IELTS Speaking : Sample Answer to Spoken Topics>Family

 

English speaking tip

In order to introduce your personal opinion, you can use:

• In my opinion, people felt safer in the past.
• From my point of view, tourism has really changed this place.
• As far as I’m concerned, it was the holiday of a lifetime.

Note: The phrase According to… can be used to introduce another person’s opinion. We do not use it to introduce our own opinion. According to the government, the new law will reduce crime.

Phrases which introduce a that clause:

• I think that the internet has changed the world we live in.
• It seems to me that people need to care about the environment more.
• I tend to think that parents are usually to blame.
• My personal opinion is that education is the key to solving the problem.

Family

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• Tell me about your family.
• Who are you close to in your family?
• Who are you most similar to in your family?
• In what way is your family important to you?

1) Tell me about your family.
Although I live abroad now, my dad's family is from Glasgow and my mum's family is from Edinburg. So I'm from a very Scottish family. I would say I come from quite a small family, just my parents, my two sisters and me. But both of my parents come from very large families so my extended family is very large - I have 20 cousins! Our family gatherings are pretty chaotic, but fun. We're a very close-knit family and have reunions at least twice a year. Even though we don't live together any more, the family ties are still very strong.

2) Who are you close to in your family?
The person I'm closest to in my family is my dad, Gavin. He's really sociable, always going out with friends and colleagues. Everyone thinks he's good fun. I look up to him because he's very enthusiastic about everything he does.

3) Who are you most similar to in your family?
Well, there is a strong family resemblance between my elder brother and me, but everyone tells me that the physical resemblance between me and my paternal grandfather is very clear. Sadly, I never got to meet him because he passed away before I was born. But I’ve seen photographs of him at my age and we’re quite alike.

4) In what way is your family important to you?
The most important word in my life is "family". I love my family. I know that my family will always be there for me, no matter what. Every family has their ups and downs, but we are still there for each other. We support one another when there is nobody else.