Describe a person who solved a problem in a smart way
IELTS Speaking Part 2 cue card with a full sample answer, a Band 9 model of the two-minute long turn.
The cue card
Describe a person who solved a problem in a smart way
You should say:
- who this person is
- what the problem was
- what solution they gave
- why you think it was a clever solution
Sample answer
One memorable instance that stands out for me is when my wife exhibited remarkable creativity in solving a problem we faced during a family trip. I have known her for nearly a decade, and we have been married since 2021. During our visit to the countryside to see my father, we encountered a challenge related to our son and his favorite toy. This toy is his constant companion, and when we realized we had forgotten it at home, our son was understandably upset. Upon arriving at my father's house, our son immediately began to express his disappointment. He believed that his beloved toy would somehow be among the bags we brought with us. When it became evident that it wasn't there, he started throwing a tantrum, which was quite challenging to manage. However, rather than becoming frustrated, my wife chose to think outside the box to alleviate our son's distress. She ingeniously suggested to our son that they could create a 'castle' together. With just a few blankets and a bedsheet, she fashioned a small castle-like structure in the living room. It was not only visually engaging, but it also provided a delightful space for both my son and my wife to enjoy together. They pretended that it was a magical castle that required protection from imaginary threats, which turned their attention away from the missing toy. I believe my wife's solution was exceptionally clever because it not only distracted our son from his immediate sadness, but also engaged his imagination in a positive way. By inventing a storyline involving saving the castle from evil forces and creating a 'secret weapon' to combat them, she transformed a negative situation into an adventure. This approach demonstrated her quick thinking and ability to nurture our child's creativity, proving that sometimes the most effective solutions come from imaginative thinking.
306 words — roughly 2–3 minutes at a natural speaking pace.
Reading a model answer is not the same as saying one. The sample above shows what a strong Part 2 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 I speak for in Part 2?
Between one and two minutes. The examiner stops you at two, so aim to still be talking at the ninety-second mark rather than finishing early — running out at forty seconds is the most common problem in this part.
What do I do with the one minute of preparation time?
You get one minute and a pencil and paper. Most candidates waste it writing full sentences they then read aloud, which sounds flat. Note a few keywords against each bullet instead, so you have four things to say and can speak naturally from them.
Do I have to cover all four bullet points?
They are prompts, not a checklist, and you are not penalised for skipping one. In practice they are the easiest way to fill two minutes, so covering them is usually the simplest way to keep going.
Does it matter if the story is not true?
No. You are assessed on your English, not on whether the events happened. Inventing detail is fine and often easier than recalling a real memory under pressure.
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.