Describe a resolution you made in the New Year - IELTS Cue Card

Introduction To IELTS Cue Cards

The IELTS cue card is a small printed card that is provided to you during Speaking Part 2. It gives a topic with three to four bullet points that you must cover within a period of one minute, after which you have to speak on it without any interruptions for one to two minutes. This is unlike Part 1, where you have very simple questions asked to you by the examiner. In IELTS Speaking Part 2, you get an opportunity to prove your extended speech skills. This question tests vocabulary, grammar knowledge, and comprehension skills of candidates.

How to Answer the Cue Card?

To be able to answer the IELTS cue cards well, one has to understand the topic and what is expected. Start with an understanding of how questions are structured and what the crucial points include, for example, fluency and relevance. With the things you should consider, the tips below when answering such questions:

• Use your one minute to the fullest. You can learn this through regular IELTS speaking practice. Write down two or three key words for each bullet point rather than entire sentences. It is better if it does not sound like you are reading a prepared speech.
• Use some sensory details or emotional ones. A sentence "I remember sitting on my balcony on New Year's Eve, halfway listening to the fireworks when I got my idea" sounds much more convincing than "I decided to change my life."
• Stick to the chronological order. First mention your resolution, then state why you made it, then tell what steps you want to take to achieve it, and finish up with how you feel about it now.

Based on the topic of this blog, “Describe a resolution you made in the New Year”, you need to answer the following questions:

• What is the resolution?
• How will you complete it?
• How do you feel about it?
• Why did you make this resolution?

Below is the image of how the cue card for the topic Describe a resolution you made in the New Year will appear when you take the exam.

Describe a resolution you made in the New Year - Sample 1

Students preparing for the IELTS speaking section can evaluate the sample below for the topic “Describe a resolution you made in the New Year” to help them understand the right way to answer this question.

Introduction

New Year’s Eve seems to have this strange power of making people feel like they can begin their life again. I am no exception; on every New Year’s Eve, somewhere in between the countdown and the first sip of the New Year’s midnight coffee, I catch myself making a new resolution for myself. However, this year was an exception, because I completed the promise.

What is the resolution?

I always wanted to learn a new skill, and it was the perfect time to learn something new with the beginning of a new year. I decided to take up coding classes as my resolution. Moreover, I promised that by the end of the year I would be able to build projects without seeking anyone’s help.

How will you complete it?

This resolution was accomplished by making sensible choices rather than taking up an ambitious path only. Rather than believing that I would study for six hours, I chose to study the material for thirty minutes before sleeping. The time was kept short since it was certain that studying for six hours would not have been achieved. Besides, I joined an introductory Python course online, which helped me set goals for every week.

How do you feel about it?

The feeling of achieving something that you desired for so long is quite overwhelming. I have mixed emotions of pride and surprise because I can create small projects by myself now. There were times when I felt like skipping the tasks and did, especially when I felt stuck on a specific task. But I covered those classes the next day without wasting the whole month. Within 3 months of classes, I created an app to track my monthly outlays. It was genuinely a big achievement.

Why did you make this resolution?

This determination came as I repeatedly realised how much technology had been impacting every field of work, even my own, and I did not want to be a passive onlooker. There was another more personal reason as well; I wanted to prove I could learn a very new area of study as an adult, not just as a student.

Conclusion

Considering all of this, I found out more about discipline from this particular resolution than I did about programming itself. I have decided that next year’s resolution would build upon this one, such as learning another programming language or developing an application for budget management.

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Describe a resolution you made in the New Year - Sample 2

Now, see the second sample of the IELTS cue card, where you need to Describe a resolution you made in the New Year.

Introduction

Some resolutions involve starting something new, whereas others deal with getting rid of a bad habit which has stayed around for far too long. Mine was part of the latter; it revolved around my relationship with my mobile device, or rather, social media.

What is the resolution?

I was determined to reduce the amount of time I spent socializing on social networking sites, particularly at night. I was not planning to abandon any of the applications in an instant but rather to reduce the time I spent with my cell phone screen from four hours daily to something sensible.

How will you complete it?

First of all, I started by deleting those apps that I regularly used on my phone and only permitted myself to use them on my laptop. I made a rule for myself that I would not use my phone at all during the first hour after waking up and one hour prior to sleeping. To fill that gap, I started to read again, something that I had forgotten to do.

How do you feel about it?

This feeling of relief is a peculiar one to experience. It may seem intense, but reducing the amount of social media I have been doing lately gave me an abundance of free time and energy. I was never able to concentrate before, but now I am working without constantly glancing at my phone every few minutes. Of course, it was not easy; for the first two weeks, it just felt weird.

Why did you make this resolution?

I was out for dinner with a couple of my close friends when I realized that I had checked my mobile four times within just twenty minutes without even realizing it. This moment of embarrassment opened my eyes to the extent to which this behaviour of mine had taken over my life. It forced me to make this decision and socialise more with people around me.

Conclusion

Even after nine months, sometimes I experience a lapse, especially during weekends. However, the overall change has endured. It was an undertaking that started as an effort to minimize my screen time but grew into something bigger. Now, I spend more time with my friends, reading books, and working on my hobbies.

