General Introduction To Task 2
General Introduction To Task 2
UNIT 1 - PART 1
OBJECTIVES
In this lesson, you will
• be introduced to IELTS Writing Task 2 format and requirements.
• practice analyzing Task 2 prompts to understand task requirements
How much time do you have for Writing Task 2? How many words do you need to write?
60 minutes at least 250 words
40 minutes at least 400 words
20 minutes at least 150 words
Can you choose any topic you like? Can you give examples from your knowledge
YES when writing?
NO YES
NO
How many paragraphs should you write? What should you do during the first 5 minutes?
at least 1 paragraph Reading the prompt and Brainstorming
at least paragraphs ideas
at least paragraphs Writing the first paragraph
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Analyzing the IELTS Writing Task 2 prompt
• Writing Task 2 has two parts the topic and the task type.
• The topic is the situation given in the prompt, or what you should write about in your essay; for
example: family, the environment, or health.
• The task type is usually the question, or what the examiners want you to do with the topic. Some
common task types are “agree or disagree” , “advantage or disadvantage”, “discuss both views”,
and “problem-solution”.
B. IN-CLASS PRACTICE
B. 1| RECOGNIZING TOPIC AND TASK TYPE - MULTIPLE CHOICE
Read the prompts (A-C) below and answer questions (1-6) with the correct options (a, b, or c)
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B. 2| IDENTIFY TOPIC AND TASK TYPE
Answer the questions (1 and 2) for each prompt (a-f) below. An example has been done for you.
People need to spend more time with their families than at work. To what extent do you agree
with this view?
What is the topic? The topic is “people should work less and spend more time with
their famil .”
2. What should you write about the topic? I should write if I agree /disagree that people
should work less and spend or time with families and give the reasons for my opinion
People should walk to school or work rather than drive. Do you agree or disagree with
this statement?
c) Many teenagers use the Internet daily. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this trend?
d) People nowadays spend more time sitting than being active. What is the cause of this problem?
What can be done to solve this?
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e) Computers have become an important part of schools. Do the advantages of this development
outweigh the disadvantages? .
f) In some countries it is getting harder for young people to find work. What do you think are the causes
of this problem and what are some solutions to this problem?
C. HOMEWORK
C. 1| MATCHING
Matching the prompts (1-10) with the correct topics (A-E) and task types (i-iv). Each prompt may
match with more than one topic.
1. It is much more convenient to watch a movie 2. Despite the popularity of sports facilities and
on television or computer than to buy a ticket gyms, people are less fit nowadays than ever
and go to the cinema. before. What do you think are the main causes of
Do you agree or disagree? this problem? What solutions can you suggest?
3. Some people say that teenagers should work 4. More and more people are choosing to use
part-time and earn money. Others argue that emails instead of sending mail by post. What
teenagers should not have to work after school. are the advantages and disadvantages of this
Discuss both views and give your opinion trend?
5. It is often claimed that electronic devices will 6. The best way to travel is to travel in a group
soon replace paper books. led by a tour guide.
Do you agree or disagree with this claim? To what extent do you agree or disagree with this
statement?
7. Today, many people are overweight. What 8. International tourism brings lots of benefits as
are the primary causes of this? What measures problems to host countries. Do the
can be taken to overcome this problem? disadvantages of international tourism outweigh
the advantages?
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9. Nowadays families are not as close as they 10. There is no need to maintain a close
used to be. relationship with distant relatives.
What do you think are the causes of this? Do you agree or disagree with this statement?
What can be done to make families closer?
B. Technology
Agree or Disagree
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WRITING
UNIT 1 - PART 2
OBJECTIVES
In this lesson, you will
• practice analyzing Task 2 prompts to understand the tasks' requirements
• practice idea generation techniques (brainstorming / mind map etc.)
Below is a sample Mindmap for the prompt: “Describe a task you find easy to do”
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B. IN-CLASS PRACTICE – BRAINSTORMING
B.1| INDIVIDUAL MINDMAP
On your own, read the prompt below and practice mind mapping. Work quickly. Don’t worry about how
good each idea is. Don’t worry about spelling and grammar either. Just try to create a lot of ideas, as
many as possible, within a few minutes.
