This is a lovely reading about forced rhubarb: its history and how it is grown and harvested.

There are 3 question sets:

• Matching Headings
• Multiple Choice
• Gapfill

In this lesson you'll learn more about the general topic of FOOD and how this topic is tested in all parts of the IELTS test.

Get the full lesson in the Bronze Academy on my website.

https://ieltsetc.com/2024/12/ielts-vocabulary-of-food-cooking-and-eating/

If you really want to make a difference to your test score, stop practising grammar with useless examples that you'll never use in the IELTS test!

In this grammar review we look at how to use few, a few, little and a little SPECIFICALLY FOR the IELTS test.

You'll learn useful expressions that you can use in the Writing and Speaking Tests, and you'll find out how to avoid common mistakes with these quantifiers in the Reading and Listening Tests.

Get the full lesson in the Bronze Academy, starting at just $4 per month.

The full lesson includes:

• a set of IELTS-related phrases for each quantifier
• a set of practice questions for each quantifier
• an interactive review of all quantifiers
• 3 Listening video extracts with real test audio, tapescripts, answers and explanations
• 3 Reading extracts
• The most common mistake with 'few'
• Formal and Informal alternatives
• 10 examples for GT letters

https://ieltsetc.com/2024/09/quantifiers-few-a-few-little-a-little/

In this lesson we look at direct and indirect ways of asking for help.

You will learn fixed expressions that you can use in any letter of request letter, and you'll also learn how to demonstrate flexibility with a variety of tenses when you 'give details of your musical activities'.

Find the full lesson with models and interactive practice on my website (Bronze Academy).

⁠https://ieltsetc.com/2024/09/ielts-general-training-letter-of-request/⁠

You recently went to a concert and thought one of the singers was very good. You want to tell him/her how you feel.

Write a letter to the singer. In your letter:

• say how you feel about his/her performance
• give details of your music-related/musical activities
• explain how you would like him/her to help you with your music-related/musical activities

In this episode, we use the story of the Céide Fields (an archaeological site in Ireland) to help you improve the skills you need for IELTS Listening.

You’ll practise following a real lecture-style talk, identifying key information, making educated guesses, and dealing with common challenges such as recognising paraphrasing, understanding fast speech, and listening for common gap fill answers and spelling patterns for uncountable nouns and plurals.

We also focus on useful topic vocabulary for IELTS, especially words related to archaeology and farming, and show you how these ideas can appear in different sections of the test.

By the end of the episode, you’ll feel more confident handling Section 4 of the IELTS Listening test while building the vocabulary and strategies you need for a higher band score.

bog 🌧️🌿

a very wet area of land where the ground is soft and full of water, often with thick layers of peat that can preserve plants and objects for a long time.

excavation 🏺digging in the ground to find old objects or structures

Neolithic 🪨relating to the late Stone Age, when people first farmed and lived in settlements

settlement 🏠a place where people live, often long-term
grazing 🐄 animals eating grass in a field

paddocks 🚜small fields where animals are kept

soil fertility 🌱 how good the soil is for growing plants

crop rotation 🌾🔁 growing different crops in the same field over time

livestock 🐑 farm animals such as cows and sheep

settlement farming 🏡🌾 farming done by people living permanently in one place

food storage 🫙keeping food to use later

🧑‍🎨 In this podcast you'll learn ideas and vocabulary related to the theme of GENDER, specifically the forgotten role of women in medieval art.

GET THE FULL LESSON ON MY WEBSITE:

https://ieltsetc.com/ielts-tips-and-tricks/

Text Summary

A recent archaeological discovery shows that women may have played a more important role in medieval art than people once thought. Scientists found tiny bits of lapis lazuli in the teeth of a medieval woman buried in Germany. This suggests she may have been an artist who painted manuscripts. The discovery shows that studying dental tartar can reveal surprising information about people’s work and daily lives in the past.

Key vocab

• plaque /plak/ is a colorless film of bacteria, food particles, and saliva that constantly forms on teeth.

• tartar /tɑːtə/ is plaque that has hardened, usually yellow or brown, and requires professional dental cleaning to remove

Gender comes up in all parts of the IELTS test - here are some of the podcasts I've already made:

📚 Reading - Marie Curie, Georgia O'Keeffe, and The History of Women's Football

🎧 Listening - Women's attitudes to finance

🗣️ Speaking Part 3 - Gender stereotypes and inequality

✍️ Writing - Men and Women in Bar Charts

USEFUL VOCABULARY

gender stereotypes 🧩

fixed ideas about what men or women can or should do

behind the times ⏳

old-fashioned attitudes that hold back progress

role models

people who set an example and inspire others 👩🏻‍🔬

to break down barriers

to remove obstacles that stop people from progressing 🔨

the pay gap 💰📉

the difference between men’s and women’s salaries for the same work

equality ⚖️

equal treatment and opportunities for everyone

a patriarchal society🏛️

a society where men hold the main power

a male-dominated field 👨‍💼

a profession where most people are men 👨‍💼

#IELTS

This Listening Part 2 about an archaeological dig will help you review maps 🗺️ and vocabulary related to the topic of Civilisation 🏺.

Get the full Listening Course on my website: https://ieltsetc.com/courses

🏮 To celebrate the Lunar New Year and the Year of the Horse, here's an Academic Passage 1 text all about The White Horse of Uffington - an ancient chalk figure cut into a hillside in England.

The text discusses how and when this 'geoglyph' was created, and my podcast walks you through a set of Gapfill Summary and True False Not Given (TFNG) questions.

It includes tips about:

• ⛳️ red flag clues in TFNG questions, especially comparisons and the use of 'most' (= the vast majority)
• how to skip information that you don't need
• how 'known as' and 'called' lead you quickly to the answer

At the end, we review vocabulary related to ancient customs and traditional celebrations that you can use in the Speaking Test.

👉 Join the Members Academy for the full lesson and lots more on a variety of IELTS topics. Go to my website for more information: ieltsetc.com.

Useful expressions

🎏 This festival is deeply rooted in history.

📆 This ceremony marks the start of the new year.

🎉 These traditions are passed down through generations.

💃🏽 There is a festive atmosphere in the streets.

👹 It is a communal celebration with music and dancing.

🎎 Many people wear traditional costumes.

🪦 Families pay respect to their ancestors during the festival.

🧧It is a public holiday, so everyone can celebrate.

🎎 Family celebrations give us a strong sense of belonging.

🏮 Traditional festivals are important for our cultural identity.