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Describe a resolution you made in the New Year - Sample 3

Below is one more example that would help you understand how to answer the IELTS speaking part 2 cue cards.

Introduction

Every New Year resolution does not necessarily have to revolve around better productivity for oneself. Sometimes, it is simply about addressing something that has been neglected in one’s personal life, and that perfectly defines my resolution, which was spending time with family.

What is the resolution?

I spend almost 10 hours at my workplace; as a result, I get limited time to spend with my family. Thus, I decided that from this New Year I will give more time to my parents. This may seem simple, but it was very impactful for me because I noticed how the communication between my parents and me had been shrinking lately, which was once or twice a week over phone calls.

How will you complete it?

I decided to take two leaves every month before the weekend and visit my hometown to spend some quality time with my parents. Moreover, during that period, I avoided using my phone and visiting my hometown friends. We started eating meals together while watching some comedy serials to make this particular time more fun.

How do you feel about it?

I feel grateful that I decided to take this resolution seriously because I feel our parents need us more than anyone in this world does. My mother started sharing all her worries with me and started feeling stress-free. On the other hand, my father was just happy with my presence at home. Seeing all these things made me happy and gave me a sense of relief.

Why did you make this resolution?

This resolution was made after talking to my friend, who had lost her mother very suddenly. It made me realize that family time should not be taken for granted and that "I will see them next month" can easily become several missed opportunities.

Conclusion

This is probably the most important commitment that I have ever made. Unlike any other commitments having something to do with fitness or efficiency, this one does not have a certain endpoint; I am going to pursue it endlessly.

Lexical Resources

Lexical resources help you build your vocabulary in the speaking and writing sections for the IELTS test. They measure your level of English proficiency and help the examiner gauge your speaking skills. As such, using high-level vocabulary for IELTS speaking section is very important so that you can impress the examiner. All the lexical resources used in the sample answers above have been summarized in the table below.

Follow-Up Questions

By now, you will know the type of questions expected on the Cue Card, and therefore, it is time to discuss some possible follow-up questions for your IELTS preparation that the examiner can ask during the test.

1. Did you think that most people achieve their New Year resolutions?

In my opinion, most people fail to complete their resolutions. It is because they make many resolutions in a flurry of enthusiasm during New Year’s Eve, without any practical plan.

2. What kinds of resolutions are common in your country?

In my country, there are lots of health-related resolutions; for example, joining a gym, bettering one’s diet, quitting smoking, etc. Financial ones are also quite popular, for instance saving more money or paying off debts.

3. According to you, why do people make New Year resolutions?

People make New Year resolutions because a new year feels like an appropriate time to mark a kind of reset of the mind, which makes change seem more plausible. It gives people an opportunity to let go of old habits and adopt new ones.

4. Are resolutions more effective when made alone or together with somebody else?

I guess it depends on the resolution itself; however, as a rule, sharing one’s resolution with somebody makes one stick to it. Knowing that your friend or relative is making the same resolution makes one feel responsible not to let him/her down.

5. How do the resolutions of young people differ from the old individuals?

The resolutions of young individuals revolve around work accomplishments, educational aspirations, or acquiring some skills because at their age, they have not yet developed a clear picture of the future. Meanwhile, the resolutions of older individuals focus on keeping themselves healthy, developing good family relations, or making life better.

Tips to Excel in IELTS Cue Card

The Cue Card task requires you to show how well you can communicate in English. However, candidates have to pay attention to components such as promptness in recognising prompts, organising responses, and speaking fluently, which is challenging. Thus, to perform successfully in the speaking cue card practice questions, you can check the expert tips mentioned below:

• Think of a timeline rather than a list. Arrange your response chronologically, from previous intention, through current actions to present emotion. It allows easier flow of speech and helps keep track of the order. Prepare using an IELTS speaking mock test to understand this strategy.
• Use different tenses effortlessly. This topic lends itself perfectly to showing how to use past simple, present perfect and even future tenses, because the concept of resolutions involves past actions, present circumstances and future intentions.
• Do not be concerned about silence while you are preparing. Write down five or six key words instead of trying to write sentences that you will not remember anyway to revise.
• Make your response unique by adding some idioms. The examiners always get the same type of resolutions like "lose weight" or "save money." An individual and truthful piece of information such as an episode of embarrassment or a certain conversation will make your answer remarkable and easier to speak about impromptu.
• Try to link your five points fluently. Use phrases like "the reason why I picked this one was," "to ensure I stayed committed," and "now that I think about it" to move from one point to another without seeming scripted.

Conclusion

Summing up, describing a resolution you made in the New Year is an example of such a question, which gives preference to authenticity rather than perfection. It is not necessary for the student to give any sort of narrative about a transformation in his life. Nevertheless, an honest answer about his pragmatic goal presented in an organized manner would be much better than a false one. You can use the sample answers that are offered by Gradding and tailor them to suit yourself. In addition, you can take our online IELTS coaching to excel in each part of the test.