P1. Talk about your leisure time

1.what's your hobbies?

2.how often you do them?

3.why you like them

Types of free time activities(leisure activities/hobbies/pastimes)

a.Indoor Activities

Playing games (ball games or video games)

Reading

Watching TV/flims

Chilling out/hanging out with friends

b.Outdoor Activities

Sports-swimming/jogging

Gardening

Travelling

c.Collecting Things

stamps

coins

NFTs(Non-fungible token, a unique digital.item)類似于比特幣

all the rage =very fashionable 新潮的

d.Creating activities

Playing a musical instrument

Painting

Knitting

Taking photos

-What do you do in your free time?

I get up to a lot of things.

I don't get up to much.

I'm fond of playing video games.

I'm into palying video games.

I'm passionate about playing video games.

??Dabble in doing sth.涉足

I like to dabble in cooking.

I sometimes dabble in painting.

To dabble in = to do sth. casually, less seriously.

I play the guitar, but I am just an aficionado.

I play the guitar for fun.

I play the guitar, but I am just an amateur.

-How often you do it

I often paint.

I regularly paint.

I frequently paint.

I paint whenever I can.

I paint as often as I can.

I paint whenever I get a chance.

利用動詞過去式形態(tài)

I started painting a couple of years ago.

I decided to have a go at painting.

to have a go at sth.= to try sth. new

I decided to try my hand at painting.

現(xiàn)在完成時

I've been reading for as long as I can remember .

I've been painting for donkey's years.

-The benefits of hobbies

To relax

To stay healthy

To socialise

It (just) helps me____

·unwind

.kick out

·chill out

I find that it helps me ____

·get into shape

·keep fit

·stay in shape

It allows me to ___

·hang out with friends

·meet up with friends

·chill out with friends

It's qiute a nice way to socialise

It's quite a nice way to get close to nature.

It has a calming effect

It's really therapeutic.

?It's a great stress buster.

P 2:Talk about your family

Family size:

I come from a big/small family.

I was an only chid.

(casue you're no longer a child)

I was one of ____ siblings.

siblings = brothers and sisters

My family has 4 family members.×

There are 4 of us in my family.√

nuclear family 核心家庭

extended family

Siblings

My sister and I are like 2 peas in a pod.(very similar)

My sister and I are like chalk and cheese.

(different)

We have our ups and downs.

We don't always see eye to eye.

Sometimes, we fall out but then we make up.

to fall out = to argue and no longer talk

to make up= to become friends again

We are a close family.

We are a tight/tightly knit family.

Yes, we have our differences, but we are a tightly knit family.

My family is everything to me.

I love them to bits.

My family mean the world to me.

Children

As a parent, I try not to be overprotective.

I don't want to spoil my children.

I try not to spoon feed them.

Parents

I am the spitting image of my mother.（像）

I take after my father.（性格像）

My parents brought me up with good values.

Partners 伴侶

It was love at first sight.

I fell for her instantly.

We just clicked.( to get on well)

We've grown to love each other over time.

We've grown closer to closer over the years.

blood is thicker than water = family is more important than friends.

-What's your family like?

-I am from a medium-sized family, and I have a younger sister. I think we are quite different.

We certainly have our ups and downs,and althought we do fall out sometimes, we usually make up.We often have a two or three days trip twice a year.

Talking about my parents , my mother loves cooking and of course it's very very delicious.My father is a sport-lover and have great sense of humor, and actually I am also the spitting image of him.

I have a tightly knit family and they are everything to me.

P3:Talk about your job

·Looking for a job

·Job interviews

·Responsibilities and skills

·Being busy

·Changing jobs

Section 1:Job interviews

-Why do you want this job?

I think I am a good fit for this job.

I think I am a good match for this job.

This job suits me down to the ground.

I think this job ties in well with my future plans.

I am excited to showcase my skills.

I am eager to make a contribution.

I am sure I could bring a lot to this job.

I never shy away from hard work.

Section 2:Responsibilities at work

to land a job = to get a job

I'm responsible for setting the marketing goals./marketing.

I'm in charge of _____

It's down to me to ____

My forte is ____./ I excel at ______.

Section 3 : Being busy

I'm snowed under with work.

I've got a lot on my plate.

I'm up to my neck in deadlines.

To make ends meet = to have enough money to survive

I work overtime to make ends meet.

