteer work might be better, because people talk more when they work together. What do you think?
- YouMaybe you're right. She could look for something on the library noticeboard or on the council website.
- PartnerYes, and she is free at weekends, so Saturday morning would be best. Could one of us go with her the first time?
- YouI can go with her. So we have decided: volunteer work on Saturdays, and I will go with her the first time.
Then talk together
Talk to each other about how you met your friends and how people make new friends.
If you stop talking, the examiner may ask
- Where did you meet your best friend?
- Is it easier to make friends as a child or as an adult? Why?
- How do you keep in touch with friends who live far away?
- What makes someone a good friend?
Check yourself
You get a pass or a fail, not a band. Ask yourself whether you did these things:
- I asked my partner questions, and did not only answer.
- I kept talking for the full minute and a half on my topic.
- I gave reasons for my opinions, with words like because and so.
- I talked about the past and the future, not only the present.
- I listened to my partner and replied to what they said.
- I understood the main point and the details of both messages.