IELTS Speaking Part 1: Childhood activities
4 common Part 1 questions on childhood activities, each with a sample answer at the length Part 1 actually wants.
What activities did you enjoy as a child?
As a child, I enjoyed a whole range of activities, but I especially loved playing outside with my friends. We would ride our bikes, play football and invent all sorts of games. I also spent a lot of time drawing and reading adventure stories, which I found really exciting.
Do children today play the same games you played?
Not really — children today play quite differently from how I did. When I was young, we spent most of our time playing outdoors, whereas nowadays kids seem far more absorbed in video games and mobile devices. It's a bit of a shame, as I think they miss out on some of the fun of active, outdoor play.
Did you prefer indoor or outdoor activities as a child?
I definitely preferred outdoor activities as a child. I loved the freedom and excitement of running around, exploring and playing sports with my friends in the fresh air. Indoor activities were fine for rainy days, but nothing beat the thrill of being outside.
Do you miss any childhood activities?
Yes, I do miss the carefree games and adventures of my childhood. Back then, we had so much free time and could play for hours without a single worry. As an adult with responsibilities, I sometimes long for that sense of simple, innocent fun.
Reading a model answer is not the same as saying one. The sample above shows what a strong Part 1 answer sounds like. What it cannot tell you is how yours sounds — whether you hesitate, repeat the question back, or run out of things to say at forty seconds.
You can record an answer to this exact question and get it marked on fluency and coherence, lexical resource, grammatical range and pronunciation — the same four criteria the examiner uses.
Common questions
How long should Part 1 answers be?
Two or three sentences. Part 1 is a warm-up and one-word answers stall the conversation, but a ninety-second speech on your home town is the wrong length too — the examiner has a list of questions to get through.
How long does Part 1 last?
Four to five minutes, covering three familiar topics. Your identity is checked first, then the questions start.
Can I ask the examiner to repeat a question?
Yes, and it costs you nothing. Asking for a repeat is normal conversational English; guessing at a question you misheard and answering the wrong one is far more damaging.
Model answers written and reviewed by The English All-in-One IELTS team. They are teaching models showing what each band looks like, not real candidate scripts.