I work extra shifts to make ends meet.

Section 4 : Changing jobs

Job hopping = moving from one job to another

I'm stuck in a rut = I am in a bad situation

I'm not realising my potential = I don't have the chance to use my talents.

I've got untapped potential = I've got skills I am not using yet.

I want to make a career change.

It's time to move on.

It's time to move on to a new challenge.

Section 5 :Job interview tips

-How to ask question?

"What will success look loke?"

cracking = very good

P4: Talk about climate change

·Key terminology

·Advanced collocations

·Useful Verbs

·Nice Phrasal Verbs

·Idiomatic Expressions

S1:Key Terminology

CO2 = Carbon Dioxide ( a greenhouse gas)

Carbon Emissions - How much carbon we put in the atmosphere

Carbon Footprint - How much CO2 you put into the atmosphere

Carbon Neutral - CO2 we put into the environment = CO2 we take out 碳平衡

Net Zero Emissions

Net Zero Comittments

Renewable Emergy

Energy from the sun = Solar energy

Energy from water = Hydroelectric energy

Energy from the wind = Wind energy

Section 2 : Advanced Collocations

(BIG)

Climate change is an unsurmountable challenge.

unsurmountable - can't not get over it

Degorstation has a serious impact.

There's an urgent need for us to reduce our carbon footprint.

We need to make a darstic change.

(EASY)

There is no straightfoward solution.

Section 3 : Useful Verbs

1)To reach / hit / attain / achieve a target

There is an urgent need to reach the 1.5 target!

2)To implement solutions

put into palce solutions

3)To become sustainable.

4)To reduce/lower/ctu back on/offset emissions

Section 4 : Phrasal Verbs

To cut down on coal = to reduce

To cut back on (using) coal = to reduce

To phase out use of carbon = to reduce slowly

To give up our way of life = to stop doing/having it

We need to give up our excessive use of coal, water and fossil fuels.

Session 5 : Idiomatic expressions

To kick the can down the road

To grapple with an issue/problem/difficulty = to try hard to solve it

Governments are grappling with this issue of climate change.

To face a problem head on = to deal with a problem directly.

To put our heads in the sand = ignore

To make a dent in a problem = to make a small impact

We can't even make a dent in this problem.

dent v.（使）產(chǎn)生凹痕；損害

n.凹痕；損害；削減

P5 :Useful Phrases in IELTS Speaking

Section 1: Things You Like

-Do you like ......?

-Yes, I can't get enough of it/them.

· What I like most about it is...

e.g. -Do you like science?

-Yes, what I like most about it is it's so interesting, for example, last week I read an article about solar panels and how we can use them to protect the planet.

What I like most about it is...+adjective clause + example

· I love that it allows me to...

-Yes, I love that it allows me to understand the world around us.

e.g.- Do you like social media?

-Yes, I love that it allows me to connect with family and friends at the press of a button.

-Do you like coffee?

-Yes, I love that it allows me to wake up quickly and be on the ball at work.

To be on the ball = to be alert, quick to take action

Section 2 : Things You Are Good At

-Do you ...?/Are you good at doing...?

-Yes, I have a knack for it

To have a knack for = to be good/talented at

-No, I am hopeless at it

To be hopeless at = to be very bad at...

Section3: How Often You Do Things

-Do you ... (at all)?

Other ways to say "somtimes"

-Yes, from time to time/

-Yes, now and again/

-Yes,every once in a while

Other ways to say "usually"

-Yes, I play football on Saturdays, more often than not.

Other ways to say "never"

-No, I'm not in the least bit interested in that.

Section 4 : Connectors/Discourse markers/Signposts

·Opinion Questions

-Do you prefer A or B?/

What is your favorite...?

-Without a doubt,...

-Do you prefer hot weather or cold weather?

-Without a doubt, I prefer cold weather because in the hot weather, if it's sunny, my skin burns so easily.

-In all seiousness,I prefer...

-To be totally upfront,... = to be honest

Section 5 : Would you...?

-Would you _(be famous)_?

-Yes, I wouldn't think twice about it.

-No,not for the love of money.

