In part one of your IELTS exam you might be asked, “Where can you see wild animals?” or a similar question.
Let’s look at how to give a great answer, including 10 good band-seven examples (go straight to the answers here).
Places With Wild Animals
A wild animal is an animal that hasn’t been domesticated or tamed. You can see wild animals in all kinds of places, such as:
- The zoo
- An aquarium
- TV documentaries
- A wildlife reserve
- A nature reserve
- On safari
- In the park
- In your garden
- In a forest
- On a mountain
- At the beach
- At sea
- Anywhere else you can think of
Keep Your Answers Short
In part one, your examiner needs to ask you 10 to 12 questions in only four to five minutes. That’s not a lot of time.
So help them out by keeping your part-one answers short. Just speak for 10 or 20 seconds, not more.
You can follow the three-step YES Method to help you give the right kind of answer. Just say:
- Your answer (say where you can see wildlife)
- Explain your answer or add a few more details
- Stop talking (let the examiner know you’re ready for the next question)
Focus on Fluency
In part one, you should try to impress the examiner by speaking smoothly and fluently.
Try not to hesitate at all. This is easier if you speak simple English and talk about the first thing that comes to your mind.
Don’t worry about trying to use complex, advanced vocabulary in part one. You can save that for part two of the test when you have more time to think.
Talk About Yourself
In part one of the exam, you can talk about yourself and your own life. This is the easiest way to think of things to say.
So for this question, say where you can find wild animals and then talk about your own experience at that place.
Example Answers
Here are 10 examples of how to answer this question.
Zoo
1. You can see wild animals at the zoo. Most cities have great zoos with plenty of exotic animals like tigers, elephants, and giraffes. I love visiting my local zoo. I’ve been there many times before.
Park
2. I suppose you can often find wild animals in the park. I have a spacious green park near my home, which I’ve been going to since I was little. I often see squirrels and wild birds there.
Forest
3. The forest is a great place to find wild animals. Just outside my city, there’s a large forest where you can see deer and boar and all kinds of insects and birds.
Nature Reserve
4. The best place to see wild animals is in a nature reserve, which is a protected natural area full of wildlife. Once I saw a brown bear in a nature reserve while on vacation.
Wildlife Rescue
5. I went to a wildlife rescue last year, which was full of wild animals that were rescued and looked after. It’s kind of like a zoo, but smaller. I saw an eagle, a crocodile, and a few monkeys there.
Thailand
6. I think the best place to see wild animals is on vacation to an exotic country like Thailand. I’ve been to Thailand a few times, and I often saw wild monkeys and colorful wild birds when I was there.
Sea
7. I love sailing and snorkeling and I’ve seen so many interesting fish and aquatic animals like octopus while out at sea. The waters are teeming with wildlife.
Garden
8. I can actually see plenty of wildlife if I step out into the garden of my parents’ house. There are birds, beetles, hedgehogs, and sometimes foxes, too.
Aquarium
9. I love visiting the aquarium in my city, which is full of wonderful sea animals. There are all kinds of fish, of course, and also dolphins, sharks, and even a small whale.
Mountains
10. The best place to find wild animals is when I go hiking in the mountains near my hometown. We can sometimes see moose and black bears there. And there are always large birds of prey in the sky, like raptors and hawks.
Your Turn To Answer
Now it’s your turn to try.
Turn your phone’s voice recorder on and ask aloud, “Where can you see wild animals?”
Try to answer as quickly as you can, without hesitation. Follow the three-step YES Method.
When you’ve finished, listen to your recording. See if you can improve your answer in any way, then try again.
Keep doing this exercise to prepare yourself for a band-seven score in part one of your IELTS Speaking test.