Describe a difficult thing you did and succeeded: Bài mẫu kèm từ vựng

Bài viết giới thiệu Sample IELTS Speaking Part 2: Describe a difficult thing you did and succeeded thuộc nhóm chủ đề describe an experience (miêu tả trải nghiệm) kèm theo các từ vựng ghi điểm trong bài. Đây là một nhóm chủ đề phổ biến trong bài thi IELTS Speaking Part 2.

Describe a difficult thing you did and succeeded

You should say:

• What it was

• How you did/completed it

• Why it was difficult

And how you felt about doing it

IELTS Speaking sample

I’d like to kick off with my experience being in my team named The Felicity. As a high school student, I have taken an interest in joining various extracurricular activities. However, the most demanding task so far is taking part in the management project, which required us to find out and resolve a certain issue in our social daily life. 

Out of the blue, I had to team up with three other members whom I had not met before. Owing to my past teamwork experience, I believed we could cooperate and complete our project without a hitch. Unfortunately, things did not come up to my expectations as we had a hard time understanding each other before we could officially join hands. What is more, the task turned out more challenging than I thought.

The topic was assigned to us merely two weeks prior to our final exam. After much consideration, we decided to resolve the case in just one week. Thus, we could prepare our best for the test without being concerned about other deadlines. Unexpectedly, our given case turned out too demanding for inexperienced students like us. We could neither reach the root cause nor overcome our arguments when working together. Several days later, I could finally see eye to eye with my teammates. At last, giving our fullest efforts, my team managed to resolve the issue before the due date ended. In addition, we also passed our exams with flying colors. 

After that demanding project, I accumulated a great deal of hands-off experience. Furthermore, I learnt to come out of my shell to join hands with others, which later contributed a lot to my current leadership. The task was seriously tough at first, but it also offered noticeable advantages that I had never thought of before.

Từ vựng trong IELTS Speaking sample

1. kick off: bắt đầu

Ví dụ: The festival will kick off tomorrow with a parade.

2. take an interest in: có hứng thú, quan tâm tới

Ví dụ: Has John taken an interest in photography lately?

3. extracurricular  /ˌek.strə.kəˈrɪk.jə.lɚ/: ngoại khóa

Ví dụ: After school, students tend to join various extracurricular activities, namely sports like swimming, chess,... or working in projects and non-profit organizations. 

4. Out of the blue: bất ngờ, ngoài dự định

Ví dụ: Out of the blue, I came across my best friend when shopping at the mall.

5. Without a hitch: diễn ra suôn sẻ, đúng theo kế hoạch

Ví dụ: Fortunately, our celebration went off without a hitch, there were no problems at all.

6. Come up to somebody’s expectations: diễn ra như ý muốn

Ví dụ: With a lot of training efforts, the performance could finally come up to our expectations.

7. Root cause: nguyên nhân gốc rễ

Ví dụ: Some believe that under-investment is the root cause of stagnation.

8. See eye to eye (with somebody): đồng tình, tán thành với nhau

Ví dụ: My cousins do not see eye to eye with me about the arrangements.

9. Flying colors: thành công rực rỡ

Ví dụ: She passed the exam with flying colors.

10. Come out of somebody’s shell: trở nên cởi mở, hòa đồng hơn

Ví dụ: After joining the party, Mary has come out of her shell. 

IELTS Speaking Part 3 Sample

Câu hỏi: How important is being confident at work?

Gợi ý: the key to success (chìa khóa dẫn đến thành công), show great performance (thể hiện tiến trình hiệu quả), expand networks (mở rộng các mối quan hệ).

To the best of my knowledge, confidence might be the key to success, especially in the world of work. A worker with high self-confidence tends to take risks in order to reach further areas for growth, which is advantageous to their professional development. Those with strong confidence might be better equipped to deal with obstacles, therefore show greater work performance. Being confident can also expand their networks due to how it affects people’s mindset. 

Câu hỏi: Which one do you think is more important? Confidence or knowledge?

Gợi ý: knowledge helps building the base for success (kiến thức là nền tảng vững chắc dẫn đến thành công), confidence improves working attitude (sự tự tin giúp cải thiện thái độ làm việc).

I think it depends on different situations. Personally speaking, both confidence and knowledge are crucial. Foundational knowledge in a specific job is similar to the career ladder which brings workers into higher positions. On the other hand, without self-confidence, people cannot reach the best of their abilities, which prevents them from being promoted in the world of work.

Câu hỏi: How do you stay focused?

Gợi ý: get rid of distractions (loại bỏ những mối gây phân tâm), make a to-do list (lên danh sách công việc cần làm)

When it comes to tedious tasks, it is quite challenging for me to concentrate. However, I still find several ways to finish my work. One of them is getting rid of distractions: I usually put a lock on social media and other apps that aren’t essential. In addition, I stay organized by adding up a to-do list in order to raise motivation after completing a single task.

Chu Đặng Thanh Hương