how to answer ielts speaking part 2 with no ideas

Start from the card rather than from your life. If nothing comes for the point about why it mattered, answer it from the outside: what the thing is used for, who else it affects, what would change without it. Then walk the ladder: describe one noun in more detail, compare it with itself at another time, and finish with what you think now. The examiner listens to language, not to the truth of the story, so a small real memory beats a large invented one.

Having no ideas usually means you are searching for a perfect idea rather than a workable one. Give yourself five seconds, then start the sentence you already have and let the grammar pull the detail out of it, because a relative clause or a comparison forces you to add a noun, a time or a reason. Before the test, collect six or seven ordinary stories, such as a journey, a lesson, a person, a purchase, a place and a decision, and rehearse each one for two minutes: one story can be reshaped for many different cards.

IELTS Speaking Part 2 Cue Cards: What to Do When You Run Out of Things to Say →