"Every day you practice, the door to opportunity opens a little bit more"

P6: Useful Phrasal Verbs For Any Topic

Natural Spoken English

I am full of adoring admiration for my teacher. ×

I look up to my teacher (= admire) √

Kidding aside = seriously

To get stuck into = to start something with excitement

# 1 To Crop Up

I have to work late today, sth. cropped up at work. = to appear unexpectly/suddenly

Problems

Shops

Restaurants

Opportunities

In my hometown Chinese restaurants are cropping up/have been cropping up everywhere.

# 2 To Nail Down 敲定/確定

to nail down= to identify clearly

Answers

Times

Dates

Reasons

-Why do you think ___ ?

-Well it's hard to nail down the reason, but maybe it's because...

-I would single out one main reason, and that is...

To single out = to choose one from a group

# 3 To Iron Out 解決/燙平

To iron out the creases ( in a shirt)

To iron out = to get rid of/ to remove

Problems

Difficulties

Misunderstandings

I can iron out the problem.

-How do you solve this problem?

-The best way to iron out this problem is to...

# 4 To Pack In

I went to the gym for 3 months but then I packed it in. I just didn't have enough time to go.

To pack in sth = to stop doing sth.

Hobby / Job / Course

I want to pack in my job. It's not very rewarding and badly paid.

I took up painting, but then I packed it in, because I didn't enjoy it very much.

# 5 To Ache For

ache 疼痛 headache/stomachache

To ache for = to desire strongly/to long for

I'm aching for / 've been aching for a holiday.

A beer

Companionship

A night out with friends

# 6 To Drag On

A drag(n.) - something that is boring

to drag on = to last longer than necessary

The pandemic has dragged on/ has been dragging on for such a long time.

The party dragged on for such a long time.

The conversation dragged on for a long time.

The lesson dragged on for ages.

The meeting dragged on for ever.

# 7 To Do Away With Sth.

= to remove, stop, abolish

Law / Rule / Tax / Restriction / Obligation

to do away with someone = to kill someone

-What do you think about ___?

-I wish we could do away with face masks.

-The government should do away with this law.

-We should do away with exams.

TIPS-"In spoken English we often repeat the same phrase, in a slightly differernt way"

-I think we should do away with exams, the government should abolish them.

# 8 Set Back

It set me back = it cost a lot of money

The car set me back a few thousand pounds.

It set me back a lot of money.

It set me back a fortune.

It set me back a fair penny.

# 9 To Slip Up

to slip up = to make a mistake

Work / Relationships / Government

The government has slipped up!

I slipped up at work yesterday, I made a huge mistake, I lost my maneger's presantation.

I slipped up last week, I forgot my wife's birthday.(relationship)

# 10 To Flick Through

books / magazines / newspaper / photo albums

-Describe...

an article

a piece of news

a photo

I was flicking through the newspaper the other day and I saw an article about healthy eating,,,

To swipe through = to look through quicky

browse

P7: Tips & Useful Phrases

TIP 1 : Plan a Clear Structure

e.g. -Describe a intelligent person

Father --- retired

--- Jobs

Intelligent --good adcive

--play chess

TIP 2: Be Direct

-The person I am going to describe is my father.

-The person I am going to describe is none other than my father.

TIP 3: Use Different Tenses

To be as old as the hills = be very old

Describing an event:

It happened about 2 months ago. --TIME

I was waiting for a friend inside a coffee bar. ---SET SCENE

This woman came in and started talking loudly on her phone. Then she sat next to me. It was so noisy, so I asked her to be quiet. ----ACTIONS

It happened about 2 months ago.

I was waiting for a friend inside a coffe bar.

Then, this woman comes in and starts talking really loudly on her phone. Then she sits next to me. ---- LIVELY ACTIONS

It was so noisy, so I asked her to be quiet.

TIP 4: Use Flexible Templates 模板

I'd like to kick off by telling you what happened.

kick off = start

Describing Events:

This took place quite a while back

This took place 2 months ago

This took place last year actually!

Describing Places:

It's one of the most amazing places I have visited

It's one of the most beautiful places I have visited

Actually, it's one of the cheapest places I have visited

TIP 5: Use Cohesive Devices

Cohesive devices or

Discourse markers

Linkers

Connectors

First of all / To kick off

After that / Next

Anyway

Finally / In the end

Anyway, what happened next was...

When it comes to my feelings, I'd say I felt really happy

As far as my feelings are concerned, I'd say I was over the moon

TIP 6 : Get into the flow

Getting into the flow can help you be creative

Creative Confident !!