Are you stuck at 6.5 in writing but are already 7-8 in speaking?

Are you stuck at 6.5 in writing but are already 7-8 in speaking?

Your problem is with structure.

I can fix this for you, often in one lesson.

Sample Task 2 and 1 answers:

Cambridge IELTS 11 T 4.1 & 4.2

News stories on TV and in newspapers are very often accompanied by pictures. Some say pictures are more effective than words. What is your opinion?

Today there is a question of how effective pictures are in reporting the news. Some say pictures are more important than words, I however think that pictures and stories should go hand in hand when reporting the news because news is best when they are together.

First, there are some who say that pictures are better than words. As the saying goes “ a picture is worth a thousand words’ and this may be true, but without context, pictures can mean anything. For example, a picture of someone crying can mean many things, are they crying for joy? Sadness? Anger? Without a story in words to inform us of the context, we cannot be sure. Furthermore, people say that pictures are ‘truth’ that ‘seeing is believing’ but again, I disagree, as we all know, pictures can be faked, who hasn’t used Photo Shop before to ‘tweak’ a selfie?

Second, I personally think that pictures and words compliment each other completely when used to report the news. For example, the best news is TV news simply because we can hear the story, and at the same time, we can see the words brought to life in pictures and video For example, reading a news story about the Tsunami in Japan was one thing, seeing it happen in news footage was quite another. Secondly, pictures and words belong together in the news because, like we mentioned before, they really are worth 1000 words. That is, when watching or reading, instead of an announcer talking for minutes and minutes to convey all elements and details of a story for example, she can stick to the important points and for the rest, let the picture do the talking.

In conclusion, pictures and words are both powerful tools for communicating the news, while some might think pictures are enough on their own, I personally believe that they are better when combined with words to communicate the news.

Your local council is considering closing a sports and leisure center that it runs, in order to save money.

Write a letter to the council.
1 Give details of how you and your friends or family use the center
2. Explain why the sports and leisure center is important for the local community
3. Describe the possible effects on the people if the center closes

I am Kris Enders, a resident of Meadowlark neighborhood, writing to you to let you know what a tragedy the closing of our local rec. center would be for our community.

To begin, personally, my family and I are visit our community center at least four times per week for kids’ sports like hockey and indoor soccer which are hugely beneficial in terms of developing fitness and leadership skills. Furthermore, my wife and I both use the exercise room there at least 3 mornings per week, because it is so much better than a home gym could ever be.

Second, my family will not be the only ones negatively affected by the closure of our beloved community center. With our cold winters, the older residents need a central location like this to maintain their social lives and mental health, and indeed they gather here for coffee and shuffleboard. In addition, many teens hang out here where they can be supervised and also have positive activities and role models around, rather than being on the streets exposed to God knows what!

Finally, the closure of our community center will affect everyone in our community greatly, from newcomers not having a place to meet neighbors and integrate, to youth being out on the streets, to families like mine who will lose access to sports and fitness opportunities; I fear that without this central knot, our community will indeed become undone.

For these reasons I urge you to keep the center open.