IELTS Cue Card Topic:
Describe the best experience of your school/university life you have had
You should say:
– What it was,
– when it was,
– why it happened,
and explain why it was the best of experience
Band 8.0+ Sample Answer
It was almost 8 years since I competed in an English Speaking Contest, standing on a big stage in front of a hundred-strong crowd to deliver one of the best speeches I’ve ever given with the support of my friends. That was something you can never forget in your whole life and the most magnificent moment, bar none, of my high school highlights.
Never had it crossed my mind that one day I would be on stage talking about the thing I treasured most in my life – my family and friends or just be qualified enough to represent the entire school compete at such competition. If it hadn’t been for my English teacher’s constant encouragement, I wouldn’t have participated in the contest in the first place. Students were free to choose their topics and were asked to present it in front of a panel of judges and audience. It sounded intimidating for so many reasons but I had managed to subdue my anxiety and learned to believe in myself. Preparation for D-day was tough for everyone, both emotionally and physically. We kept practicing nonstop for 4 hours straight, every single day; me trying to perfect my pronunciation and acquire that American accent, my friends singing their heart out Miley Cyrus’s song “True Friend” since we wanted to kick our performance up the notch by featuring some musical element. Our hard work had finally paid off with us bringing home the Champion Cup as well as Best Performance Award. It brought me to tears as I realized at that moment it wouldn’t have mattered if we hadn’t won because we already won when we got over ourselves, stepped out of our comfort zone and kept going till the end. That was our true victory. Until now, the lesson I’ve learnt 8 years ago still has its own value and will always be there to remind me of those good old days.
Vocabulary & Useful Expression
- deliver a speech: give a speech
- magnificent (a): extremely attractive and impressive
- bar none: with no exceptions
- cross one’s mind: to come into your thoughts as a possibility
- represent (v): act or speak officially for somebody
- constant encouragement
- in the first place: in the beginning
- panel of judges: a group of persons selected to act as a team to judge a contest
- intimidating (a): frightening in a way which makes a person feel less confident
- subdue(v): calm or control your feelings
- sing one’s heart out: to sing with vigor or intensity
- kick something up the notch: to do something with vigor or intensity
- pay off: yield good results, succeed
- bring someone to tears: to bring someone to the point of crying
- step out of comfort zone: do things that you don’t feel comfortable with doing
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