The computer has taken an important role in our daily life. What are the advantages of this?
BRAINSTORMI AREA:
ADVANTAGES
B. 3| BRAINSTORM IN GROUP
In a group of 2-3 students, create a Mindmap to answer the prompt below. First, draw out as many ideas
as you can as a group. Then, discuss which ideas are good and which are bad. Use the sample Mindmap
from section A to help you.
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C. HOMEWORK
C. 1| MATCH IDEAS
Look at the . Then decide where to put the items in the table. The first one has been
done for you as an example.
In many countries, more and more people are becoming overweight. Why is this happening? What
solutions can you suggest?
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WRITING
UNIT 2 - PART 1
OBJECTIVES
In this lesson, you will
• identify the topic sentence and supporting sentences a sample paragraph
A. THEORY
A. 1| LEAD - IN
Discuss the following questions with your partner.
• How long have you been learning English?
• Do you find learning English easy or difficult? Why?
A. 2| WRITING SAMPLE
Read the paragraph and answer the questions 1-4.
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Learning English can be really easy since there are many ways to practice the language. 2 At school,
my teacher, Mr Mark, organizes many fun activities and projects. 3 These activities and projects
always require us, students, to talk to each other in English. 4 At home, I listen to English music and
watch YouTube videos in English. 5 Sometimes, when I go out on the street and meet a foreigner, I try
using English to help them to find their way around. 6 With so many opportunities to use English, I
don’t have to struggle when learning English.
1) What is the topic of the paragraph? 2) What’s the writer most important opinion
about the topic?
a. English a. Everyone should learn English
b. Learning English b. It’s easy to find ways to practice English
c. The writer’s teacher c. English is a very useful subject
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WHAT IS TOPIC SENTENCE?
• A topic sentence is usually at the beginning of a paragraph:
o The paragraph from Exercise 2: the first sentence is the topic sentence.
• A topic sentence expresses the topic of the paragraph and the main idea about that topic.
o The paragraph from Exercise 2: the topic is learning English, and the main idea is:
learning English is easy because there are many ways to practice
WHAT ARE SUPPORTING SENTENCES?
Supporting Sentences
• give information that explains and expands the main idea expressed by the topic sentence.
• answer questions – who? what? when? why? and how? about the main idea– and give details
• can have many goals:
give reasons: Lukas quit school because he has found a really good job.
give facts: More than 10% of the student population is international.
give examples: For example, most Vietnamese students love Maths.
define: Many tourists visit Bangkok, which is the capital and largest city in Thailand.
B. IN-CLASS PRACTICE
B. 1| IDENTIFY TOPIC SENTENCES
Look at these topic sentences (1-4). Circle the topic of the sentence. Underline the main idea.
2. Reading novels, such as the Twilight series, can help students improve their English.
2| MATCH SENTENCES
Match the supporting sentences (C-F) with corresponding topic sentences (A and B).
Learning maths can be really easy since there are many ways to practice.
Maths is a really useful subject
According to research, students with good maths scores in high schools earn more money when they
start working.
Shopping is a great opportunity to learn maths because we always need to calculate how much
money we can spend on one item.
By easy I mean we can learn it both in the classroom and in our daily life.
For example, maths is very important if you want to learn business or engineering, and these two
careers pay very well.
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B.3| CATEGORIZE
Match the supporting sentences (C-F) from Exercise B.2 with corresponding goals listed below.
(a) give reasons (b) give facts (c) give examples (d) define
C. HOMEWORK
C. 1|MATCH SENTENCES
Match the supporting sentences (1-8) with corresponding topic sentences (A and B).
2. They are preferred by the general public because they help with weight reduction.
4. Many athletes eat high-protein foods, such as meat, beans, and nuts.
6. Because they are easy to find in stores, low-fat foods are convenient.
8. A low-fat diet is a diet that includes lean meat and lots of vegetables.
C.2| CATEGORIZ
Match the supporting sentences (1-8) from Exercise C.1 with corresponding goals listed below.
(a) give reasons (b) give facts (c) give examples (d) define
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