STUDY SKILLS for IELTS and

General English 

Are you studying English in an attempt to get an IELTS score? Are you looking to improve your English language skills to get a new job? Would you like to be able to communicate more freely in English? If you want some new ideas for your English study routine, keep reading!

As you already know, it takes a lot of time and effort to improve your language skills. Getting the IELTS score you want is just one way to prove to yourself and others just how strong your skills are. Perhaps you’d like to get a visa, job or professional accreditation. If this is you, well done for keeping on with your English studies!

So what is the best way to study for an IELTS test or improve your speed in general English writing? Obviously, it is important to know as much about the test style and the types of questions you will need to respond to as you can. Enrolling in a course might be the best place to start – we can help you at www.mylanguagemystory.com and find free practice events at https://www.facebook.com/mylanguagemystory . If you’re already enrolled in a course and you want an extra push or if you’re not planning to do IELTS and you’d like some techniques to maximise your study time, try these three tips below.

1. Have some fun.

The brain likes fun so mix up your test practice with creative, engaging activities. Sometimes IELTS tests can be a bit dry or difficult and the brain switches off. Make sure to vary your study routine to keep your mind engaged and positive. Keep up a “can do” attitude and keep going. A little bit often is the best way to improve language skills. Keeping yourself immersed in English language is just as important as practising tests. So listen to your favourite English songs, TED talks and podcasts as often as possible. This will help your brain accept new information in English and keep your energy up. Also, remember to reward yourself for doing the more difficult tasks with tasks you love.

2. Write a page a day

Get yourself a notebook specifically for free writing. Free writing is a way to use creative writing to improve your English writing fluency. Set a timer for 15 minutes and write whatever comes into your head. Write about absolutely anything for 15 minutes. This could be about your thoughts, feelings, plans or past experiences. Anything really. Just write and write and write. This will help to boost your writing fluency-i.e.: speed and flow. If you want to keep writing after 15 minutes, go for it!

3. Speed copying

Find a piece of text you would like to model your own writing on. It could be an article on a topic of interest, an essay you have written and re-edited or it could be an accurate model essay your teacher has given you. If it is your own writing and your own ideas, make sure it is an accurate polished piece of writing that has been edited and redrafted at least three times with the help of a teacher. Set your timer for 3 minutes. Copy the text as fast as you can. Stop at 3 minutes. Count how many words you have written. Set the timer again and copy the same section of the text for 3 minutes. How many words did you manage this time? Try a third time – 3 minutes. Count the number of words. Did you write more the third time? Are you beginning to remember common phrases? This kind of practice can speed up your hand-writing / typing as well as help you to learn new phrasing, chunking and formal English expressions.

Finally, keep going and reward yourself for every effort!!