IELTS Listening Tips

The process of doing IELTS Listening
IELTS Listening tips/ IELTS Academic Writing process tasks practice

Use language for describing processes like “The next step is to…” to describe how you
should do an IELTS Listening at home, imagining you start by doing exam-style timed
practice but then go on to make sure you learn something from the experience.

Put the cards that you are given in order to help with that discussion on tactics for
practicing and studying for IELTS Listening. Some things should be done at the same
time, in which case you should put them next to each other. Some things probably
shouldn’t be done, in which case you should put them to one side.

Check with an un-cut-up copy of the worksheets.

What language could you use to explain steps in a process? Brainstorm suitable phrases
and then use them to explain a Writing Part One flowchart task.

Cards to cut up/ Suggested answers

1

Listen carefully to the instructions for the test with your question paper closed.

2

Open the question paper.

3

Listen carefully to the example question to get used to the voices that you will hear.

4

Listen carefully for how many questions you have to answer in the next section.

5

Start reading through the section that you are going to hear.

5

Underline important words in the instructions.

5

Underline important words in the questions.

6

Try to imagine what you might hear, e.g. synonyms of words in the options or what

kinds of words might go in the gaps.

7

When you start listening, keep the first few questions in mind in case you miss the

answer to the first question.

Make any notes that you like on the question sheet while you are listening, e.g.

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2015

8

crossing options off or putting question marks if you are not sure.

9

It’s worth continuing to listen even after you’ve heard the answer as they may be

something afterwards that reinforces its meaning or changes what the right answer is.

1
0

Write something for each question before you moving onto the next section, at least

making brief notes or guessing.

1
1

When you have answered or guessed the last question for that section, start reading

the next section straightaway (even if the speaker is still speaking)

1
2

The last recording finishes

1
3

Transfer your answers to the answer sheet.

1
4

Double check your spelling, looking for spelling mistakes you often make.

1
4

Double check the grammar of your answers, e.g. that they fit the gaps.

1
4

Double check your punctuation such as capital letters and hyphens in compound

nouns.

1
4

Eliminate extra words which probably aren’t needed and could be wrong.

1
4

If you are not sure if your first guess is wrong or not, just stick with it.

1
5

Read through the tapescript to start checking your answers.

1
6

Check your answers with the answer key, making sure you understand why other

things would be wrong

1
7

Read through the tapescript again, this time with a dictionary to start learning useful

language.

1
8

Read and listen at the same time.

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2015

1
9

Memorise vocabulary that you learnt from the listening, including the pronunciation.

2
0

Listen again.

X

Use your own knowledge of the topic to try and guess exactly what the answer will be.

X

Before you listen, try to guess which of the options is probably wrong.

X

Stop the recording after one section.

X

Stop the recording after each of the three recordings.

X

Read as far through the paper as you can before the first section starts.

X

Listen again on the morning of the exam.

X

Make sure you listen to the end of each extract, even if you’ve already answered all the

questions.

X

Write down everything that you understand.

X If you hear key words from one of the options, you should probably choose that option.

X

If you hear key words from one of the options, you can definitely eliminate that as a

trick option.

X

If you think what you chose might be wrong, change it.

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2015